Special Education Curriculum, History of

Historically, special education curriculum can be viewed before landmark federal legislationPublic Law (Pub. L. No.) 94–142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act passed in 1975 and after this public law was enacted. Influenced by the civil rights movement, and by the U.S. Supreme Court's 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling that separate education is not equal, Pub. L. No. 94–142 provided that “special classes, separate schools, or other removal of handicapped children from the regular education environment occurs only when the nature or severity of the handicap is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily.” The term least restrictive environment (LRE) emerged from this legislation, meaning all students with disabilities must be educated in as normal an environment as possible. In addition to the provision of least restrictive environment, the 1975 legislation provided for free, appropriate public education for “handicapped” students ages 3 to 21, individualized education programs (IEPs), due process protections, and protection in evaluation procedures.

During the 1970s, the LRE was considered to be a separate special education classroom on a fulltime basis for the majority of students with disabilities. The concept of mainstreaming emerged during this time, a term used for permitting students in special education classrooms to be main-streamed into regular or general education settings for part of the day or week. Usually, students were mainstreamed for music, art, recess, or assemblies, and only for academic classes if students were deemed qualified to meet academic expectations with minimal assistance.

At the beginning of the 20th century when compulsory public education took place, children with severe physical or cognitive disabilities typically did not attend public school. Either they remained at home, lived in, or attended private facilities or lived in state institutions. During the early 1900s, special classes began to emerge for students who were not doing well academically. Most likely, these were children who today would be considered to have mild language, learning, or cognitive disabilities.

Special education before 1975 was influenced by the social efficiency movement, which used industrial models to create efficient schools. Through psychological assessments (regarded as scientific testing), Intelligent Quotient (IQ) scores were used to identify categories of disabilities (i.e., levels of mental retardation). Results of intelligence and related tests resulted in students who fell below what was considered normal being placed in separate, special classrooms and schools.

By the 1950s, special education classrooms were common in public schools. These were considered to be segregated programs, and minimally academic in nature and often focused on development of manual skills. In addition, there were separate and segregated public day schools for children whose physical or cognitive disabilities were considered moderate to severe. For example, there were separate schools for children with physical disabilities, such as cerebral palsy or spina bifida. Children with autism usually were placed in programs with students considered to have severe emotional or behavioral problems. Typically, children who were considered to have moderate to severe mental retardation were in their own separate programs. In addition, there were special day or residential schools for children who were blind or deaf.

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