When You Know Better, Do Better: The Impact of Outdated Placement Decisions for Students With Disabilities

• In Event: 69.057 - Roundtable Session 32
  In Roundtable Session: 69.057-11 - Tinkering Toward Success: Critical Considerations on the Intersection of Disability Studies and Educational Policy

Abstract

This research qualitatively examines the educational inequities that arise from the continued case-by-case use of outdated segregated special education settings for our nation’s students with disabilities. We examine six longitudinal case studies of students whose lives have been drastically impacted by special education placement decisions. We discuss the significant implications of the chasm between special education research which favors inclusive settings for all and the continued outdated placement practices in the United States. We conclude by building upon Sauer & Jorgensen’s (2016) call for a unified education system in order to do away with outdated segregation and instead, focus on building truly inclusive schools for all.

Authors

• Kathryn MacLeod, Syracuse University

• Julie N. Causton-Theoharis, Syracuse University

• George Theoharis, Syracuse University