Mass. Coalition Advocates Reform of Spec. Ed. Law

Special education is often a touchy subject for educators, policymakers, and parents. But in Massachusetts, where the state's expansive special education law served as a model for federal legislation on educating disabled children, the issue resonates with particular force.

Last month, a coalition of 15 groups representing school administrators, teachers, parents, and advocates for children with disabilities--groups that for years have butted heads over special education--issued a joint proposal to reform the state's special education system. The agreement followed months of work with a mediator to reach a consensus.

"Probably the last time we were all on the same page, when we were all in a unified voice, was trying to get this basic law passed," said Julia K. Landau, a lawyer with the Massachusetts Advocacy Center, a Boston-based child-advocacy group that helped form the proposal. The state's special education law was passed in 1972, three years before a landmark federal special education law opened school doors nationwide...