
FEDERAL OVERVIEW
Individuals with
Disabilities
Education
Improvement Act
(IDEA 2004)
P.L. 108-466 (December 3, 2004)
IDEA emphasizes the importance of three core concepts:
1. the involvement and progress of
each student with a disability in the general curriculum and extracurricular activities, and the need to address each student’s academic achievement and functional performance and the unique challenges that arise from the student’s disability;
2. the involvement of parents and
students, together with general and special education personnel, in making individual decisions to support each student’s educational success; and
3. the preparation of students with
disabilities for further postsecondary education, employment and independent living.
By reauthorizing IDEA in 2004, Congress confirmed that research and practice in special education and related disciplines over the past 20 years had demonstrated that an effective educational system:
The object of extending Universal Design, an architectural concept, into the school and classroom was:
Another underlying focus of IDEA 2004 was the desire to reduce paperwork and staff time spent in meetings. For example, under certain circumstances: (1) staff may be excused from PPT meetings; and (2) there are alternate ways to participate in PPT meetings.
More information on IDEA:
Every child age 3 through 21 (or younger, if they have already graduated with a high school diploma), who has been determined by appropriate evaluations to be a child with an identified disability and who, for that reason, needs specialized instruction, has the right to a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE). To be eligible for services, a child must fit into a federal category, as explained in detail on pages 16-18. This right is guaranteed by federal and state laws.
In 1975, The Education for All Handicapped Children Act, an entitlement statute, was signed into law to insure that the educational rights of children with special needs were protected and that school districts provided these children with an education that met their needs. In 1990, this act was amended and renamed the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA, and in 1997, it was reauthorized. In 2004, IDEA was again reauthorized and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA or IDEA 2004). Additional modifications have been authorized since that time, and the statute is now referred to as “IDEA” once again.