Instructor: Dan Cline
Addresses, phone numbers, can be found on the front page

NOTE that applies to everything !!! DO NOT skim over or try to rush read through this syllabus or any other documents that I provide. Pay attention to detail, but if you have questions, don't hesitate to email me or call.

Focus: This course is designed for teachers, principals, superintendents, board members, and special education administrators (or wannabe administrators). The course will deal extensively with federal/state laws and regulations and with administrative and civil court actions in the determination of the status of services to children with disabilities. The role of executive, legislative and judicial bodies will be examined vis a vis legal, ethical, and procedural parameters that provide direction for school practitioners and policy makers. The major emphasis will be on difficult policy issues and day-to-day professional decision making dilemmas of current interest. A major goal of the instructor is to provide students with the knowledge base and analytical tools for intelligent decision making in competent professional practice at the school building level.

Objectives: To provide the student with a basic understanding of, and ability to apply knowledge of:

1. the scope of special education as determined by the relationship between educational, legal, and fiscal influences at federal, state and local levels;

2. the role of educational service agencies and other intermediate units in the operation of special education;

3. the organization and role of state education agencies and related state level entities in the provision of education and related services with particular emphasis on implications for local practitioners;

4. the constitutional, statutory, and regulatory basis for the provision and control of special education services at the state and local school levels;

5. due process in special education;

6. federal and state administrative authority;

7. the influence of administrative rulings and court decisions as expressed in case law standards that guide local practice.

It is assumed that the student has some knowledge of the characteristics of handicapped children and programs that serve them. Those who do not are urged to pursue appropriate introductory texts on these topics.

Required Materials:

Yell, Mitchell L. (2006) The Law and Special Education (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson, Prentice Hall..

Numerous supporting documents, i.e., federal statutes, federal regulations, state regulations, numerous court cases are linked through Blackboard..

Cline, D. Module Five: Fundamentals of Special Education Law with an Emphasis on Discipline. In Skills Based Training for School Administrators: Insuring Appropriate Education for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, edited by D. H. Cline & S. Braaten, Minneapolis, MN: Minnesota Department of Public Instruction, 1994.

Cline, D. (1990) A legal analysis of policy initiatives to exclude handicapped/disruptive students from special education. Behavioral Disorders, 15 (3) 159-173.

Other source materials: In addition to posted materials, the primary reference for legal research is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Law Report (formerly Education of the Handicapped Law Report). This is a multiple volume set with complete indexes and full text of all statutes, regulations, and legal decisions. Another source is West Education Law Report.  Both reporter systems can be found in the Ellis library. An  ERIC  search will yield articles on legal issues. There are also law journals, such as Law and Contemporary Problems that can be of great use to students. On Blackboard, using the external linnks button, you will find a portal called law links. It contains severval links to web resouurces including legal databases that will be helpful in finding court cases for your briefs and obtaining relevant statutes and regulations.

Check out the law links in blackboard to critical sources for doing research and finding cases. This is important. Also, read Mitch Yell's advice on doing law research on the internet in chapter 3 of the text..

Instructional Methodology. The primary methodology employs discussion boards to process and solve legal problems in special education. Early class sessions will consist primarily of  background and basic legal foundations following a pretty much traditional lecture and discussion format (in a digitzal environment, of course). The balance of the course follows variations of the jurisprudential inquiry model of instruction with a smattering of the Socratic method (questions are answered by asking questions). Activities will consist primarily of analysis of case studies where students will function as administrative law judges rendering informed decisions on real cases. Case studies are timed, and will not be left open for discussion indefinetely.

Course Requirements, Percent of Grade

1. Court Case Briefs: Three cases will be briefed.  The cases you select must deal with some substantive special education issue, NOT a technical or purely procedural issue. The briefs must be PHYSICALLY MAILED to my office or home address. Include a self addressed stamped envelope if you want them back.  These briefs will provide extra study material. Due dates for case briefs will be posted in announcements on the opening page on Blackboard. These are arrival dates, the first is a Friday to my office, the second a Saturday to my home, which takes advantage of an extra day and avoids campus mail problems. Do NOTemail these; I do not have the time and my printer does not have the longevity to manage printing of assignments. Do not waste money on expensive mail. Being one day late is not the end of the world; two days might be. Note that the model case brief has some guidelines for writing briefs at the end. Note that you are to search out these cases on your own. That is why there are links to legal research tools for the course on BB6 and why it is also important to keep in mind the Law Reporters on the first floor of the library where cases are at your fingertips.

2. Legal dilemma dealing with special education problems. You are to interview a school superintendent, principal, or other school official in a position of administrative responsibility who has experienced a situation with actual or potential, but not trivital, legal consequences and produce a written report and analysis of that situation. This is a confidential activity, meaning that no personal identities are to be revealed, although fictitious names can be used. Guidelines for this activity will be posted through external links on Bb6 (and here too... go here for a copy). This assignment is due at the end of the semester

Mailing addresses: PO Box 1270, State University, AR 72467 or 3012 Neely Rd., Jonesboro, AR, 72404. Home address is probably most efficient because of Saturday delivery. IF YOU WANT THESE RETURNED with feedback, include a self addressed stamped envelope.

3. Participation Grade. Nearly forty percent of your grade is derived from performance in case studies on the discussion boards. Consult the discussion guide and the case study rubric for expectations.

This refers to discussion board participation on Blackboard. Apart from conscientious study of the text, thoughtful participation and interaction will probably contribute more to your learning than anything else. Participation is evaluated for frequency and quality. Frequency means one or two substantive contributions per discussion thread (or case study). This does not count converstional interactions with others during the course of the discussions. This means that you should be giving the disucssions your attention at least daily, if not by submissions, then by following the dialogue provided by the submissions of others. Off topic and trivial posts are not welcome, and neither is domination by wieght of too many posts. Off and on. I, the instructor, will be observing the discussions between the early hours and noon daily, but will check back frequently. I will NOT often participate directly. You will learn more from one another if not distracted by too much of my involvement.

Participation means participation. Showing up once a week will not suffice. A student in this class once registered the complaint that, since traditional face-to-face graduate classes meet once a week during spring and fall semesters, a web class should be no different. That is not how this class works, so carve out the time to make yourself available and attentive. On the other hand, most people have jobs that require their day-time full attention, me included. Most people do web classes from home in their pajamas, early mornings, nights, and weekends, whenever the time can be found. With dilligent study and participation, you will learn more than you have ever learned in a traditional class.

The study of law is at first perplexing and intimidating for most people. It is something like the beginning study of a foreign language. Terminology and jurisprudential logic can be challenging, but it doesn't take long to get comfortable, and then to really enjoy it. So give yourself room to be tentative and uncertain at first, but don't hesitate to jump into the discussions. We might find gems of wisdom in something you said that you might think is dumb.

I have provided a model case brief. Use the format and section headers to organize your reading of cases and to format the written presentation. Go here for a copy. The case briefs are a valuable learning tool for you as are the discussions. Go to the link below for a discussion guide (how to participate on Blackboard).

http://education.astate.edu/cee/dcline/6423/Discussion_Guide.html

Criteria for grade

-- quality of written expression; mechanics, clarity, organization, facility with the English language, development of thoughts and ideas, relevance to the course content.

-- Demonstration of satisfactory mastery of case law, statutory and regulatory material, ability to apply the knowledge base to thinking critically about the ethical, substantive and procedural problems in programming for students with disabilities.

Grades: A = 90 - 100%; B = 80 - 89%; C = less than 80%

A = 90-100% = 2.7-3.0 B = 80-89% = 2.4-2.69 C = 70-79% = 2.1-2.39

D = 60-69% = 1.8-2.09 F = below 60% = 1.5-1.79 Grades below C require repeating the course

 Schedule Modifications: The sequence of material will follow approximately the outline suggested by the table of contents in the text, but will need to be adjusted according to circumstances that make themselves known as the semester progresses.

federal and state laws pertaining to the education and treatment of handicapped persons.

administrative due process, litigation in the courts:

access to education, zero reject

testing, classification, placement

individualized and appropriate education

least restrictive environment, AKA mainstreaming; AKA Inclusion

related services

procedural due process

parent participation, student rights

communicable diseases, life threatening conditions

Buckley Amendment (confidentiality of records and disability status)

tort action, compensatory and punitive damages

educational malpractice

sovereign immunity

school nursing services, school health

residential placements

private insurance, third party payers

medical services, psychiatric services, private placements

barriers and accommodations

graduation, termination of services

suspension, expulsion, punishment, aversive controls

school transportation

Americans with Disabilities Act

attorney fees and costs

extended school year, day

harassment, retaliation, protected activities

administrative culpability

competent jurisdiction, judicial discretion

rules of civil procedure

academic modifications

attention deficit disorder, conduct disorder

transition services

infants and toddlers

the future of special education law.

others as suggested by students or as they develop in this rapidly moving field.