Foundations of Exceptional Student Education
What to know
Candidates must trace the legal backbone of the field. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (1973) and the ADA (1990) are civil-rights laws prohibiting discrimination and requiring equal access; IDEA (originally PL 94-142, 1975) is a funding statute guaranteeing a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE) to eligible students in 13 disability categories. Know the IDEA pillars: zero reject/child find, nondiscriminatory evaluation, IEP, LRE, procedural safeguards, and parent participation. Landmark cases: PARC and Mills (right to education, due process), Brown v. Board (segregation), Rowley (FAPE means meaningful benefit, not the best possible program; courts defer to educators), and Diana v. State Board / Larry P. v. Riles (nonbiased, native-language assessment; overrepresentation of minority students).
Traps: questions blur 504 and IDEA. A 504 plan covers any disability that substantially limits a major life activity, carries no federal funds, and has no IEP-style procedural safeguards; an IEP requires categorical eligibility under IDEA. "Mainstreaming" is outdated language; use LRE and inclusion. Rowley does not require the maximum benefit. Note that gifted is not an IDEA category, and that states add categories such as developmental delay and established conditions for young children.
Rule of thumb: match the statute to the stem. FAPE/LRE/IEP questions point to IDEA; physical access and accommodations point to 504/ADA; discrimination points to 504/ADA. Worked example: a student with diabetes who needs glucose checks and bathroom access but no specialized instruction gets a 504 plan, not an IEP.