understanding special education paper assignment

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Defining and Understanding Special Education

This chapter presents a succinct yet comprehensive overview of Special Education, integrating specific citations from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to underscore the significance of each component of the entitlements under “Special Education” for school-aged children with disabilities. As you progress through your course of study en route to obtaining your special education teacher certification, you will delve deeply into these subtopics, gaining a thorough understanding of the intricate framework that supports the educational journey of students with disabilities.

Throughout your academic and professional pursuits, you will explore the nuances of these regulations and how they translate into practical applications within the classroom. By understanding the legal foundations, such as the IDEA statute and regulations, you will be better equipped to advocate for and implement the rights and services essential for the growth and development of students with disabilities.

Table of Contents

• Where “special education” is defined in IDEA
• Key points about “special education”

IDEA’s Exact Words

Adaptations and modifications, where is special education provided, the long story on special education.

• What does “specially designed Instruction” mean?

What’s peer-reviewed research?

• The role of states

Key Takeaway

Special education is not a place. It’s a set of services that includes adapting instruction (what’s presented, how it’s presented) to address the unique needs of the child that result from the disability.

Excerpts from the Center for Parent Information and Resources (6.27.2020). Key Definitions in IDEA| Defining and Understanding Special Education, Newark, NJ, Author (2017)

Special Education

Importance of This Key Term  | As the OSEP  Dear Colleague Letter on FAPE  indicates, special education is at the core of how schools address the needs of students with disabilities and support them in achieving the annual goals stated in their IEPs as aligned with the state’s academic content standards. Accordingly, how this term is defined in law and implemented in the real world is extremely important to students, families, schools, and Parent Centers.

Where “special education” is defined in IDEA  | IDEA defines “special education” at 34 CFR §300.39, as follows:

§300.39 Special education.

(a)  General . (1) Special education means specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability, including—

(i) Instruction conducted in the classroom, in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and in other settings; and

(ii) Instruction in physical education.

(2) Special education includes each of the following if the services otherwise meet the requirements of paragraph (a)(1) of this section—

(i) Speech-language pathology services, or any other related service, if the service is considered special education rather than a related service under State standards;

(ii) Travel training; and

(iii) Vocational education.

(b)   Individual special education terms defined .  The terms in this definition are defined as follows:

(1)  At no cost  means that all specially-designed instruction is provided without charge, but does not preclude incidental fees that are normally charged to nondisabled students or their parents as a part of the regular education program.

(2)  Physical education  means—

(i) The development of—

(A) Physical and motor fitness;

(B) Fundamental motor skills and patterns; and

(C) Skills in aquatics, dance, and individual and group games and sports (including intramural and lifetime sports); and

(ii) Includes special physical education, adapted physical education, movement education, and motor development.

(3)  Specially designed instruction  means adapting, as appropriate to the needs of an eligible child under this part, the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction—

(i) To address the unique needs of the child that result from the child’s disability; and

(ii) To ensure access of the child to the general curriculum, so that the child can meet the educational standards within the jurisdiction of the public agency that apply to all children.

(4)  Travel training  means providing instruction, as appropriate, to children with significant cognitive disabilities, and any other children with disabilities who require this instruction, to enable them to—

(i) Develop an awareness of the environment in which they live; and

(ii) Learn the skills necessary to move effectively and safely from place to place within that environment (e.g., in school, in the home, at work, and in the community).

(5)  Vocational education  means organized educational programs that are directly related to the preparation of individuals for paid or unpaid employment, or for additional preparation for a career not requiring a baccalaureate or advanced degree.

Key points about “special education”  | When you read the  Dear Colleague Letter on FAPE , you’ll notice that there are several points made about the nature of “special education.” These include that:

Special education is instruction that is  specially designed  to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability. The hallmark of special education is that it is individualized for student needs.

Special education is provided  at no cost  to parents or students.

Special education can be provided in different locations, depending on student needs. IDEA strongly prefers that students receive their special education services  in the general education classroom  with their nondisabled peers, as you can see by its  LRE provisions .

Special education is not a place, however. It’s a set of services, which includes adapting instruction (what’s presented, how it’s presented) to address the unique needs of the child that result from the disability.

Special education isn’t separated from the academic content that students are supposed to learn for their grade. It’s meant to  support  the learning of that academic conten t. That’s why IDEA emphasizes that special education needs to ensure that students with disabilities have  access to the general curriculum  that all students are expected to learn. And that’s why the  Dear Colleague Letter on FAPE  stresses the importance of aligning a student’s goals in the IEP to the academic content for that student’s enrolled grade.

Excerpts from the Center for Parent Information and Resources (6.27.2020).  Special Education, Newark, NJ, Author (2017)

It’s helpful to see IDEA’s full requirement for specifying a child’s special education in his or her IEP. This appears at §300.320(a)

(4) and stipulates that each child’s IEP must contain:

(4) A statement of the special education and related services and supplementary aids and services, based on peer-reviewed research to the extent practicable, to be provided to the child, or on behalf of the child, and a statement of the program modifications or supports for school personnel that will be provided to enable the child—

(i) To advance appropriately toward attaining the annual goals;

(ii) To be involved in and make progress in the general education curriculum in accordance with paragraph (a)(1) of this section, and to participate in extracurricular and other nonacademic activities; and

(iii) To be educated and participate with other children with disabilities and nondisabled children in the activities described in this section… [§300.320(a)(4)] In its entirety, this provision is the heart and soul, meat and potatoes, bricks and mortar (choose your analogy!) of the IEP. When taken off paper and operationalized in school, it becomes the education that a child with a disability receives. The part we’ve put in bold is the focus of this article, but you’ll want to read the next two articles as well, so you can integrate the information here about special education with what’s presented separately about related services and supplementary aids and services.

Special Education, in Brief

Special education is instruction that is specially designed to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability.  This means education that is individually developed to address a  specific   child’s needs that result from his or her disability. Since each child is unique, it is difficult to give an overall example of special education. It is individualized for each child.

Some students may be working at the pre-kindergarten grade level, others at the first, second, or third grade level. There may be students whose special education focuses primarily on speech and language development, cognitive development, or needs related to a physical or learning disability. Special education for any student can consist of:

• an individualized curriculum that is  different   from that of same-age, nondisabled peers (for example, teaching a blind student to read and write using Braille);
• the  same   (general) curriculum as that for nondisabled peers, with adaptations or modifications made for the student (for example, teaching 3rd grade math but including the use of counting tools and assistive technology for the student); and
• a combination of these elements.

It is also important to remember that the education, services, and supports outlined in a child’s IEP do not necessarily cover that child’s  entire  education.  The IEP only addresses those educational needs resulting from the child’s disability.  If a child needs special education support throughout the school day, for all activities, the IEP will cover all these needs. If the child doesn’t need special education support in one or more areas (for example, physical education, music, or science), then the IEP will not include these subjects. The child accesses them through the general curriculum/ class, with no additional special education services.

The individualization of instruction is an important part of special education. Instruction and schoolwork are tailored to the needs of the child. Sometimes a student may need to have changes made in class work or routines because of his or her disability. Modifications can be made to:

• what   a child is taught, and/or
• how  a child works at school.

Sometimes, people get confused about what it means to have a modification  and what it means to have an  accommodation . Usually, a modification   means a  change in what is being taught to or expected from the student . Making an assignment easier so the student is not doing the same level of work as other students is an example of a modification. An  accommodation  is a change that helps a student overcome or work around the disability . Allowing a student with trouble writing to give his answers orally is an example of an accommodation. This student is still expected to know the same material and answer the same questions as fully as the other students, but he doesn’t have to write his answers to show that he knows the information.

What is most important to know about modifications and accommodations is that both are meant to help a child to learn. For example:

Jack is an 8th-grade student who has learning disabilities in reading and writing. He is in a regular 8th-grade class that is team-taught by a general education teacher and a special education teacher. Modifications and accommodations provided for Jack’s daily school routine (and when he takes state or district-wide tests) include the following:

• Jack will have shorter reading and writing assignments.
• Jack’s textbooks will be based on the 8th-grade curriculum but at his independent reading level (4th grade).
• Jack will have test questions read/explained to him when he asks.

Modifications or accommodations are most often made in the following areas:

Scheduling . For example:

• giving the student extra time to complete assignments or tests
• breaking up testing over several days

Setting . For example:

• working in a small group
• working one-on-one with the teacher

Materials . For example:

• providing audiotaped lectures or books
• giving copies of the teacher’s lecture notes
• using large print books, Braille, or books on CD (digital text)

Instruction . For example:

• reducing the difficulty of assignments
• reducing the reading level
• using a student/peer tutor

Student  Response . For example:

• allowing answers to be given orally or dictated
• using a word processor for written work
• using sign language, a communication device, Braille, or a native language if it is not English.

Special education instruction can be provided in a number of settings , such as in the classroom, in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and in other settings (§300.26). Schools must ensure that a  continuum of alternative placements  is available to meet the needs of children with disabilities. This continuum must include the placements just mentioned (instruction in regular classes, special classes, special schools, home instruction, and instruction in hospitals and institutions). Unless a child’s IEP requires some other arrangement, the child must be educated in the school he or she would attend if he or she did not have a disability [§300.116(c)].

Special education instruction must be provided to students with disabilities in what is known as the  least restrictive environment , or LRE. IDEA includes provisions that ensure that children with disabilities are educated with nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate. Each state must also ensure that special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular educational environment occurs only if the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily [§300.114(a)(2)(ii)].

Of course, there’s much more to special education than the short summary above. For those of you who want the nitty-gritty, detailed, full picture of special education, here it comes. Keep reading.

Defining special education

Special education.  Sometimes, when the term is used, it means “special education” as defined by IDEA at §300.39, and other times it’s a reference to the field at large—teachers, offices, knowledge base, professional practice, the system.

However, when IDEA uses the term, its meaning is  never  mixed or ambiguous. Every single time “special education” is used in the law and the final Part B regulations, its meaning is the same—the definition below.

§300.39  Special education.

(a)  General . (1)  Special education  means specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability, including—

(2)  Special education includes each of the following if the services otherwise meet the requirements of paragraph (a)(1) of this section—

And that’s just the “general” part of the definition! The next part is called “ individual special education terms defined ,” where the definition goes on to define:

• at no cost;
• physical education;
• specially designed instruction;
• travel training, and
• vocational education.

Happily, the 20 opening words of special education’s definition—specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability—contain the  core  of the term’s meaning. You’ll see we’ve used those 20 words in the short story of special education. The 362 other words in the definition (which includes the definitions of the individual terms), while still very critical, add detail to that core and further clarify it.

When an abbreviated definition of the term  special education  is called for, you’re most likely to hear its core: “ Special education is specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability. ”

In the definition’s full form, examples roll out and remove gray areas about some of the scope and substance of special education. Special education can be, for example:

• travel training (which has its own definition);
• vocational education (also defined on its own); and
• services that may be listed in IDEA as a related service but that a state may consider as special education—which makes them “special education” in that state.

As you can see from IDEA’s definition of special education, it can also occur in various settings: in the classroom, in a home, in a hospital or institution, and in other settings. This is why you might also hear that “special education is not a place.” It’s not. Where  it is provided for a specific child with a disability will depend on that child’s unique needs as determined by the group of individuals (which includes the parents) that makes the placement decision.

So what does “specially designed instruction” mean?

Given the importance of “specially designed instruction” in the core of special education’s definition, it’s useful to take a closer look at how  that  term is defined:

(ii) To ensure access of the child to the general curriculum, so that the child can meet the educational standards within the jurisdiction of the public agency that apply to all children. [§300.39(b)(3)]

Thus, as part of designing the instruction to fit the needs of a specific child, adaptations may be made in the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction. This is a strong point of pride within the special education field and a considerable accomplishment that’s come from 30 years of practice: the individualization of instruction.

As the provisions above show, adaptations can take many forms in response to the child’s needs; the field is replete with guidance on this critical part of special education.

It’s time for another definition–not more from “special education” but, rather, from where this article began–the statement of special education required in the IEP. If you look back up, you’ll see that the special education a child receives must be “based on peer-reviewed research to the extent practicable” [§300.320(a)(4)].  What might that mean?

With the passage of the 2004 Amendments to IDEA, some new terms and concepts became part of the IEP process. One such is peer-reviewed research. The term is not formally defined in the IDEA, but the Department of Education’s discussion in the Analysis of Comments and Changes may be helpful in understanding the term’s general meaning and why no formal definition was included in the regulations:

“ Peer-reviewed research ” generally refers to research that is reviewed by qualified and independent reviewers to ensure that the quality of the information meets the standards of the field before the research is published. However, there is no single definition of “peer-reviewed research”’ because the review process varies depending on the type of information to be reviewed. (71 Fed. Reg. at 46664)

The term is used in conjunction with the phrase “to the extent practicable.” To better understand what this means and how IEP teams are to apply peer-reviewed research in their selection of services to be provided to a child with a disability, you may find the Department of Education’s comments helpful.

States, school districts, and school personnel must…select and use methods that research has shown to be effective to the extent that methods based on peer-reviewed research are available. This does not mean that the service with the greatest body of research is the service necessarily required for a child to receive FAPE. Likewise, there is nothing in the Act to suggest that the failure of a public agency to provide services based on peer-reviewed research would automatically result in a denial of FAPE. The final decision about the special education and related services, and supplementary aids and services that are to be provided to a child must be made by the child’s IEP Team based on the child’s individual needs. (71 Fed. Reg. at 46665)

The role of states in determining what special education is

This discussion of special education as a term brings to mind how it is also a  process , a  system . IDEA may define the term and establish rigorous standards for its implementation, but how special education unfolds in schools is very much a state and local matter. Education is traditionally a state responsibility, with each state vested with the authority to determine its own policies within the parameters of federal requirements. This is one reason why  it’s so critical to know your state’s specific special education policies  and requirements.

So—–where to look for that information?

The best place is to connect with the agency responsible in your state for overseeing special education in the state. That is most likely your state’s Department of Education —or Department of Special Education. Names will vary from state to state, of course.

Center for Parent Information and Resources (6.27.2020). Key Definitions in IDEA| Defining and Understanding Special Education, Newark, NJ, Author (2017)

updated 8/12/2024

The Roles and Responsibilities of the Special Educator Copyright © by Paula Lombardi is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Understanding Special Education Paper Assignment

In life, people undergo several challenges that might require special needs and attention. Equally, the same challenges are felt in the education sector, where some learners may require special attention due to their challenges. Therefore, special education refers to education for children suffering mentally, socially, and physically and thus requires certain modifications different from the normal school routine. It covers children with learning disabilities, hearing, blind, the gifted, and those speech problems. The Bible says, “Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but fear your God. I am the LORD” (New International Version Bible, 2008, Leviticus 19:14). Therefore, special education offers a chance to help children with varied disabilities since the Bible encourages people not to overlook those who need help.

Since children with special needs are also human beings just like other normal people because we were all created by God, some people might want to take advantage of such children and infringe on their rights. Therefore, to curb such vices in schools, some laws have been stipulated to guide the process and ensure that special needs children get an education just like other kids. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law established to ensure that children with disabilities get the care they require. It ensures that formula grants assist states in providing a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment for children with disabilities ages three through 21 (Kim & Kim, 2020). Therefore through IDEA, all disabled children get access to grants in various states to ensure they access educational opportunities. It also provides intervention measures for toddlers’ or infants’ births through age two and their families.

Students with disabilities require attention and a lot of help. Therefore, the Free Appropriate Public Education law (FAPE) ensures that there is the regular provision of related aids that can help to offer appropriate special education among students with disabilities. Therefore, all qualified children can access free public education in school districts. It is an essential law since it considers the needs of these disabled children who might have challenges accessing education. Children with disabilities are not only offered free public education under this law. Still, they are also provided with the related services and resources they might need, yet the families might not afford them. Equally, the Least Restrictive Environment law (LRE) calls for schools to place students in less restrictive environments and offer supplementary aids and services. Besides, it is only when such children cannot be provided with supplementary services and aides that they can be placed in more restrictive environments.

Special education refers to education for children suffering mentally, socially, and physically and thus requires certain modifications different from the normal school routine. Certain traits shape the kind of services offered in this type of education. Children with reading comprehension problems might require extra attention and thus fall under special education (Dong-Young, 2019). Besides, children with academic learning disorders are also categorized under special education and needs. Children might sometimes have a problem with their memory and thus forget easily. They also fall under special education due to their poor memory. Further, learners with motor difficulties, perceptual disorders, and metacognitive deficits also fall under special education. For a child to qualify for special education, a comprehensive evaluation must be done to determine that the child requires special needs and education. Each evaluation team meeting must include the parents or legal guardians, at least one regular education teacher, and a special education teacher or provider. Services offered under special education include; speech and language therapy, psychological services, and occupational services, among others.

Different tiers can offer service delivery in different environments for students with disabilities. The first tier is universal programming, where learning is structured in a typical classroom. In this model, classes are structured without exceptionality, and the curriculum goals are not modified. Therefore, it gives teachers a chance to observe or monitor all students and thus can assess those who fall behind from others during instructions. Students in this category are general since it encompasses all students in one class. The group intervention method is the second tier used in service delivery among students with disabilities. In this approach, learners with difficulties after the teacher has observed the universal programming are put in one group (Misaki & Tanji, 2021). Therefore, they are given extra tasks depending on the areas where they experience difficulties. These results are closely monitored, and teachers can evaluate whether such students can go back to the first tier and continue learning with their peers. Students in this category can be those with learning difficulties. The third tier entails intensive individual interventions. In this tier, learners with disabilities who have not improved in the second tier are subjected to increased monitoring and given extra time. The teachers might be forced to bring outside resources to facilitate learning instruction. Students in this tier can be those with speech difficulties or memory issues.

Special education refers to education for children suffering mentally, socially, and physically and thus requires certain modifications different from the normal school routine. It is provided to help students with disabilities access education like normal students. Some guidelines are used in this type of education, and the students exhibit certain traits. For instance, this type of education categorizes students with poor memory, learning difficulties, or poor motor skills. Besides, some laws guide the provision of special education, formulated to ensure that children with disabilities access free public education. Equally, they ensure that the children with disability get the necessary aid and services. It is offered in tiers which help monitor students’ transition and thus guide the teachers on the appropriate steps to take as learners move from one tier to another and back. Therefore, special education is essential in education since it takes care of the needs of children who could otherwise not have access to education due to disability. The Bible encourages people to take care of people with disability. Luke 14:13 says, ‘But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind.”

Dong-Young, Chung. (2019). The Characteristics of Teaching Styles of Special Education Teachers.  Journal Of Special Education For Curriculum And Instruction ,  12 (2), 25-47. https://doi.org/10.24005/seci.2019.12.2.25

Kim, M., & Kim, J. (2020). Analysis of Laws and Policies Related to Physical Education in Special Education.  Korean Journal Of Special Education ,  55 (3), 95-115. https://doi.org/10.15861/kjse.2020.55.3.95

Misaki, K., & Tanji, T. (2021). Using a Peer Group Intervention to Teach Emotion Regulation Strategies to Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder.  The Japanese Journal Of Special Education ,  59 (2), 105-119. https://doi.org/10.6033/tokkyou.59.105

New International Version Bible. (2008). Oxford University Press. (Original work published 1769).

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San José Unified provides programs and services for students with disabilities to ensure equal access to the grade level curriculum. Our special education services create inclusive educational climates where individuality and diversity are respected, honored, and celebrated.  

We are committed to providing services that meet the unique needs of our individual students. By law, the district will actively locate, identify, and assess all children with disabilities including students who are homeless, wards of the state, and enrolled in public or private schools.  Consideration for a special education referral for assessment may be appropriate after research-based intervention strategies have been implemented over time. We encourage parents/guardians to start by discussing concerns with your child’s teacher, the principal, or through a Student Success Team.  

If your student is newly enrolled in San José Unified and has an Individualized Education Program (IEP), please provide a copy of the plan. 

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Understanding Special Education Paper Assignment

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Sections: General Principles of Assignment Design Additional Resources

General Principles of Assignment Design

Assignments: Make Them Effective, Engaging, and Equitable. At their best, assignments are one of the most important learning experiences for students in a course. Students grapple with course content, deepen their understanding, form new ideas, connections, and questions, and show how they are achieving the course or program learning outcomes. Assignments can also affirm students' social identities, interests, and abilities in ways that foster belonging and academic success.

Characteristics of Effective, Engaging, and Equitable Assignments

• Address the central learning outcomes/objectives of your courses. This ensures the relevancy of the assignment (students won’t wonder why they’re doing it) and provides you with an assessment of student learning that tells you about the progress your students are making.
• Interesting and challenging . What assignments are most memorable to you? Chances are they asked you to apply knowledge to an interesting problem or to do it in a creative way. Assignments can be seen as more relevant when they connect to a real world problem or situation, or when students imagine they are presenting the information to a real world audience (e.g., policy makers), or when they can bring in some aspect of their own experience. Assignments can also be contextualized to reflect the values or priorities of the institution.
• Purpose: Why are you asking students to do the assignment? How does it connect with course learning objectives and support broader skill development that students can draw upon well after your class is over? Often the purpose is very clear to us but we don’t always spell it out for our students.
• Tasks: What steps will students need to take to complete the assignment successfully? Laying this out helps students organize what they need to do and when.
• Criteria for Success: What does excellence look like? This can be described through text or a rubric that aligns expectations with the key elements of the assignment.
• Utility value: How can you make adjustments that allow students to perceive the assignment has more value, either professionally, academically, or personally?
• Inclusive content: Is the assignment equally accessible to all students? If examples are drawn from the dominant culture, they are less accessible to students from other cultures. Structuring assignments so that content is equally familiar to all students reduces educational equity gaps by limiting the effects of prior knowledge and privilege.
• Flexibility and variety: Consider how much flexibility and variety you’re offering in your assignments. This allows students to show what they have learned regardless of their academic strengths or familiarity with particular assignment types. Can students choose among different formats for how they’ll present their assignment (paper, podcast or infographic); is there variety in formats across all the course assignments? Multi-modal assignments allow students to represent what they know in various ways and are therefore more equitable by design.
• Support assignments with instructional activities. Planning learning activities that support students’ best work on their assignments is another critical component. This can include having students read model articles in the style in which you are asking them to prepare their own assignment, discuss or apply the rubric to a sample paper, or break the assignment into smaller pieces so that students can get feedback from you or peers on how they are progressing. Another way to support students is to make clear the role of tools like ChatGPT: if it’s used, how can students use it effectively and responsibly? More generally, all major assignments provide opportunities for important discussions about academic integrity and its relevance to work in one’s discipline, higher education, and personal development.
• Provide opportunities for feedback and revision (especially if high-stakes) . Students may receive feedback on their progress or drafts in a variety of ways: peer, faculty, or a library partner. The Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning identifies four characteristics of effective feedback: Targeted and Concise; Focused; Action-Oriented; and Timely.

For assignments that ask students to write in the style of a particular discipline and draw upon research, SCU’s Success in Writing, Information, and Research Literacy (SWIRL) project has developed guidance for faculty in assignment design and instruction to improve student writing and critical use of information. 

You can download the WRITE assignment design tool and learn more at the SWIRL website. Members of the SWIRL team welcome individual consultations with faculty on assignment design. You are welcome to contact them for feedback on any assignment you’re designing.

Additional Resources:

Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning (2021). Feedback for Learning. Columbia University. Retrieved [February 26, 2024] from https://ctl.columbia.edu/resources-and-technology/resources/feedback-for-learning/

Hobbs H. T., Singer-Freeman K. E., Robinson C. (2021). Considering the effects of assignment choices on equity gaps. Research and Practice in Assessment, 16 (1), 49–62.

SWIRL : For assignments that ask students to write in the style of a particular discipline and draw upon research, SCU’s Success in Writing, Information, and Research Literacy (SWIRL) project has developed guidance for faculty in assignment design and instruction to improve student writing and critical use of information. You can download the WRITE assignment design tool and learn more at the SWIRL website. 

Transparency in Higher Education Project: Examples and Resources. Copyright © 2009-2023 M.A. Winkelmes. Retrieved [February 26, 2024] from   https://tilthighered.com/tiltexamplesandresources

Winkelmes, M., Boye, A., & Tapp, S. (Eds.). (2019). Transparent design in higher education teaching and leadership. Stylus Publishing.

Page authors: Chris Bachen

Last updated: March 5, 2024

Publications

• Journal Articles
• Books: Books, Chapters, Reviews
• Working Papers
• Considering Special Education Adequacy in California

Jenifer J. Harr

Tom Parrish

Jay Chambers

Jesse Levin

Maria Segarra

Expenditures continue to rise for students with disabilities, making special education an increasingly important component of education funding. This study explores the issue of special education adequacy through two questions:

• What analytical techniques exist for estimating the cost of an adequate education for special education students?
• How might these techniques be applied to estimate costs for special education students in California, and how do those estimates compare to current expenditures?

Primary Research Area:

• Federal and State Education Policy

Secondary Research Area:

• Poverty and Inequality

Topic Areas:

• Education Governance , Educational Equity , English Language Learners , Finance

Education Level:

• Getting Down to Facts

APA Citation

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