Navigating Special Education Systems: Legal Literacy in General Education Teachers

Overview & Synopsis

Although Congress passed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1975, barriers remain to successful inclusive classroom models, including the special education legal literacy of general education teachers. Responsibility for educating students with disabilities has shifted from special education teachers to general education teachers, but these teachers often receive limited training, resources, funding, and support (Tilson, 2011; Zirkel, 2020). The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE, 2008) includes a standard that all teacher candidates must have the ability to "apply knowledge related to professional ethics, laws, and education policy" (para. 3). The lack of special education knowledge and awareness of laws by general education teachers both contribute to barriers to successful inclusion and create legal hazards for school districts (Woodcock & Woolfson, 2019; Yell et al., 2017). This study examined the special education legal literacy of general education teachers without a special education credential in a single Northern California school district through the process of navigating special education systems. Each of the seven components of the assessment of special education legal literacy together creates the legal literacy or understanding a general education teacher holds to fulfill responsibilities, without violating student rights, under IDEA and federal special education laws. This study found general education teachers held a limited understanding of their responsibilities, including consequences, under federal special education laws. Although 90% of respondents acknowledged having experience with students with disabilities, 50% identified they had no training regarding IDEA or federal special education laws. Lack of training potentially creates both school district vulnerability to costly litigation for violations of students' rights and negative impacts on the educational progress of students with disabilities in the district. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]