Aimed at parents of and advocates for special needs children, explains how to develop a relationship with a school, monitor a child's progress, understand relevant legislation, and document correspondence and conversations.

[This text] teaches you how to use the law as your sword and your shield. Learn what the law says about: Child's right to a free, appropriate education (FAPE); Individual education programs, IEP teams, transition and progress; Evaluations, reevaluations, consent and independent educational evaluations; Eligibility and placement decisions; Least restrictive environment, mainstreaming, and inclusion; Research based instruction, discrepancy formulas and response to intervention; Discipline, suspensions, and expulsions; Safeguards, mediation, confidentiality, new procedures and timelines for due process hearings.--Back cover.

This text is designed to provide students with real-life case studies that address important issues within the IDEA and NCLB legislations. Students will see both best practice and less than best practice when they read the cases. It is specifically designed for graduate students who are taking a course in special education law and/or administration. Case Studies in Special Education Law is intended to provide supplemental instruction using real-life cases while studying the law.

Tremendous changes have occurred over the past decade in the provision of services to students with disabilities. Federal mandates continue to define requirements for a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment. Additionally, there has been an increase in the number of lawsuits filed against school districts regarding the provision of educational services for students with disabilities. Case studies are a helpful way to understand these difficult issues. The case studies presented here are actual students eligible for special education and related services. The case studies are represented not to tell districts and parents that this is the only way questions about special education law can be answered, but to provide likely answers along with commentary for analysis. The cases were developed to help new (and experienced) special education leaders and supervisors survive the pressures of working with students with disabilities while working to provide appropriate services and prevent litigation.

The Essentials of Special Education Law distills the legal complexities of special education into a practical resource for preparation programs as well as professionals in the field. Written and organized with college students and practicing educators in mind, this book serves as a go-to guide to the historical underpinnings of special education, the six pillars of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), essential court cases that have propelled the field of special education to where it is today, and practical application tips to ensure legal compliance. With 45 years of combined special education legal experience, authors Andrew Markelz and David Bateman present the essential components of special education law like never before.

Special Education Law, Sixth Edition, written by Laura Rothstein and Scott F. Johnson, provides a comprehensive and current overview of the major federal law, and judicial interpretations of those laws, that apply to special education students. School administrators and attorneys attend to special education issues on a regular basis, and local superintendents, principals, special education professionals, psychologists, and regional and state administrators must also be familiar with the legal requirements of educating students with disabilities. Classroom teachers in all types of classrooms need to be aware of the laws that affect them and their students. Special Education Law 6e is intended for students in education and educational administration, both graduate and undergraduate, as well as law students in courses on special education law, school law, and special education. The framework of this book begins with five introductory chapters on the major issues that are addressed in special education law. These topics include an overview the legal system, the history of special education, major statutes in special education law, stakeholders such as students, families, educators, and advocates, and finally, requirements for protection under various special education laws. The remainder of the text presents and analyzes special education case law within specific contexts. The text helps educators understand what the law requires so that they can make decisions that comply with these laws. Updates for the sixth edition include a major reorganization of the text. Chapters have been streamlined and edited for clarity, combining a previous chapter on Related Services with Free Appropriate Publication Education, and folding Eligibility into Identification, Evaluation, and Eligibility, so students can better see the connections between these topics. Many case excerpts have been shortened or summarized to provide students with a more straightforward and focused reading experience. The latest updates in statutes, regulations, and case law are included throughout the text.

Legal Issues in Special Education provides teachers and school administrators with a clearly written, well-organized, and understandable guide from the perspective of the practitioner without formal legal training. Even though over 50 percent of students with disabilities are now educated in general education classes, most teachers are not required to complete coursework in special education law and can unwittingly expose themselves and their schools to liability for violating the rights of students with disabilities. This practitioner’s guide explicitly addresses the major issues and legal complexities educators inevitably face when dealing with special education legal and policy issues. Using case-based learning to synthesize important legal concepts and principles from leading special education legal cases, this text guides educators, administrators, and parents alike toward a thorough understanding of, and the ability to navigate, many of the current and pressing legal concerns in special education.