History does matter

 History does matter

This past weekend, May 17, 1954, was the 72^nd anniversary of the Supreme Court Decision, Brown v. the Board of Education.   That decision overturned the 1896 decision of Plessy v. Ferugson, which argued that separate could be equal.   Linda Brown was an African American child whose separate school was decidedly not equal to her neighborhood white school.  On that day, the Supreme Court handed down an unanimous decision that separate is decidedly not equal.  The case for Linda Brown was argued by Thurgood Marshal who later became a Supreme Court justice himself and for whom the Baltimore airport is named. A year later, the Court issued another decree saying separate schools should end with all “deliberate speed”.  We know how that goes.

But what does all of that have to do with serving kids with special needs.  Turns out quite a bit.  The Brown decision relied on the 14^th amendment to the US Constitution. One the many things covered by that amendment is the principle that if a state chooses to provide a service to one group of its citizens it must also provide that same service to all citizens in that group.  In the early ‘60’s, the public schools of the various states provided universal education to the plain students in their jurisdictions.  However, those same services were not being provided to children with disabilities.  In fact, these students were actually excluded from school.  Using the principles of both the Brown Decision and the 14^thAmendment, advocates argued that since states were choosing to provide an education for some of its children, those same states must, therefore, provide an education for all of its children.  Out of that advocacy, the Education of All Handicapped Children Act (EHA) was born in 1965, 72 years after the Brown decision.  EHA later became the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA).

While many families may still argue that their children are not receiving the most appropriate education for their children, we are no longer arguing whether or not those children may come to school at all. History does matter.  Learn your history and you make a better today and tomorrow.

 

Too Young to Fail

 Too young to fail

 

Guidance from the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) says that children should not be removed from a diploma program until the final semester of the senior year.  The purpose of this guidance is to give students every chance possible to earn a high school diploma.  Isn’t that wonderful?  

Well not exactly.  The high school diploma program is supposed to prepare student for career or college.   In fact, the curriculum mainly prepares kids for college.  There isn’t much need for algebra 2 or a high school foreign language unless you are going to college.  And what about science?  Science is interesting but if the student is not going on to college just how much science is useful in high school.

Some school districts are moving kids out of diploma tracking courses very early.  Some as early as elementary school!  Is that horrible?  If you worship at the altar of rigor and academic learning, such behavior is blasphemy. 

However, if you believe as the first educators did, that education should prepare you for your life as an adult; this change makes good sense.  So back in the very olden days, 1700 and 1800’s kids went to school to learn to do what their parents did or what they would do.  There were lots of bad things about that plan because it certainly didn’t lead to kids moving up socio-economically.  

What is the point of modifying academic content to the point that it is accessible to children with significant learning challenges?  Sure, The Tale of Two Cities can be rewritten on the second grade level but when you do that it is no longer the Tale of Two Cities.

Wouldn’t it be a better use of these students’ time to teach about money, internet safety, how the government in a democracy is supposed to work?  Failure to get a high school diploma may not be failure at all. A certificate works much the same as diploma for almost all things.  Maybe it’s just common sense useful education. Wouldn’t it be nice if that’s what we all got.

 

Did you even notice?

 Did you even notice?

Probably not.  Not likely to be on folk’s radar.  Last week, the Secretary for the federal Department of Education announced that she was seeking a way to move the Office of Special Education out of the Department of Education.  Actually she is planning to break up the office and move the pieces and parts to other federal departments.  She has been trying to do this for quite some time and then those pesky child advocates make a fuss and she backs down.

The President is getting annoyed so she is going to try again.  Why does it matter if the Office of Special Ed is no more?  During the 24-25 school year there were 370 hearings at the Maryland State Department of Education regarding the delivery of a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).  The vast majority of the cases are decided in favor of the school district.  When families lose they have one of two choices.  They can appeal their case to a federal or state court.  That’s expensive and decisions can take 6-10 months.  During that time the family either pays for the education it wants for their child or the child remains  in the placement that the family found unacceptable.  Another avenue of appeal is the US Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights.  That office is charged with ensuring that the State Departments of Education uphold the letter of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  The cost for that appeal is only time and the cost of a certified letter.

Last year over 9,000 cases involving children with disabilities were filed with the Office of Civil Rights (OCR).   The number of lawyers handling these cases at OCR has been reduced by more than half and more terminations are on the way.   Even before the huge reduction in staff, families waited months for a response.  Now with the staff reductions, over 90% of the appeals are dismissed without being heard, in favor of the school district.

Children with disabilities have legally guaranteed rights.  Who is going to enforce those rights?  Think about it, lots of folks disobey the speed limit on the beltway.  How many more would do that if there were no law enforcement?  Without law enforcement there is going to be lots of “speeding” past the rights of children with disabilities.  Might be a good idea to pay a bit more attention to what is happening at the US Department of Education and the Office of Special Education and Rehab Services.