Reply to Is integration hurting our kids?

Forum Index » Kids With Special Needs and Disabilities

Reply to "Is integration hurting our kids?"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous]
The School Divisions try to do it now as they view it as a cost effective options - until, of course, it blows up on some child who definitely can't operate in such a large setting.  The opposite years ago with self-contained for many students was that there was little if any oversight of the SC teachers, the curriculum, the evaluation systems of student progress etc.  You basically often had a parallel set of teacher s-- and many of them just loved it!!   It was "my way or no way!"  I remember well while my regular education daughters had their teachers busting their butts as the SOL system of evaluation began for stude,ts in the regular education classroom - there was no change in evaluation of students in SC for years.  I observed two years ahead of our youngest going to high school and was asked to see the syllabus (did not have one to share), how much homework was assigned (none as most students would not have home setting to get it done in), what kind of evaluations/testing on material was done (nothing formal) AND the materials were old or at a higher reading level then the students then in the Educable class could master.  We gave it one year, and you could not prod those oafs to change their ways (why because usually they did not have an interested AND informed parent asking questions!!

So, there are two sides to any coin.  Parents pushed for mainstreaming, if not full inclusion because they realized their children especially with milder disabilities would get much better access to the regular education curriculum.  However, teachers often have struggled in having not necessarily so many students now in a regular class, but even a few with very different educational needs and accommodations to meet them.  A former college student who worked with our daughter a couple of years ago went to NOVA and told me she had 20 students to cover as a "push  in" SE teacher in various classes with various needs.  She was an excellent teacher, but knew she was pulled in too many directions, so quickly got a self-contained class where she will be able to teach.

It also seems that school divisions have gone back to a program approach for some disabilities such as not only functional/life skills, but also now some programs for those with autism and others with more emotional/psychological support for those with behavior challenges.  It is important to learn about all the levels or kinds of classes in a school district and to decide what goals the school system might really be able to meet and what you may want to just supplement with an academic tutor for a subject area or with community sports, arts or group clubs (scouting, church based youth group) for social opportunities.  It really is hard to ask one teacher to meet so many diffrent needs of so many diverse students now.[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics