Special Education Pt.2 Module #2: Legislation in ON, Pt.1 'The Education Act' 1990

Module Task:
  Review the three of the required readings above. You will need to do review all resources in order to engage in discussions with your classmates.
  Choose ONE of the following:

• Education Act (1990)
• PPM's related to Special Education (Choose one Specific PPM to Summarize)
• Ontario Regulation 181/98: Identification and Placement of Exceptional Students

Write a two-page summary, to post for your classmates to review and discuss. 

•   Your summary needs to include:

                  Background information
                  What the legislation is actually about
                  Who it address? Who it does not address?
                  Why do you think this legislation was written?

• Your summary should be in-depth enough that your classmates will be able to read it and identify key issues, areas of concern, etc.

• Last, provide a commentary if you have seen this particular piece of legislation in action in your school. Is it being followed correctly?  Does the legislation actually help students? Why or why not?  How would you improve this piece of legislation? 

• It would be most beneficial to you to choose a piece of legislation that you can comment on professionally and that will help further your career.

~ Post your summary and commentary
~ Read all posts made by your colleagues
~ Respond to at least TWO of your classmates' posts

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Helpful chart on Special Education Legislature:
https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/history-of-special-education-in-ontario
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Education Act 1990: http://ncee.org/2017/01/ontario-education-act-1990/

This is a piece of legislation that sets out to govern and regulate the education of Ontario's Youth as well as set an example of what Education needs to be. The legislation is essentially a piece of legislature that seeks to accomplish a lot. I am writing with ambiguity because the question is ambiguous-if one asks what is the purpose of the legislature is one asking for the "actual purpose" or the presumed idea that the legislature was created for many purposes but some underlining ones more than others.

The Education Act of 1990 produces answers and regulations as well as amendments to 1980's Education Act. In regards to Special Education, the differences were necessary. After the Charter of Rights and Freedoms were released, there was what seems to be an immediate call for policy change/creation that was known as the Human Rights Code. After the introduction of the Human rights code and the Charter of Rights and freedoms-que the Education Act of 1990 which protected separate schools; called for education to all regardless of how they identified or what barriers may have existed, as well as set standards that needed to be met by professionals in the education system.

This piece of legislature does not address parents as a part of the learning environment-only to be informed of serious medical instances and instances of discipline/punishment of their child(ren); aboriginal; first nations; newcomers and/or other ethnic minorities in Canada.

It is not an "early" piece of legislature but one that certain focuses more on the issues and social movements that were forthcoming at that time. At this stage in Ontario's educational development I have seen the special education system in effect and make a difference in some lives. After things like budget cuts and lack of provincial government support, it makes me believe its the opposite though.

Growing up, our rural separate school had limited facilities for students with special needs and saw students supported in the regular classroom quite well. Back then, we also had Educational Assistants who would be in the classroom helping students. That role that the school faculty plays is a bit different now and approached through the school board contigent to the IPRC's decision on placement/identification of the student.

As a student in High School, our school developed a "Peer-Mentoring" course where the students who signed up for this course would work together with the special needs students and the fauclty or SERT to support them in class as well as help integrate them into the routine social environment of the classroom.