What court case decision clarified that "separate cannot be equal"? Explain the affect this court case continues to have on the field of special education.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Shortly after the advent of the modern civil rights movement in education, with the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas decision clarifying that "separate cannot be equal," some professionals began questioning whether separate classes provided students with disabilities with an appropriate education. This led to a series of studies referred to as efficacy studies. They compared the achievement and social adjustment of students with intellectual disabilities who were enrolled in special classes to that of students of similar abilities who remained in general education settings. The studies found that students with intellectual disabilities in general education classes achieved more academically than those in special classes, probably because teachers' expectations of them were higher and because they were learning in the same curriculum as other students. This has had a profound effect on where and how students with disabilities are taught.