Students Who Learn Differently Overseas
LEGAL RIGHTS
EXAMPLES
AND RESOURCES
Thanks to
the Internet, it is now relatively easy to find out what legal rights you or
your learning-differently student has, no matter where in the world you might
live. In the United States, you can check out the US Department of Education at
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/policy.html
. Here you will learn about IDEA:
Individuals With
Disabilities Education Act amendments of 1997.
(IDEA)
The IDEA formula grant programs (Part B, Sections 611, and 619) assist States
in providing a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive
environment for children with disabilities ages 3 through 21 and early
intervention services (Part C) for infants and toddlers birth through age two
and their families.
The
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that all children
have available to them a free and appropriate education designed to meet their
unique needs. Changes in the percentage of total public elementary and
secondary enrollment and the distribution of students with disabilities affect
the level of effort required of educators and policymakers to comply with the
current law and help them to forecast the need for future resources.
It is interesting to note that:
The number
of students participating in federal programs for children with disabilities
has increased at a faster rate than total public school enrollment. Between1977
and 1995, the number of students who participated in federal programs for
students with disabilities increased 47%, while total public school enrollment
decreased by 2%.
Between 1977
and 1995, the percentage of children with specific learning disabilities as a
percentage of total K-12 enrollment rose from 2 to 6%, while those with speech
or language impairments or mental retardation decreased slightly.
Do more children learn differently
today than in the past, or do these figures reflect the growing public
awareness that many student's difficulties do not lie in inattention or
laziness but in teaching methods that are not meeting their needs?
In June 1999 at the AHEAD Conference
on Dyslexia and Third Level Education, Dr. Gerard Quinn presented a paper
entitled, Maintaining
Academic Excellence and Achieving Equal Opportunities - An Assessment of
Litigation Involving Students with Learning Disabilities Against American
Universities. Dr. Quinn's closing paragraph ends on a positive note for
our students:
In sum, it
is submitted that the above review of the legislation and case law demonstrates
that it is possible to reconcile the desire to maintain high academic standards
with the achievement of equal opportunity for students with disabilities
including those with learning disabilities.
In the UK you can find out about the
disabled students allowance (DSA) at http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/EducationAndTraining/HigherEducation/DG_10034898
.
What can DSAs be used for?
They can help pay for:
·
specialist equipment
you need for studying - for example, computer software
·
non-medical
helpers, such as a note-taker or reader
·
extra travel
costs you have to pay because of your disability
·
other costs -
for example, tapes or Braille paper
Allowances
for full-time and part-time higher education students’
DSAs are paid on top of other student loans,
grants and bursaries.
- The tables below show the maximum allowances
for full-time and part-time higher education students (including Open
University students and other distance learners).
- Maximum allowances are meant to support the
highest levels of need, so most people will get less.
- On top of the allowances listed in this table,
you can claim for 'reasonable spending' on extra travel costs for the academic
year.
- Maximums for full-time
and part-time higher education students: 2010/11 or 2009/10
|
Type of allowance |
Full-time students |
Part-time students |
|
Specialist equipment |
£5,161 for
entire course |
£5,161 for
entire course |
|
Non-medical helper |
£20,520 a year |
£15,390 a year
(depends on intensity of course) |
|
General Disabled Students'
Allowances |
£1,724 a
year |
£1,293 a
year (depends on intensity of course) |
|
|
|
|
Allowances
for postgraduate students
- Postgraduate
students (including Open University students and other distance learners)
can apply for a single allowance to cover all costs.
- The maximum
allowance for 2010/11 or 2009/10 is £10,260.
To obtain the grant the student (or
someone acting on the student's behalf) must apply to his/her Local Education
Authority.
Dyslexia International, located in
Brussels, Belgium, has an excellent section of their website devoted to worldwide
educational resourses. Below
you can see their section on Denmark which appears at http://www.dyslexia-international.org/Contacts.htm
:
|
Denmark
|
|
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WHO CAN IMPROVE THE CURRENT STATE OF LEGAL
AFFAIRS?
We can. We are the ones who have to change the system. We are the ones who need to vote to spend the money and fund the programs. And in doing so, we will not only be saving the self-respect of individuals and providing them with an opportunity to succeed, we will also be saving ourselves and others a lot of tax money down the line.
Students
Who Learn Differently Overseas
by Susan van Alsenoy, AWC Antwerp
Email: swl@fawco.org
Page created 10/29/99 EvE. Last updated 03/01/11 SvA.
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