What Are Related Services for Special Education?
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the federal law that governs special education. Children who are eligible to receive special education services are eligible to receive both (1) special education and (2) related services.
IDEA defines related services as “transportation, and such developmental, corrective, and other supportive services . . . as may be required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education . . . .” Examples include, but are not limited to:
- speech-language pathology services,
- audiology services,
- interpreting services,
- psychological services,
- physical and occupational therapy,
- recreation,
- social work services,
- school nurse services,
- counseling services,
- orientation and mobility services, and
- medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes
The IEP team determines what related services the child needs and includes them in the IEP. The team must specify in the IEP when the service will begin, where it will be provided, and how often and for how long the service will be provided.
