One step forward or two steps back? The attitudes of parents of students with disabilities regarding the amendment to the special education law in Israel

Abstract

One prominent change in the amendment to the Special Education Law in the State of Israel (2018) concerns the dissolution of placement committees and their transformation into characterization and eligibility committees. These characterization and eligibility committees determine children's eligibility for special education, whereas parents decide the nature of their school placement. Through in-depth interviews with parents of school-aged children with various disabilities, this study examined parents' perceptions of the change in the law and its effects on their children. The interviews revealed four key findings regarding parents' experiences of shifting to a characterization and eligibility committee. The ramifications of the gap between legislative intentions (top-down educational policy) and parents' experiences as policy subjects (bottom-up educational implementation) are discussed.