Extended Pathways: ADA vs. IDEA: Understanding Your Rights
Extended Pathways
Discuss
Now that you have learned about rights and responsibilities, you are going to explore the laws that put these into practice. The two laws you are going to focus on are the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). You learned that IDEA is a federal law in the United States that ensures students with disabilities have access to a free appropriate public education (FAPE) that meets their unique needs. This law specifically applies to children with disabilities in the educational (school) system from ages 3-21 years old. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a United States law that protects people with disabilities from unfair treatment. Its purpose is to make sure that people with disabilities have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. This law impacts all people, but has a lot of protections around employment, public services and accommodations and is not limited to students or educational settings.
Review
Using the IDEA & ADA Fact Sort Worksheet we are going to review each of the facts and determine if it pertains to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) or the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Here are some options on how to review with students:
- Whole Group Discussion: On a whiteboard, chalkboard, or projector screen, create or show the IDEA vs ADA Fact Sort Worksheet first page. Handout the three fact pages to the students. Ask students to pick and read a fact aloud and then discuss together how to sort it. Students can use sticky notes, cut out fact cards, or simply write the facts on the whiteboard to sort them. Continue through the facts together until all are sorted.
- Small Group Sorting: Give each group a set of “IDEA vs. ADA” fact cards that are attached to the bottom of the worksheet. Be sure to mix up the cards before providing them to the students. Have the students sort the cards into each category: IDEA or ADA. After
- Independent Student Sorting: Give each student a set of “IDEA vs. ADA” fact cards that are attached to the bottom of the worksheet. Have each student sort the cards into each category: IDEA or ADA. After sorting, bring the students together and compare their results as a group.
Resource