LEARNING DISABILITIES

One in five students in the United States have learning and thinking disabilities, with 2.3 million public school students having Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for those learning disabilities. However, even with the high amount of IEPs, many students are being left behind with the current Common Core State Standards that outline standard academic objectives. Goals like the English language arts goals are largely unmet and a majority of teachers feel incapable of teaching the standards to students with learning disabilities. To provide both students and teachers with the support they need, I support the amendment of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, an act that established and provides funding for free public education to students with disabilities, to require that IEPs include supplemental goals and lesson plans that provide diverse instruction methods. To allow teachers to better meet the needs of special education students, I believe we must provide relevant professional development opportunities and technical assistance to teachers working with special education students.