Product Description:
Under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA; as amended, 2004), speech-language pathology services may be either special education or a related
service. Given the absence of guidance documents or research
on this issue, the purposes of this clinical exchange are to
(a) present and analyze the IDEA definitions related to speech language pathologists (SLPs) and their roles, (b) offer a rationale for the importance of and distinction between their roles,(c) propose an initial conceptualization (i.e., flow chart) to distinguish between when an SLP should function as a related services provider versus a special educator, and (d) suggest actions to develop and disseminate a clearer shared understanding
of this issue.