{"id":354956,"date":"2016-04-04T11:01:45","date_gmt":"2016-04-04T16:01:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/education\/special-education-and-disabilities\/definition-of-disability-and-eligibility-for-special-education.html"},"modified":"2023-10-03T13:19:56","modified_gmt":"2023-10-03T18:19:56","slug":"definition-of-disability-and-eligibility-for-special-education","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/education\/special-education-and-disabilities\/definition-of-disability-and-eligibility-for-special-education.html","title":{"rendered":"What Disabilities Qualify a Student for Education Support Services?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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What Disabilities Qualify a Student for Education Support Services?<\/h1>\n
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All school districts in the United States are required by law to identify, locate, and test children with disabilities. School districts then have a duty to evaluate the eligibility of children for education support or services. Then, they begin to develop individualized education programs, often called "IEPs," for them.<\/p>\n

This article briefly overviews how disabilities are defined regarding accessible education in the United States.<\/p>\n

What Is Special Education?<\/h2>\n

Accessible education is designed for students with learning, physical, or emotional disabilities. Individual education services<\/a> help them learn at their grade level in public schools. The goal is for them to have the same chance to succeed as more typically developing students.<\/p>\n

In the past, laws and institutions used the term "special education," which can be stigmatizing and offensive. The preferred term is "individual education" or "accessible education." <\/p>\n

Not all students receive individual education. Only eligible students with certain disabilities, like developmental delay, hard of hearing, and others, qualify. Individual education is aimed to start before elementary school. Early intervention helps very young kids at a preschool level. As students move from middle school to high school or secondary education, their Individualized Education Programs<\/a> ("IEPs") will help along the way.<\/p>\n

Every student who gets these education services will have an IEP developed by that student’s IEP team. This program is a statement of a student’s educational needs and goals. It’s like a roadmap for how the school will help the student.<\/p>\n

The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)<\/h2>\n

At the heart of accessible education law is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA. This federal law makes sure that public schools provide free appropriate public education, or FAPE, to eligible children with disabilities. FAPE means that students receive educational services that meet their needs without any cost to their families.<\/p>\n

IDEA gives protection to students and their families. There are procedural safeguards in place. If families disagree with the school, they can use dispute resolution or demand a due process hearing. These tools help families and schools work together. At the same time, they ensure that the rights of the child to a FAPE are protected.<\/p>\n

One big idea in the IDEA is the least restrictive environment (LRE). This means that students with disabilities should learn with students without disabilities to the maximum extent possible. So, if a student can learn in a general education classroom, they should.<\/p>\n

IDEA is also about student civil rights. It ensures that every student gets a fair chance at education. Apart from teaching, students might need related services. These can be things like speech therapy or counseling. These services make sure students can benefit from and access their individual education services.<\/p>\n

Defining Disability<\/h2>\n

IDEA and the corresponding regulations define disabilities as at least one of the following conditions:<\/p>\n