How does the new law change the roles and responsibilities of regular classroom teachers?
A critically important feature of the new law specifies that regular teachers will be part of the team that develops each child’s IEP. That is especially important since the law removes barriers to placing disabled children in regular classroom settings and ties the education of children with disabilities more closely to the regular education curriculum. The law requires that IEP’s include the program modifications and supports for the child and teacher to enable the child to succeed in the classroom. The law also provides continued federal support to improve teacher training nationwide, and adds support of teacher training programs in geographic areas with acute teacher shortages. 5. How will IDEA 97 prevent inappropriate placements for minority children? Whether the child is a minority student or not, IDEA 97 emphasizes that for most children with disabilities, special education is not a place. Rather, special education is a set of services to support the needs of children with disab
