Top Five Special Education Issues

Posted by on November 24, 2006

[posted from Public Education Network newsblast]

TOP FIVE SPECIAL EDUCATION ISSUES

Thirty years ago, Congress announced that more than half of American children with disabilities were not receiving appropriate educational services. Today, American schools have a world-class system for differentiating instruction for all students, regardless of cognitive, emotional or physical limitations. That’s quite an accomplishment, and something about which educators should be proud. Alas, there’s a rub, reports Pamela Wheaton Schorr. While children with disabilities are now welcomed into classrooms with open arms, it can be hard to find educators embracing the kind of frank discussions that normally accompany such a sea change in instruction. Whether it’s because teachers and administrators are all leery of being called prejudiced, embarrassed about some of their past policies or simply too overwhelmed with day-to-day work to get their arms around the bigger issues, the result is the same: There are a number of seemingly insurmountable challenges in special education, and not much is being said about them: (1) Not all special ed students have gotten the education they deserve; (2) Special education teachers are often considered second-class citizens; (3) Special education paperwork overwhelms teachers and administrators; (4) A disproportionate number of children of color end up in special education; and (5) Numbers of special-ed students grow as number of dollars shrink.

http://www2.districtadministration.com/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=153