Students With Disabilities

Read about the needs and experiences of students with disabilities in schools

Special Report

Silhouettes of diverse students, each growing a different type of plant. Neurodiversity represented by biodiversity.
Understanding Learning Differences
This special report explores neurodiversity and some key issues shaping the experiences of students with learning and thinking differences.
View Special Report
Superintendent Roosevelt Nivens speaks after being announced as AASA National Superintendent of the Year in Nashville, Tenn. on Feb. 12, 2026.
Roosevelt Nivens, superintendent of the Lamar Consolidated Independent school district in Texas, speaks after being named superintendent of the year by AASA in Nashville, Tenn. on Feb. 12, 2026. The district Nivens leads will open a new charter school for students with autism in the 2026-27 school year.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Special Education Inside a K-12 District’s Plan for a Charter School for Students With Autism
A specialized charter school will serve a fast-growing segment of a Texas school district's student body.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, March 11, 2026
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6 min read
Special Education Spotlight Spotlight on Moving From Awareness to Engagement for Neurodiverse And Autistic Students
See how schools can better support neurodiverse and autistic students, addressing barriers, elevating strengths, and building more inclusive classrooms for all.
February 27, 2026
Image of students in isolation in artistic manner with red evocative color and shadows.
Laura Baker/Education Week & Getty
Special Education Investigation Finds 'Shocking Overuse' of Seclusion and Restraint in This District
Restraint and seclusion should not be used in routine school discipline, the Justice Department says.
Evie Blad, February 24, 2026
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5 min read
Classroom Student Star Sticker Award Progress Chart
Katie Dobies/iStock
Special Education New ADHD Research Challenges Former Assumptions. Why It Matters
New research may hold important insights for educators aiming to better engage students with ADHD.
Elizabeth Heubeck, February 23, 2026
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5 min read
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - JANUARY 14: Debra McAdams, Executive Director, Department of Exceptional Education at Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools visits Isaiah T. Creswell Middle School Of The Arts in Nashville.
Debra McAdams, executive director of the department of exceptional education at Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, visits Isaiah T. Creswell Middle School of the Arts in Nashville, Tenn., on Jan. 14, 2026.
Brett Carlsen for Education Week
Special Education Leader To Learn From How Nashville Dismantled Segregated Classrooms for Students With Disabilities
Nashville overhauled special education to prioritize inclusion, and changed school culture.
Evie Blad, February 9, 2026
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8 min read
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - JANUARY 14: Debra McAdams, Executive Director, Department of Exceptional Education at Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools visits Isaiah T. Creswell Middle School Of The Arts in Nashville.
Debra McAdams, executive director of the department of exceptional education at Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, visits Isaiah T. Creswell Middle School of the Arts in Nashville, Tenn., on Jan. 14, 2026.
Brett Carlsen for Education Week
Special Education Q&A Why Inclusive Classrooms Benefit Every Student, Not Just Those With Disabilities
Inclusive practices improve outcomes for all students and require deep system change.
Evie Blad, February 9, 2026
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5 min read
Kristen Ponce, speech language pathologist, uses Canva and the built in AI software to help her students.
Assistive technologies can be high or low tech, but teachers need help deploying them to match students with disabilities' particular needs. A speech language pathologist in Kansas City, Mo., uses an ed-tech program and its built in AI software to help her students on May 1, 2024.
Doug Barrett for Education Week
Special Education 4 Barriers to Giving Students With Disabilities the Tools They Need to Thrive
Assistive technology can help students with disabilities, but schools face challenges using it to its full potential.
Evie Blad, January 30, 2026
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5 min read
Education Week opinion letters submissions
Gwen Keraval for Education Week
Teaching Letter to the Editor Learning Spaces Should Meet the Needs of All Students
Better classroom design can help neurodivergent learners thrive, says this letter to the editor.
January 30, 2026
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1 min read
A “zones of regulation” sign decorates the door of a classroom at Ruby Bridges Elementary School in Woodinville, Wash., on April 2, 2024.
A sign asking children to identify their feelings decorates the door of a classroom at an elementary school in Woodinville, Wash., on April 2, 2024. Experts say schools should design social-emotional-learning curricula and programming with the needs of students with disabilities at the forefront.
Meron Menghistab for Education Week
Special Education A Missed Opportunity in SEL: Centering Students With Disabilities
Students with learning differences are not always considered in the design or implementation of SEL programs.
Madeline Will, January 26, 2026
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7 min read
President Ford at work in the Oval Office on Jan. 27, 1976.
President Gerald Ford, pictured in the Oval Office on Jan. 27, 1976, signed into law the predecessor to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in 1975.
Courtesy of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum
Special Education 50 Years of IDEA: 4 Things to Know About the Landmark Special Education Law
The nation's primary special education law details schools' obligations to students with disabilities.
Evie Blad, December 19, 2025
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5 min read
Roman Martinez, an attorney with Latham & Watkins, is featured in the Bloomberg Law documentary 'Supreme Advocacy.'
Roman Martinez, a Washington lawyer who has played a role in four U.S. Supreme Court cases about the rights of special education students, is featured in the Bloomberg Law documentary "Supreme Advocacy."
via YouTube
Law & Courts How One Lawyer Helped Reshape Special Education at the Supreme Court
A documentary follows a lawyer behind major Supreme Court wins for students with disabilities.
Mark Walsh, December 15, 2025
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9 min read
IQ test, paper sheet with test answer on the table
iStock/Getty
Law & Courts Supreme Court Weighs IQ Tests and Other School Records in Key Death Penalty Case
The court weighs the proper role of IQ tests for defendants claiming an intellectual disability.
Mark Walsh, December 11, 2025
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8 min read
Students in the online blended learning class at the ALLIES School in Colorado Springs, Colo., work with programs like ST Math and Lexia, both created for students with dyslexia, on April 7, 2023.
Under a new definition, students wouldn't need to have "unexpected" learning gaps to be identified for dyslexia services. Students in the online blended learning class at the ALLIES School in Colorado Springs, Colo., work with literacy programs created for students with dyslexia, on April 7, 2023.
Jaclyn Borowski/Education Week
Special Education What a New Dyslexia Definition Could Mean for Schools
An updated definition put forth by an international group of researchers could identify more students.
Sarah Schwartz, November 24, 2025
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5 min read
Image of a hand raising a red flag.
DigitalVision Vectors
Special Education Parents Should Continue to File Disability Rights Complaints, Say Special Ed. Advocates
Continuing to file them puts pressure on the Ed. Dept. to enforce special ed. laws.
Evie Blad, November 21, 2025
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4 min read
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