Andrea Osborne

1/24/07

ENG 101 B5Z5

Comparison Writing

In the past thirty years education for children with disabilities has improved

greatly. The improvement of the education for children with disabilities has been a slow

process, and it still can use even more improvement. Before 1975 children with

disabilities did not have a right to receive free public education. Then in 1975 the

Congress passed the Public Law 94-142, Education for All Handicapped Children Act

(EAHCA). This law required public schools to provide free education in the least

restrictive environment for children between the ages of three and twenty-one with all

types of disabilities. Today the law is now known as the Individuals with Disabilities

Education Act (IDEA). The law has basically stayed the same except for now it also

includes infants, toddlers, and their family, also an improvement on the services has been

made.

The Education for All Handicapped Children Act regulations were issued to begin

with the 1977-1978 school year. In the same year a requirement for school districts to

evaluate their policies and stop discriminatory policies, which later Congress noted that

this requirement was illegally ignored. Children with all different types of disabilities

were put into a hidden location away from the children without disabilities. No matter

what kind of disability they have children with disabilities are now integrated in
classrooms with the children without disabilities. They are included in the same daily

activities and accommodations are made if needed.