FCPS Early Release Mondays

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Regarding the “chair throwers”- it is extremely difficult for FCPS to get the student into an alternate placement. Because of Least Restrictive Environment, politics, and litigious parents. I am 100% for inclusion of students with disabilities. But some students need alternate placements for their growth and for the safety of others. You would not believe the meetings, documentation, and justification that teachers/admin have to do to make this possible (even when parents agree!!). It’s terrible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Truly curious - how did schools do it in the 80s?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Truly curious - how did schools do it in the 80s?

Inclusion was not advocated for like it is now.”least restrictive environment” can prevent some students from getting into the special education program or setting that would be best. It’s gone too far the other direction for some students.

[Anonymous]

AAP developed from the original Gifted and Talented Program FCPS introduced in 1976. This was a pull-out and functioned more like a club with just a few 5th/6th graders from each class meeting for one class period and sometimes after school. You were still very much a part of your assigned classroom.

The school system was eliminating their antiquated practice of “skipping” grades - this used to be the only way to keep a bright, “gifted” student engaged.

There were LD classes in the very early 1980s (and called this even in the yearbooks) and this typically small group of students (maybe 12 total) had one teacher and aide and stayed in one classroom. Very much separate from other classes and students.

The early 80s FCPS had larger LD programs but were run as separate schools from “host” elementary schools with its own principals and administrative teams and buses.

Same time GT program evolved and grew to having GT-center schools strategically placed in (no coincidence here) in elementary schools experiencing concerning population decline. GT bolstered some schools slated for closure. Louise Archer ES is one such example.

The little neighborhood elementary schools then all followed suit - each needed a “draw” or “hook” to boost numbers. So you’d have a GT or deaf and hard of hearing or even pre-k program (or a combo) to maintain numbers. I remember hearing from a teacher that the ideal FCPS ES would have 800 students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Enjoy the new Union BS

Teacher hater has entered the chat.

PP probably has a kid with behavior issues, and blames it on "the pandemic."

Self-righteous condescending hateful shrew has entered the chat

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Early release Mondays should be seen as an opportunity for you to educate your child. Book tutoring or plan an educational outing. This is what your child deserves from you as their parent. Embrace this mindset and the anger goes away.

I thought all parents are stupid, uneducated laypeople who should leave education to the experts. Which is it? Should we be doing our own education Mondays (instead of, you know, making money to pay for necessities), or are we by and large too moronic to be trusted with a pet rock?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Truly curious - how did schools do it in the 80s?

Inclusion was not advocated for like it is now.”least restrictive environment” can prevent some students from getting into the special education program or setting that would be best. It’s gone too far the other direction for some students.

+1, they were expelled or placed in alternate locations. That mindset/culture doesn’t exist anymore (and parents didn’t sue the school districts based off those decisions)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Early release Mondays should be seen as an opportunity for you to educate your child. Book tutoring or plan an educational outing. This is what your child deserves from you as their parent. Embrace this mindset and the anger goes away.

I thought all parents are stupid, uneducated laypeople who should leave education to the experts. Which is it? Should we be doing our own education Mondays (instead of, you know, making money to pay for necessities), or are we by and large too moronic to be trusted with a pet rock?

You do sound pretty moronic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Regarding the “chair throwers”- it is extremely difficult for FCPS to get the student into an alternate placement. Because of Least Restrictive Environment, politics, and litigious parents. I am 100% for inclusion of students with disabilities. But some students need alternate placements for their growth and for the safety of others. You would not believe the meetings, documentation, and justification that teachers/admin have to do to make this possible (even when parents agree!!). It’s terrible.

It also doesn’t help that the schools are filled and there’s waiting lists for kids to get in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Regarding the “chair throwers”- it is extremely difficult for FCPS to get the student into an alternate placement. Because of Least Restrictive Environment, politics, and litigious parents. I am 100% for inclusion of students with disabilities. But some students need alternate placements for their growth and for the safety of others. You would not believe the meetings, documentation, and justification that teachers/admin have to do to make this possible (even when parents agree!!). It’s terrible.

It also doesn’t help that the schools are filled and there’s waiting lists for kids to get in.

There are hundreds of fcps kids where the iep team has agreed they should be in a special ed only school and they cannot be moved because there *are no seats*. Its a huge problem that is never discussed. We need more special ed day schools. The current system of relying on private organizations to open up schools is ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

What happens to the chair throwers in MS and HS? Do they end up putting their classmates in the ER?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What happens to the chair throwers in MS and HS? Do they end up putting their classmates in the ER?

I think they’re the ones who are fighting. You don’t see a lot of fighting in elementary, but I think that’s what the chair throwing transitions into.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Regarding the “chair throwers”- it is extremely difficult for FCPS to get the student into an alternate placement. Because of Least Restrictive Environment, politics, and litigious parents. I am 100% for inclusion of students with disabilities. But some students need alternate placements for their growth and for the safety of others. You would not believe the meetings, documentation, and justification that teachers/admin have to do to make this possible (even when parents agree!!). It’s terrible.

It also doesn’t help that the schools are filled and there’s waiting lists for kids to get in.

There are hundreds of fcps kids where the iep team has agreed they should be in a special ed only school and they cannot be moved because there *are no seats*. Its a huge problem that is never discussed. We need more special ed day schools. The current system of relying on private organizations to open up schools is ridiculous.

OMG, yes! But it’s only going to get worse.

The state now requires special education students to average 80% of their day in gen ed. That’s averaged over all of the kids. But every kid who goes to a special school is 100% OUT of gen ed. The thousand multiple disabilities kids who are self-contained are 100% out of gen ed. So there will be fewer other kids getting specialized help outside of the gen ed classroom. How many fewer getting what they need? A LOT. Fairfax has to hit a target of 80% - they are currently at only 54%.

Things are about to get WAY worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Regarding the “chair throwers”- it is extremely difficult for FCPS to get the student into an alternate placement. Because of Least Restrictive Environment, politics, and litigious parents. I am 100% for inclusion of students with disabilities. But some students need alternate placements for their growth and for the safety of others. You would not believe the meetings, documentation, and justification that teachers/admin have to do to make this possible (even when parents agree!!). It’s terrible.

It also doesn’t help that the schools are filled and there’s waiting lists for kids to get in.

There are hundreds of fcps kids where the iep team has agreed they should be in a special ed only school and they cannot be moved because there *are no seats*. Its a huge problem that is never discussed. We need more special ed day schools. The current system of relying on private organizations to open up schools is ridiculous.

OMG, yes! But it’s only going to get worse.

The state now requires special education students to average 80% of their day in gen ed. That’s averaged over all of the kids. But every kid who goes to a special school is 100% OUT of gen ed. The thousand multiple disabilities kids who are self-contained are 100% out of gen ed. So there will be fewer other kids getting specialized help outside of the gen ed classroom. How many fewer getting what they need? A LOT. Fairfax has to hit a target of 80% - they are currently at only 54%.

Things are about to get WAY worse.

Please post this new regulation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents in the AAP forum have admitted to using tutors to keep their kid up to speed in AAP because they are so sure that the Gen Ed class room is awful. Several Moms spent an entire thread discussing how they were not sorry for appealing their kid into AAP even though they knew their kid would not be able to keep up and would slow the class down.

I am sure that there are parents at schools that are very focused on AAP who use tutors to get their kid to a place that they look like they need AAP and then keep using tutors to keep their kid in AAP. That is very different then the parents who use tutors because their kid is on grade level but struggling and the parents want to help the kid be more confident.

This area is a bit ridiculous in its desire to have kids in the most advanced everything, AAP is not immune.

You have to look at why people want AAP. Some want it because if it being the most advanced. Others want it to get a class free of the worst disturbances. Our kid had a year in class with a chair thrower. Evacuating a couple of times a week plus regular disturbances that didn't require leaving the class is not what most parents want for their kids

Agreed. Then people complain about the money and special services for kids with IEPs. There is no winning. You want the disruptive kids out of the classroom? We need to have specialized programs for those kids and a means of quickly moving them out of the regular classroom into those programs. That costs money. We need more options for small classroom environments for kids with emotional regulation issues but those cost money because you need 1) space 2) more specially trained teachers.

We also need for a more streamlined process to remove kids who are disruptive from the classroom that takes less effort from Teachers. Teachers spend a lot of time documenting what they are doing for kid with IEPs because if they don't the school district is sued. And they spend lots of times at IEP meetings because there is a requirement for Teachers to attend meetings and parents can call one at pretty much any time. But the process needs to be easier and there needs to be a faster process for kids who are disruptive whose parents refuse to enter into an IEP process or consider moving their child. I know a family that has moved every year of MS and HS in order to avoid acknowledging their kids needs. The kid was suspended multiple times in ES and MS. There is nothing the County can do.

There are kids who have been approved for private schools due to the district not being able to meet their needs and no spaces are available. And some of those spaces are pretty much warehouses for kids and pretty dismal.

Regarding the “chair throwers”- it is extremely difficult for FCPS to get the student into an alternate placement. Because of Least Restrictive Environment, politics, and litigious parents. I am 100% for inclusion of students with disabilities. But some students need alternate placements for their growth and for the safety of others. You would not believe the meetings, documentation, and justification that teachers/admin have to do to make this possible (even when parents agree!!). It’s terrible.

It also doesn’t help that the schools are filled and there’s waiting lists for kids to get in.

There are hundreds of fcps kids where the iep team has agreed they should be in a special ed only school and they cannot be moved because there *are no seats*. Its a huge problem that is never discussed. We need more special ed day schools. The current system of relying on private organizations to open up schools is ridiculous.

OMG, yes! But it’s only going to get worse.

The state now requires special education students to average 80% of their day in gen ed. That’s averaged over all of the kids. But every kid who goes to a special school is 100% OUT of gen ed. The thousand multiple disabilities kids who are self-contained are 100% out of gen ed. So there will be fewer other kids getting specialized help outside of the gen ed classroom. How many fewer getting what they need? A LOT. Fairfax has to hit a target of 80% - they are currently at only 54%.

Things are about to get WAY worse.

What? That makes no sense.

The Post needs to do an investigative report on all these kids sitting at home due to FCPS's incompetence. If the private sector isn't providing enough seats, FCPS needs to open and run their own special ed schools. The private day schools are being bought by venture capitalists, or they are poorly run by charities with no oversight or standards, etc. Basically just warehouses until the kids drop out.