Critically Evaluate Legislation in Relation to Special Educational Needs and the Impact of Legislation on Practice.
Critically evaluate legislation in relation to Special Educational Needs and the impact of legislation on practice.
Children with any form of disability or additional needs have, historically received unequal treatment in education. Towards the end of the 19th century, the introduction of compulsory laws began to change the educational opportunities for these children. This essay aims to look at such legislation and how it impacts on today’s practice.
What does the term “special educational needs” (SEN) mean? The 1996 Education Act states that children have a special educational need if they have a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision being made for them. Children are considered to have a learning difficulty if, compared with children of the same age, they have a significantly greater difficulty in learning and/or a disability which prevents them from making use of the educational facilities available (Drury, Miller & Campbell 2000 and DfES 2001).
The 1870 Education Act was the first piece of legislation to deal specifically with the provision of education in Britain, but it was not until 1893 that education was also extended to blind and deaf children under the Elementary Education (Blind and Deaf Children) Act, and similar provision was made for physically-impaired children in the Elementary Education (Defective and Epileptic Children) Act of 1899 (Living Heritage). Although these acts recognized children with additional needs, the list of needs was limited and the children were segregated in special schools, rather than being included in mainstream education. These schools were scarce and residential which meant that children were sent away from their family for extended periods. It is also worth noting that prior to the Education of Handicapped Children Act in 1970, children with severe learning difficulties were often deemed ‘uneducable’ and became the responsibility of local health authorities (Taylor & Woods 2005).
The
Children with any form of disability or additional needs have, historically received unequal treatment in education. Towards the end of the 19th century, the introduction of compulsory laws began to change the educational opportunities for these children. This essay aims to look at such legislation and how it impacts on today’s practice.
What does the term “special educational needs” (SEN) mean? The 1996 Education Act states that children have a special educational need if they have a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision being made for them. Children are considered to have a learning difficulty if, compared with children of the same age, they have a significantly greater difficulty in learning and/or a disability which prevents them from making use of the educational facilities available (Drury, Miller & Campbell 2000 and DfES 2001).
The 1870 Education Act was the first piece of legislation to deal specifically with the provision of education in Britain, but it was not until 1893 that education was also extended to blind and deaf children under the Elementary Education (Blind and Deaf Children) Act, and similar provision was made for physically-impaired children in the Elementary Education (Defective and Epileptic Children) Act of 1899 (Living Heritage). Although these acts recognized children with additional needs, the list of needs was limited and the children were segregated in special schools, rather than being included in mainstream education. These schools were scarce and residential which meant that children were sent away from their family for extended periods. It is also worth noting that prior to the Education of Handicapped Children Act in 1970, children with severe learning difficulties were often deemed ‘uneducable’ and became the responsibility of local health authorities (Taylor & Woods 2005).
The
Bibliography: Bee, H (2000). The Developing Child. (9th Ed). USA. Allyn & Bacon. DCSF (2009). Aiming High for Disabled Children. Best Practice to Common Practice. Nottingham. DCSF Publications. DfES (2001). SEN Toolkit. Nottinghamshire. DfES publications. DfES (2001). Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. Nottinghamshire. DfES Publications. DfES (2004). Removing Barriers to Achievement: The Government’s Strategy for SEN. Nottinghamshire. DfES Publications. Drury, R., Miller, L. and Campbell, R. (2000). Looking at Early Years education and Care. London. David Fulton Publishers Ltd. Dukes, C (2007). A Practical Guide to Pre-School Inclusion. Oxon. Paul Chapman Publishers. Garner, P (2009). Special educational needs: the key concepts. Oxon. Routledge. Hyams O (2004): Law of Education (2nd Ed). Bristol: Jordan Publishing Ltd. Inclusion and Diversity Service (2010). Together Towards Inclusion. Pre-School Toolkit for Diversity. Antrim. Inclusion and Diversity Service. Jones, p., Moss, D., Tomlinson, P. and Welch, S. (2008). Childhood Services and Provision for Children. Essex. Pearson Education Ltd. Legge, K. and Harari, P (2000). Psychology and Education. Oxford. Heinmann Educational Publishers. Office of national Statistics (1999). Students with a special educational need statement in maintained schools: by type of school, January 1999: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/STATBASE/xsdataset.asp?vlnk=183 [accessed 12/06/11] Neaum, S. & Tallack, J (2000). Good Practice in Implementing the Pre-School Curriculum. (2nd Ed). Cheltenham. Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd. Nutbrown, C. and Clough, P (2006). Inclusion in the Early Years. London. SAGE publications Ltd. O’Brien, J., Forest, M., Pearpoint, J., Asante, S Practical Pre-School (2002). Early Years Action and Action Plus. Step Forward Publishing. Press Association (2011). Toddlers need progress checks to spot problems early. http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/mar/30/cut-targets-for-under-fives-review [02/06/11] Pugh, G (2001) Taylor, J. and Woods M. (2005). Early Childhood Studies. An Holistic Introduction (2nd Ed). London. Hodder Education. Thomas, G., and O’Hanlan, C (2007) Wall, K (2011). Special Needs and Early Years: A practitioners Guide. London. Sage Publications Inc.