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[quote=Anonymous]
If special ed is improved in D.C., can we help reduce the achievement gap?  And no, this is not the topic for another forum.

Excerpts from Washington Post article

https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2018/09/26/special-ed-needs-change-vermont-shows-how/?utm_term=.389ead6f53d3

Special ed needs to change. Vermont shows how.
Nathan LevensonSeptember 26 at 8:00 AM

Nathan Levenson is a former superintendent of the Arlington, Mass., schools and now is managing director of the District Management Group. (N/A/N/A)

In too many schools, special education hurts instead of helps kids. Students with special needs are pulled out of core instructional classes and seldom get extra instructional time with a talented teacher. Even worse, too many students with special needs receive instruction from paraprofessionals who seldom have strong teaching skills or content expertise. In short, well-meaning efforts to help kids in need are doing just the opposite.

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What’s clear is that special education is in crisis. Achievement of students with disabilities is low, the achievement gap high, and despite heroic efforts by schools and teachers, the gap isn’t closing. Few students with even mild disabilities are prepared for college or career.

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A big part of the problem is the way special education funds are spent. Too often, the dollars are spent on increasing the number of adults, such as paraprofessionals. But these assistant teachers seldom have the expertise to help students master academic subjects.

At the same time, special-education teachers are asked to do far too much, including manage students’ Individualized Education Programs, help with behavior issues, be experts in the law, write reports and teach reading, math and writing. No one can be an expert across such a diverse range of skills.

This strategy is bad for kids, bad for teachers and bad for taxpayers. Hiring more skilled staff and allowing them to play to their strengths works better and doesn’t cost a penny more. Staff morale also rises because teachers do more of what they are great at.

Schools that have taken this approach have seen achievement rise and the gap close.

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When students with special needs have access to highly skilled teachers and strong curriculum, they learn more because the standards are higher, the materials are better and the instruction is more rigorous. Then add in extra time with expert teachers focused on students’ specific needs — and it’s not surprising that learning skyrockets.

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The resulting law passed in May, and it discourages districts from using paraeducators for academics; encourages general education staff to help students with special needs; and supports the creation of a cadre of highly skilled interventionists, strategies strongly supported by special-education parents, teachers and leaders.

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Both general education and special-education teachers are going to need new teaching approaches, more student-centered schedules, leaders willing to allow their staff to specialize. Fortunately, the Vermont law will help with this, too.

But in the end, special education hasn’t kept up with the times. Meeting the needs of students with disabilities requires a forward-thinking approach grounded in an expectation that even students with the most significant needs are capable and ready to learn with the right support.

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