Articles 1,2,3

1. Why is the language used to refer to people with disabilities so important?

Language used to refer to people with disabilities is so important because putting a label
on a person is a hard enough task, doing so with the right language is something that everyone
should be aware of. The new terminology goes by the motto Use People First, an example of
that is the old term would be the disabled person, however the new terminology would be a
person with a disability. Putting the person before their disability. Language is also important
because it conveys images that affect our attitudes and behavior, just from hearing something
about a person it creates an image of how we look at them. This also ties in pre-judgement of the
person without meeting them or getting to know them. Most of the old terms used are inferring
stereotypes and also are dehumanizing to the person.
2. What are common core standards? How have these been an improvement on NCLB? What
difficulties are there for ensuring special education students meet these standards?
Common Core state standards are a set of standards implemented by the federal
government. It is designed to make the students college and career ready and provides a
consistent and clear understanding of guidelines of expectations from students. It is a set of
standards used by 45 states in efforts for states to excel in Race to the Top.
Before the implementation of CCS, No Child Left Behind did not offer sufficient
attention to students with disabilities, now the CCS hold more power to give structure to the
special education curriculum, and also encourages that all special education classified students
work in the a least restrictive environment.
The difficulties of ensuring special education students meet the standards are that special
education students do not have developed the methods needed to achieve a level of success while
implementing these standards into the curriculum. Another difficulty is developing the
knowledge and skills to not only the special educators but to everyone responsible for educating
these students. Teachers are also not knowledgeable on how to scaffold enough to create access
to the material and high enough to have the students independently reach the standard. Teachers
must not only be knowledgeable in their field but also in the methods used to deliver the
curriculum to a special education class.
3. For each of the following areas listed, describe briefly the problem(s) that threaten the full
implementation of IDEA:
Funding: The school districts often have trouble to appropriately fund the special education
services. Which in the long run will have an impact on the students, it also draws tension
between Special Education programs and other K-12 programing.
Teachers: There seems to be a shortage of fully qualified special education teachers, they must
hold full certification and pass all licensing exams. Districts have also shown a shortage of
highly qualified teachers and other outside support professionals.

Civil Rights vs. Education: More of an emphasis is placed on reviewing IEPs and making sure
that enough effort and time is put on being certain that an IEP is being followed. Professionals
must sure that that progress is being made toward specific goals set on a student's IEP.
Identification: Labeling a student as special needs will be a label that will be stuck with them
throughout their educational career. There are also students classified in special education that
shouldnt be. Many people would not be classified had they received the proper support early on
in their career (early intervention).
Litigation: The decision on what exactly is an appropriate education for students with
disabilities. Often school districts dont offer a service because of money, time, or use of other
resources.