Assessment, Special Education

Thomas Oakland

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has affected educational policy at both state and local levels. Policies governing assessment and evaluation appear prominently in this act. This entry reviews sections of IDEA that provide guidance as to the manner in which assessment data should be acquired and used. In the United States, 53,400,000 students are enrolled in elementary and secondary schools (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2003). Approximately 14% receive special education services, most under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997 (see 20 U.S.C. 1414, for provisions that affect evaluations, eligibility, individual education plans, and placement; 20 U.S.C. 1415, for provisions that affect procedural safeguards; and 20 U.S.C. 1431, for provisions that affect infants and toddlers with disabilities). The initial federal legislation affecting special education, the Education of All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, held state and local education agencies responsible for providing free appropriate public education ...

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