Special Education News
Special education is a type of education that specializes in meeting the needs of physically or mentally handicapped children. Specialized education is provided in a classroom or private inst
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Although special education is a relatively new concept, students with disabilities have been present in every era and society. One of the earliest recordings of educating a child with behavioural difficulties is in the early 1800’s when physician Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard, tamed the “wild boy” of Avalon. Another noted occurrence of special education is when Anne Sullivan Macy worked tirelessly to develop reading and communication skills in the child, Helen Keller, who was deaf, could not speak and blind. In the early 19th century children with severe disabilities such as mental retardation, autism, schizophrenia, and behavioral disorders were recorded. Milder forms, such as dyslexia, became more apparent with the advent of public education.
As early 19th century values began to change so did the treatment of those with special needs. There is documentation to support that up until this time, mentally and physically handicapped people were confined to jails where good food, clothing and hygiene was non-existent. However, as time passed, people who suffered from mental illnesses were now treated in mental hospitals and reform schools were available for children with aggression and behavioral problems. It is around this same time that schools were established for the deaf, dumb and blind and other institutions were created to treat those with severe mental retardation. Although certainly not ideal, the care and education of children with special needs had improved somewhat.
The contemporary history of special education as we know it today began after World War II.
It is at this time that advocacy groups formed such as The United Cerebral Palsy Association, the Muscular Dystrophy Association and the Civil Rights Movement. These groups began to advocate universal education of all children--even those with special needs. In the 1960’s, under President Kennedy, more schools granted access to children with handicaps. With advocacy and more children who had disabilities attending schools, the Education of all Handicapped Children Act was established. Also know as Public Law 94-142, it states that the federal government will support states in “protecting the rights of, meeting the individual needs of, and improving the results for infants, toddlers, children, and youths, with disabilities and their families. PL 94-142 requires schools to provide “free, appropriate public education to students with a wide range of physical and mental disabilities, and emotional and behavioral disorders.” Schools have to provide the most “least restrictive environment” possible. This is achieved through inclusion, mainstreaming, segregation, and exclusion.
The education of special needs individuals has evolved from a time where handicapped children were hidden away and even jailed to a time where individualized learning plans and specialized instruction is provided to meet their needs when they cannot be met in the regular classroom.
Special Education Day at the Q
7000 special education students from all over northeastern Ohio attended a hockey game between the Lake Erie Monsters and the Texas Stars at the Q on Wednesday.The subject of the lesson there was bullying and how to deal with the problem in real life and while a hockey game might seem a strange venue for this subject none the less the lesson was learned.
One of the primary ways to defeat bullies is respect:
respect for one’s self and respect for the rules of interpersonal relationships. The students watched as professional hockey players used these two types of respect to channel their self confidence into a spirited game that was at once fun and at the same time safe.
Keeping a bully from being a problem is a matter of self confidence and using the rules, as well as trusting the people in charge to manage the rules, and these were lessons the students learned.“Fighting doesn’t always solve everything,” Trejure Williams of Cleveland told a reporter. “I think this is a wonderful game,” he said.
He had seen how infractions of the rules by bullying players had been dealt with by the referees without the need for the players to take up fists, and was impressed with how the game could be played smoothly while still being enthusiastic.“Bullying has become such a hot topic all over, and we thought it was important to talk about respect,” said Jeff Bowler, Senior Director of Ticket Sales and Service for the Lake Erie Monsters. “And have the students learn how to treat each other, how to treat their parents and their students.” “It’s always fun. They are enthusiastic. It’s loud, it’s tough to communicate with the players during the game like this, but it is so much fun,” Monsters Head Coach David Quinn said speaking of the special education students after the game.
This is a man who knows the value of confidence in the pursuit of a happy game as well as a happy life. Special education day at the Q is all about helping the kids see that respect and self confidence are key ingredients in making bullying easier to deal with whether it is at home, school or in the public arena. Mr. Bowler emphasized that the lessons learned at a hockey game can be translated into life lessons of any venue whether in or out of school. An enthusiastic good time was had by all, but more importantly the students learned a great lesson on how to live successfully.
Tax Deductions for Special Education:
There are millions of children in the Unites States who are in need of special needs education. The numbers are steadily increasing with more than 65% during the years from 2005 to 2010 alone.
A significant step a parent can take to assist in the education of their special needs child is to utilize the medical-expense deduction offered by the government, which can assist with educational costs. Moreover, tax laws permit medical deductions for various stages of illnesses from diagnosis to treatment.
Attributes Covered by the Medical Expense Deduction:
- cost of a school or program if authorized by a licensed health
- care expert
- cost for a specific two-year college degree program for candidates with severe learning disabilities
- cost of additional therapies such as occupational therapy, music therapy and physical therapy
- travel cost are included if the education or treatment is eligible for deduction
- Food and accommodation
- Parental presence at important conferences
However, there are crucial restrictions to the medical expense deduction as well. Medical cost are only abstracted above a starting point of 7.5% of total income minus exclusions, and 10% for those who are obligated to pay alternative minimum tax.
Families with the right too use a variable spending account can utilize money for the same cost minus a threshold. However, in 2013 the donation maximum decreases from [$5,000.00] to [$2,500.00]. On the other hand, when a family has exceeded the obstacles, various other medical costs are deductible such as contact lens solutions, birth control medications, and health insurance premium cost. Those who wish to declare large medical deductions for special-needs children should think about getting professional tax advice.
There are certain tips that families can cling to that will help them along in the medical expense deduction process such as:
- Organizing the medical necessities for the special education or therapy, which must be mainly about the issue at hand.
- Make certain to have any therapy prescribed by a doctor or other licensed health-care expert.
- Maintain meticulous records supporting the deduction.
This means everything from prescription letters and aborted checks to travel distances. “These steps may seem tedious”, states a knowledgeable individual well aware of the difficulties of the whole process, “but in the end it will make a world of difference".
