President Obama's administration is now asking the states to address the issue of minority students being singled out for special education. Meanwhile, the US Department of Education proposes a new rule that would identify racial and ethnic biases.
According to a new data released by the Education Department on Tuesday, the disparities persist in the US' public schools, where oftentimes minority students are more likely to be identified as having a disability and face tougher discipline than their white counterparts. Acting Education Secretary John B. King told reporters in a phone call that when they see students in any racial or ethnic group identified with disabilities at vastly higher rates than their peers, the nation should 'pause, step back, and rethink'. Secretary King also said that many of these children are not getting proper support services.
CNS News reported that the Education Department is proposing a new rule with two key parts. A standard approach would then be applied to all states in the US to compare racial and ethnic groups and at the same time determine when the disparities are significant.
Education Week reported that a report from the Government Accountability Office back in 2013 suggests that only about 2 percent of the nation's school districts were flagged for having an overrepresentation of minorities in special education. Once overrepresentation is determined in a district, the new policy would then provide school officials more flexibility in how they spend federal intervention dollars allocated under the IDEA Act or Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
When a particular district is tagged of having significant disparities, it must immediately set aside 15 percent of its IDEA funds to provide early intervening services, which begins in kindergarten. The new analysis also implies that hundreds of districts around the nation with large racial and ethnic disparities go unidentified.The newly proposed rule will be open to public comment and is expected to take months before a final rule is issued.
