In the U.S., federal education mandates guarantee that each child can attend school and graduate with a diploma. Traditional school districts cover every square inch of Arizona, from the sprawling urban and suburban centers to the sparsely populated expanses in the state's rural areas. A majority of Arizona's students learn sufficiently in generalized classroom settings; however, students with disabilities and others with divergent needs have challenges succeeding in the same environment.
With the layers of state and federal laws in place to protect education rights and foster academic inclusion, students with disabilities have access to numerous accommodations and program modifications that they may need to work toward gaining a diploma. Special education is the general term reserved for program or individual deviations from traditional learning environments.
Special education services cover a wide array of unique approaches to schooling to keep up with individual student needs. Most K-12 schools have in-house special education programs, but school districts often bolster them with alternative programs outside of the student's normal environment but still within their family's area of residency. Nevertheless, assistance for students with disabilities can even be physical aids like audio-version textbooks, smaller class sizes, and others. Despite the significance of any accommodation, students with disabilities often have multiple governed by an official school-managed plan as generalized methods fail to meet diverse needs.
Even though federal and state regulations require schools to provide special education services and alternative programs to maintain statewide academic guidelines, what each district or program can provide can differ based on a variety of factors. For instance, the size of the area's population, socioeconomic dynamics, the size of the student body at a given school, the school or program's distance from major metropolitan areas, and more. Regardless of where you live or the resources of local schools, your child has a right to the accommodations they need to gain an education, and the Lento Law Firm is here to help students with disabilities. Arizona school districts often maintain complex, time-consuming procedures to grant disability accommodations and special education services, so get started with the help your child needs today and call 888-535-3686 or contact the Lento Law Firm Education Law Team online.
What is Special Education in Arizona?
The definition of special education can be as varied as there are students who benefit from various approaches to K-12 education. Yet, there are clear guidelines that each school must follow under federal obligations.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the leading federal law protecting disability rights in K-12 education. IDEA has four parts directed mainly at different age groups eligible for public education. They include the following:
- Part A: General outline of the statute
- Part B: Federally-backed, state-provided student assistance (ages 3-21)
- Part C: Early intervention services for infants and toddlers
- Part D: Parent training and information and state personnel development
IDEA Part B is the most commonly used section that parents should be familiar with. Students receive special education services under IDEA, but some states and localities may offer additional support.
The law covers students aged between 3-21 years in public school, also approving private agencies to provide services to students with disabilities. Some states may offer special education programs until students turn 22, but the Arizona Department of Education (AZED) goes even further. Students with disabilities who reach age 22 during the school year may continue to receive those services until the end of that academic year.
Within AZED, Exceptional Student Services (ESS) manages compliance for the state's special education programs, ensuring all align with IDEA. ESS also provides professional learning opportunities, additional assistance to schools, and support to families of students with disabilities.
Common Special Education Terms
Although students with disabilities will receive unique assistance depending on what they require to succeed in academic life, there are some commonalities within the scope of special education.
- Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE): Under federal law, every student is entitled to a public education without charge and tailored to meet their needs. The primary objective of IDEA is to provide FAPE for students with disabilities to have access to an education comparable in quality to that available to non-disabled peers.
- Individualized Education Programs (IEPs): Strategic plans created in collaboration with special education personnel, parents, and sometimes the student to create guidelines of support and resources. These can include reasonable accommodations a school makes to provide students with disabilities the same level of education and access to FAPE as those without disabilities.
- Reasonable Accommodations: To fulfill FAPE requirements, schools must provide accommodations to students with disabilities, which are outlined in a student's IEP. However, the federal provision does not include the "best" accommodations, only "reasonable" ones for qualifying disabilities.
- Least Restrictive Environment (LRE): This is the environment students with disabilities must be in to make them part of the school community. What LRE means depends on each student's disability and their best interests but will involve the implementation of reasonable accommodations for the student to gain the same quality of education as non-disabled peers.
What Students Qualify for Special Education?
IDEA outlines 13 categories of disabilities that are legally required to be met with reasonable accommodations or other special education services. They include the following:
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Deafness
- Deaf-Blindness
- Emotional Disturbance Disorders
- Intellectual Disabilities
- Hearing Impairments
- Multiple Disabilities
- Orthopedic Impairments
- Specific Learning Disabilities
- Speech or Language Impairments
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Visual Impairments
- Other Health impairments
As mentioned before, some states expand special education services under IDEA's state-managed provisions. AZED includes two additional categories: Developmental Delay and Preschool Severe Delay.
It's important to note that your child may not automatically qualify for special education services for reasonable accommodations under IDEA just because they have a diagnosed disability. A collaborative effort with school special education personnel and even state authorities must determine that the student will progress academically or behaviorally with the assigned accommodations. Though, they often extend to extracurricular activities to provide inclusion into the general student body.
How Does Arizona Test Students for Disabilities?
Assessments are individualized for each student, using a variety of methods and procedures to gather relevant functional, developmental, and academic information about the child. A school or district's IEP team will seek to find as much information as they can to analyze the presence of a possible disability, which may include, but is not limited to, the following:
- Preschool activities
- General curriculum progress
- Classroom observations
- Examinations (medical, behavioral, intellectual, etc.)
- Other assessments to determine a child's aptitude or potential achievement levels.
If the IEP team or the school district does not suspect a disability present, parents will be provided a written notice of their refusal to implement services. Parents are also not obligated to agree with the district or IEP team's proposals.
Types of Services
Special education services will cover a wide range of accommodations and modifications. They can be slight or significant changes to the content of the curriculum, student performance expectations, or the educational environment. They may include but are not limited to:
- Physical therapy
- Interpreting services
- Audiology services
- Orientation and mobility services
- Medical services (diagnostic and evaluation purposes only)
- Behavioral counseling
- Family counseling
- Occupational therapy
- Speech therapy
- Specialized transportation
Students with disabilities may also receive supplementary aid under IDEA. These services and other supports provided in regular education classes or other education-related settings enable children with disabilities to be a part of the same learning environment as non-disabled children to the maximum extent appropriate. Supplementary aids can be as wide-ranging as accommodations and modifications, including some of the following:
- Oral or open-book exams
- Large-print textbooks
- Extended assignment completion times
- Preferential seating
- Frequent reminders of class rules and expectations
- Personal or instructional support from special education personnel
- Tutoring services
- Other materials, specialized equipment, or personnel services that help the child remain in a traditional classroom setting.
Parents may look to advocate for new methods or services they believe would help their child succeed in school. However, it's important to reiterate that federal law only requires that school districts offer only reasonable accommodations, not all accommodations. While parental encouragement may work in some circumstances, requests for additions that would only help a limited number of students or are outside of the school or district's budget may be less successful. Though, accommodations that are less expensive, easy to implement, or would assist a number of students are more likely to be approved.
For instance, a request for a cutting-edge computer program that requires multiple trained personnel to operate is unlikely to be fulfilled by a school. However, a request for the audio version of a textbook that other students are using could be more favorable.
Arizona Special Education Dispute Resolution
On occasion, parents and the IEP team may come to a disagreement about what the student needs to make meaningful educational progress. When conflict arises, the Office of Dispute Resolution (ODR)— a division of ESS—offers several resolution options.
- Facilitated IEPs: An ODR official will help parents communicate with the school district in developing an IEP.
- Mediation: A third party assists parents and school staff when they are in negotiations to clarify IEP issues, focus on the needs of the student, and explore possible solutions in a confidential setting.
- Administrative Complaint: If IDEA's provisions are violated, parents may advocate for AZED to conduct an investigation of the school or school district.
Due Process Hearing: In front of an administrative law judge (ALJ), both parties—parents and the school—will make arguments for their respective viewpoints. The ALJ will then make a recommendation, which is legally binding if accepted by both parties.
An Arizona Student's Right to Special Education
Students with disabilities have the right to FAPE, which includes the special education services they need to succeed. But sometimes, options—or a lack thereof—may make it difficult to find the best path, and the process of navigating the system can be complicated. Nevertheless, parents can gain invaluable assistance in guiding their child through the IEP assessment process, obtaining necessary reasonable accommodations, and maintaining education goals through graduation.
Parents will find the direction of the Lento Law Firm Education Law Team instrumental to their child's future for many of the following reasons:
- Legal Comprehension: IDEA and other educational regulations are commonly tough to understand as they are filled with legal jargon. However, the Lento Law Firm understands particular nuances of state and federal regulations to ensure that you know how your child is affected.
- Discrimination Risks: Even though students with disabilities are protected against discrimination, a school's lack of enforcement can severely affect your child. Partnering with the Education Law Team will help you discern instances of discrimination from the school or institution.
- Due Process Hearings: If parents disagree with a school district's evaluations or the services provided, they can request a due process hearing from the ODR. The Lento Law Firm's Education Law Team can assist students and their families in such proceedings, presenting evidence and making legal arguments to ODR officials.
- Professional Student Advocacy: Creating an IEP is critical to a student's education. Schools may fail to consider the appropriate "reasonable" accommodations for a student with disabilities to succeed, and an attorney can play a beneficial role in addressing weak points in an IEP, their LRE, and promote special education resources the student is entitled to by law.
The Lento Law Firm Education Law Team works with families nationwide to advocate for their children and to ensure they receive the same education opportunities as other students. Your child must have the accommodations they are entitled to under the law—contact the Lento Law Firm online or call 888-535-3686 now.
