Legal Supports for Problem-Solving Systems

Overview & Synopsis

Special education services are shaped by legal parameters developed over the past 30 years. Many of those services give priority to process and compliance rather than to focusing on student outcomes. Today, reform initiatives to special education programs are well underway, many of them shaped by fundamental changes occurring in local education agency practice. This article provides an overview of how federal special education law supports many of the reform efforts underway in many school districts throughout the country. It reviews important legislative changes to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1997 and 2004, including the section of IDEA 2004 that permits the use of response to intervention as a basis for determining special education eligibility.