Congress Dramatically Changes IDEA

Authors

  • Bev Johns

Abstract

The reauthorization of IDEA, which is now Public Law 108-446, was signed into law by President Bush on December 3,2004. This article discusses background issues and some of the consequences of this new law for children with learning disabilities. For the first time in a reauthorization of IDEA, the rights of parents and students have been reduced. Some argue that IDEA 2004 is the best we could get. The fact that the special education community was so divided during this reauthorization helped produce IDEA 2004. Major issues such as full inclusion, the standardized tests of NCLB, whether special education teachers should be primarily consultants to general education teachers or be primarily direct teachers of children, and even whether learning disabilities exist or are just learning differences divided us. Special education faces a very difficult future.

Issue

Section

Articles