Special Education: 3 Areas of Knowledge, That Parents Must Understand to Help Their Child's Educatio

Would you like to learn about 3 important areaslearn how toadvocate effectively for your child. An
where you needknowledge, to effectively advocateorganization that gives lotsof helpful information is the
for your child? Would you likeresources to find moreNational Information Center for Childrenand Youth
information on these areas? If you are theparent ofwith Disabilities (NICHCY); they can be found at
a child with a disability, you need to have informationArea 3: You must have knowledge about case law in
inthree different areas to help your child receive anspecial educationthat affects your child. For Example:
appropriateeducation. This article will discuss theseif you child has behavioralissues, you should learn
three areas, as well asgive you easy to usewhat rulings have already been made in thisarea.
resources.Case law means due process rulings, court rulings
Area 1: You must know the educational laws thatfrom State and
affect your child'seducation. The laws are: TheFederal court, and Supreme Court cases. A wonderful
Individuals with Disabilities Educationorganization thatyou should join is the Council of
Act (IDEA) which is the federal law governingParent Attorneys and Advocates
education for childrenwith a disability, your states law(COPAA). There is a small membership fee, but it is
that must comply with the federallaw IDEA, and Noworth it. COPAAcan be found at COPAA has a
Child Left Behind act. IDEA can be downloaded at ormembership area where youcan find Case law, in the
can be purchased on The Webaddress for yourarea that you are interested in.
states board of education can be found at The WebBy learning these three areas, you will well be on
address should allow you to download theregulations,your way to beingan effective advocate for your
or you can find the address and phone number.child. It will take you time to learnabout these three
Informationon No Child Left Behind can be found atareas, but it will be worth it! Remember: Yourchild's
Area 2: You must learn advocacy skills to help youlife is at stake!