People with disabilities have not always been treated fairly. Many changes have occurred that have changed the way we treat and view others who have different abilities. Laws have been created and changed in an effort to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities. People's attitudes towards others with disabilities have changed due to litigation which has then led to the passing of new laws in an attempt to treat others as equals. Before the 1800s, society had scary thoughts about people with special needs. People believed that people with special needs were possessed by demons. Therefore people with disabilities were often put to death or abandoned during this time period (S, Truscott, R, Berry and K, Lee, 2004). During the 1800s thinking began to change. Institutions were developed to help protect society from people with disabilities (M, Hardman, C, Drew, & M, Egan, 2009). Psychologists and doctors have begun to experiment with the education of children with disabilities; which was the beginning of our current standards (S, Truscott, R, Berry and K, Lee, 2004). In 1971, litigation was brought in Pennsylvania that stated that schools must provide a free public education to all school-age children with mental problems. delay (M, Hardman, C, Drew and M, Egan, 2009). Then, in 1990, the same law was renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Educations Act or IDEA (M, Hardman, C, Drew and M, Egan, 2009). This law is the foundation upon which the laws we have today are based. Many amendments followed this law to make it what we have today. In 1975, a new law was developed that stated that all people have access to a free and appropriate public education regardless of their disabilities (S, Truscott, R, Berry, & K, Lee, 2004). ...... half of the sheet ......M. Winston. Egan. Human exceptionalism: school, community and family. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2005. Print."INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2004 (IDEIA), PL 108-446." Encyclopedia of Special Education: A reference for the education of children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities and other exceptional individuals. Np: Wiley, 2007. Creed Reference. January 19, 2010. Web. May 12, 2014. "Special Education." Encyclopedia of applied psychology. Np: Elsevier Science & Technology, 2004. Creed Reference. 3 July 2013. Web. 11 May 2014. .