IDEA+&+504+Sec+1

Group 4: IDEA 2004 and Section 504


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= INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT (IDEA) 2004 =

History of IDEA IDEA began as the Education for all Handicapped Children Act in 1975 (EHA). Every five years, this law was updated, implemented to offer students with disabilities specialized education services to ensure their academic success. The components of the law that covered the education and care of infants and toddlers were added in 1986. On December 3, 2004, President George W. Bush signed IDEA into law and the law became effective on July 1, 2005. Other elements of the law, except for the definition of a "highly qualified teacher," were defined and implemented later in 2006.

This law brought about concepts that we should all be familiar with as educators, such as:

**IEP (**Individualized Education Program): Plan for action to assist students with disabilities in school involving educators and parents.
====**LRE** (Least Restrictive Environment): Concept that students with disabilities should be learning in an environment that coincides with their needs; students should be in a regular classroom with their peers and may be placed elsewhere for certain lessons or specific attention to skill development.====

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IDEA is an education act implemented to provide federal financial assistance to State and local education agencies that will guarantee special education and related services to eligible children with disabilities.=====


 * Components:**


 * [|Part A]:** Defines "Specific Learning Disability" as a disorder in the basic psychological processes, meaning that the student may have difficulty with one or more of the following: reading, writing, concentrating, listening, speaking, or doing mathematical calculations.

[|**Part B:**]This section outlines the guidelines that schools must follow in order to receive funding from the Act. This section discusses the distribution of funds; how much federal funding may be used and how much can be given for administrative purposes. How preschools can be eligible is also covered, as well as how the government will monitor the usage of funding and how effective this is.


 * Part C:** Discusses the early intervention program for children with disabilities from birth to age three. Officials and educators work directly with the families, offering training for family members, counseling and speech therapy, and physical therapy.


 * Part D**: Outlines how the government will offer resources to educate teachers and other officials about effectively working with students covered by this program. This includes education for teachers, workshops, established training centers for parents and offering resources rich with information about students with disabilities.


 * Who Is Protected?** Individuals ages 3-21 who are determined by a multidisciplinary team to be eligible within one or more of 13 specific categories of disability and who need special education and related services. These categories include autism, deafness, deaf-blindness, hearing impairments, mental retardation, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairments, other health impairments, serious emotional disturbance, specific learning disabilities, speech or language impairments, traumatic brain injury, and visual impairment.

IDEA requires the development of an IEP with specific content and a required number of specific participants at an IEP meeting.
 * Responsibility To Provide A Free, Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)?**--Yes, F.A.P.E. is a means to special education and related services. Special education means "specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of the child with a disability...." Related services are provided if student's require them in order to benefit from specially designed instruction. States are required to ensure the provision of "full educational opportunity" to all children with disabilities.


 * Funding To Implement Requirements**?--Yes. IDEA provides federal funds under Parts B and H to assist State and local education agencies in meeting IDEA requirements to serve children from infants through to youth with disabilities.


 * Procedural Safeguards**--IDEA requires written notice to parents regarding identification, evaluation, and/or placement. Written notice must be made prior to any change in placement. The Act delineates the required components of the written notices.

For evaluation and placement decisions, IDEA requires that more than one single procedure or information source be used; that information from all sources be documented and carefully considered; that the eligibility decision be made by a group of persons who know about the student, the evaluation data, and placement options; and that the placement decision serves the student in the least restrictive environment. An IEP review meeting is required before any change in placement.
 * Evaluation/Placement Procedures**--A comprehensive evaluation is required. A multidisciplinary team evaluates the child, and parental consent is required before an initial evaluation. IDEA requires that reevaluations be conducted at least every 3 years. A reevaluation is not required before a significant change in placement.

=SECTION 504 OF THE REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973 = = = Section 504 is a civil rights law to prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability in programs and activities, public and private, that receive federal financial assistance.

Section 504 states that: “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States, as defined in section 706(8) of this title, shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance...” [29 U.S.C. §794(a), 34 C.F.R. §104.4(a)].


 * Who Is Protected?**--Any person who (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, (which include walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, working, caring for oneself, and performing manual tasks), (2) has a record of such an impairment, or (3) is regarded as having such an impairment.

Section 504 does require development of a plan. The IEP of IDEA may be used for the Section 504 written plan. Many experts recommend that a group of persons knowledgeable about the students convene and specify the agreed-upon services.
 * Responsibility To Provide A Free, Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)?** --Yes. An "appropriate" education means an education comparable to that provided to students without disabilities. This may be defined as regular or special education services. Students can receive related services under Section 504 even if they are not provided any special education.


 * Funding To Implement Requirements?**--No. State and local jurisdictions have responsibility. IDEA funds may not be used to serve children found eligible only under Section 504.


 * Procedural Safeguards**--Section 504 requires notice to parents regarding identification, evaluation, and/or placement. Written notice is recommended. Notice must be made only before a "significant change" in placement. Following IDEA procedural safeguards is one way to meet Section 504 mandates.

Like IDEA, evaluation and procedures under Section 504 require that information be obtained from a variety of sources in the area of concern; that all data are documented and considered; and that decisions are made by a group of people knowledgeable about the student, evaluation data, and placement options. Section 504 requires periodic reevaluations, but does not specify any timelines for placement. Section 504 requires that students be educated with their nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate. Section 504 does not require a meeting or any change in placement.
 * Evaluation/Placement Procedures**--Unlike IDEA, Section 504 requires only notice, not consent, for evaluation. It is recommended that districts obtain parental consent.



Sources: http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content3/ada.idea.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCqeFxDgacQ&feature=player_embedded http://www.nichcy.org/Laws/IDEA/pages/PartB.aspx http://idea.ed.gov/explore/view/p/%2Croot%2Cdynamic%2CTopicalBrief%2C20%2C http://www.greatschools.org/special-education/legal-rights/section-504.gs?content=868 http://www.come-over.to/FAS/IDEA504.htm http://www.slc.sevier.org/iepv504.htm http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/504faq.html