{"id":149,"date":"2021-11-26T12:00:19","date_gmt":"2021-11-26T16:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/?p=149"},"modified":"2021-12-02T13:42:18","modified_gmt":"2021-12-02T17:42:18","slug":"whos-entitled-to-services-without-wasting-time-and-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/whos-entitled-to-services-without-wasting-time-and-money\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Special Education for Some Children a Waste of Time and Money?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"padding-bottom:20px; padding-top:10px;\" class=\"hupso-share-buttons\"><!-- Hupso Share Buttons - https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/ --><a class=\"hupso_pop\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/gallery\/share-button-gray.png\" style=\"border:0px\" alt=\"Share\" \/><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\">var hupso_services=new Array(\"Twitter\",\"Facebook\",\"Google Plus\",\"Pinterest\",\"Linkedin\",\"StumbleUpon\",\"Digg\",\"Reddit\",\"Bebo\",\"Delicious\");var hupso_icon_type = \"labels\";var hupso_background=\"#FFFFFF\";var hupso_border=\"#FFFFFF\";var hupso_image_folder_url = \"\";var hupso_twitter_via=\"wrightslaw\";var hupso_url=\"\";var hupso_title=\"Is%20Special%20Education%20for%20Some%20Children%20a%20Waste%20of%20Time%20and%20Money%3F\";<\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/js\/share.js\"><\/script><!-- Hupso Share Buttons --><\/div><blockquote><p>How does an IEP team determine if a student with special needs is entitled to services such as Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy? Is the team allowed to say that because a student has a very low IQ, services like OT and Speech would not be helpful? In my school, an IEP team wants to deny a student these services or offer them in very small amounts.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-24699\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/03\/boy.braille-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"529\" height=\"353\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/03\/boy.braille-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/03\/boy.braille-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/03\/boy.braille-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/03\/boy.braille.jpg 1254w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 529px) 100vw, 529px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The IEP team may say they don&#8217;t have to offer quality services to children who have low IQs. This is not legal or accurate.<\/p>\n<p>The IEP team is really saying that providing these services to a child who has cognitive impairments or multiple disabilities is a waste of time and money because the child is incapable of benefiting &#8230; or because other children will benefit more from these services.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Providing a FAPE to Kids with Severe Disabilities<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In the years after the law was enacted in the 1970s, schools often took the position that they didn&#8217;t have to provide a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/fape.index.htm\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><span style=\"color: #0066cc;\">free, appropriate public education (FAPE)<\/span><\/span><\/a> <span style=\"color: #0066cc;\">(<a style=\"color: #0066cc;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/fape.index.htm\">https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/fape.index.htm<\/a>)<\/span> to children who were severely disabled.<\/p>\n<p>For decades, courts ruled against schools that used that argument.<\/p>\n<p>The law says that if a child has a disability and needs special education, the <strong>school is required to provide<\/strong> the child with a free appropriate public education (FAPE) which is a special education program designed to meet that <strong>child&#8217;s unique needs<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The IEP must meet <strong>all the child&#8217;s needs<\/strong> that result from the disability.<\/li>\n<li>The IEP must include <strong>all related services and all supplementary aids and services<\/strong> that the child needs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The IDEA <strong>does not say<\/strong> that schools are required to provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to all children with disabilities <strong>except<\/strong> children who have more severe disabilities &#8211; children who have low IQs, cognitive impairments, multiple disabilities, etc.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong>What the Law Says &#8211; and Where<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>I can tell you what the law says but this probably won&#8217;t do you much good unless you know where to find answers to your questions about the law and what it requires.<\/p>\n<p>If you are advocating for a family who is dealing with these problems, and the IEP team is providing the family with incorrect information, you need to know how to find answers to questions about what the law requires.<\/p>\n<p>The IDEA and federal regulations, with commentary, and analysis of what a specific part of the law means, and decisions from the U.S. Supreme court about related services are in <span style=\"color: #000080;\"><span style=\"color: #0066cc;\"><a style=\"color: #0066cc;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/bks\/selaw2\/selaw2.htm\">Wrightslaw: Special Education Law, 2nd edition<\/a>: <a style=\"color: #0066cc;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/bks\/selaw2\/selaw2.htm\">https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/bks\/selaw2\/selaw2.htm<\/a><\/span><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p>You can also go to the <span style=\"color: #0066cc;\"><a style=\"color: #0066cc;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/idea\/index.htm\">IDEA 2004<\/a><\/span> area of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/\">Wrightslaw website<\/a> where you will find information that will help you: <span style=\"color: #0066cc;\"><a style=\"color: #0066cc;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/idea\/index.htm\">https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/idea\/index.htm<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong>Are Kids with Severe Disabilities Exempt from State and District Tests?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><em>My child has a severe disability. is he exempt from taking state and district assessments?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>No. All children must take state and district assessments. Decisions about whether your child needs to take an alternate assessment should depend on your child&#8217;s unique needs, not on the category of his disability.<\/p>\n<p>Most children with disabilities are able to keep up with their peers academically and take standardized tests successfully if they are receiving specialized instruction designed to meet their unique needs.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #000080;\">School Says My Nonverbal Child &#8220;Cannot be Taught&#8221; to Communicate<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><em>My child has autism and is nonverbal. He gets angry and frustrated because he cannot communicate. I want the school to teach him a way to communicate, but the school claims he cannot be taught.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Your nonverbal child with autism must have a way to effectively communicate.<\/p>\n<p>Most people can use speech to communicate in a social context. For children with autism, communication and social skills are interdependent.<\/p>\n<p>Your nonverbal child needs services from a specialist who can teach him a functional method of communication.\u00a0 The IEP team must develop an appropriate communication program based on a comprehensive assessment of your child&#8217;s needs and abilities.<\/p>\n<p>If your child cannot speak, the IEP team must also consider his needs for assistive technology. The team should schedule an assistive technology evaluation to identify his needs and how to meet these needs.<\/p>\n<p>Learn more about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/iep.specfact.popup.resp11.htm\"><span style=\"color: #0066cc;\">Special Factors in IEPs<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, we have a page about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/autism.index.htm\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><span style=\"color: #0066cc;\">Autism, Autism Spectrum Disorders, PDD &amp; Asperger Syndome<\/span><\/span><\/a> with FAQs, articles, legal resources, recommended books, free publications, and a list of information and support groups: <span style=\"color: #0066cc;\"><a style=\"color: #0066cc;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/autism.index.htm\">https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/autism.index.htm<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><em>Re-edited from a post originally published 03\/06\/2009<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How does an IEP team determine if a student with special needs is entitled to services such as Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy? Is the team allowed to say that <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/whos-entitled-to-services-without-wasting-time-and-money\/\">Continue Reading \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24699,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35,57,5,1274,11,64],"tags":[1301,1309,1293],"class_list":["post-149","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-eligibility","category-fape","category-idea-2004","category-related-services","category-special-ed-law","category-special-education-regulations","tag-eligibility","tag-fape","tag-idea-2004"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=149"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26558,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149\/revisions\/26558"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24699"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=149"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=149"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}