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The children return from school confused, scared and sometimes with bruises on their wrists, arms or face. Many won’t talk about what happened, or simply can’t, because they are unable to communicate easily, if at all.
“What Tim eventually said,” said Dr. John Miller, a podiatrist in Allegany, New York, about his son, then 12, “was that he didn’t want to go to school because he thought the school was trying to kill him.”
Miller learned that Tim, who has Asperger’s syndrome, was being unusually confrontational in class, and that more than once teachers had held him down on the floor to “calm him down,” according to logs teachers kept to track his behavior; on at least one occasion, adults held Tim prone for 20 minutes until he stopped struggling.
The Millers are suing the district, in part for costs of therapy for their son as a result of the restraints. The district did not dispute the logs but denied that teachers behaved improperly.
For more than a decade, parents of children with developmental and psychiatric problems have pushed to gain more access to mainstream schools and classrooms for their sons and daughters. One unfortunate result, some experts say, is schools’ increasing use of precisely the sort of practices families hoped to avoid by steering clear of institutionalized settings: takedowns, isolation rooms, restraining chairs with straps, and worse…Reece Peterson, a Nebraska professor, illustrates the challenges by citing two recent cases in Iowa. In one, the parents of an 11-year-old who died while being held down called for a ban on restraints; in the other, parents charged that a school failed their son by not restraining him. The boy ran away and drowned.
“It’s damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” Peterson said, “and it reflects the level of confusion there is about this whole issue.”
I’ve been on both sides of similar questions. Fighting for the right of a child to be mainstreamed. Confronted by youth completely incapable at the moment of rational, comprehending response beyond violence.
I haven’t any easy answers. Neither has this article. But, it is praiseworthy and worth reading to help anyone convinced of only one side that things ain’t so cut and dried.
A special note: Tim Miller’s father has commented extensively on his son’s mainstreaming and the questions arising along the way. In the comments section at the IHT – his are comments 4,5 and 8. I’ve had a few emails forth-and-back with Dr. Miller and he thinks the article by Benedict Carey is terrific btw.
Forty-some years ago, we had a little retarded girl in my class in Elementary School. All she could do was drool and throw up once in a while. Mainstreaming her wasn’t fair to her, or to us. Just a drain on resources because the teacher, who’s time was limited then – imagine the issues today – had to keep an eye on her all the time.
The problem, as I see it, is the “borderline” kids – the ones, like Tim, who can more or less function in a group environment like that. I’d say “give ’em a shot at it”, but if there’s a problem, out they go…. Sounds unfair, but it should be up to the teacher, not the board, or some feel-good folks who don’t have to push the mop….
Just IMHO….
Yeah unfortunately I tend to agree with Stu. It sucks but for the whole to come out all right other kids have to be left behind and removed from the system.
Some school systems would have insisted my little brother be “mainstreamed.” As much as I’d of loved to see him have a normal life I know it’s just flights of fancy.
#1 Stu – You are right of course. I have a daughter with Cerebral Palsy who has graduated high school. Her CP only affects her motor skills which includes speech but otherwise is a very able person. From the time she entered the public school system she was grouped with mentally handicapped students. A lot of them could not control themselves and disrupted the class. In elementary school we were blessed with teachers that could cope very well with this chaos but as the course loads became heavier (middle school) the teachers seemed less inclined to accommodate. In fact the first two years in middle school my daughter was put on an academic track used for mild to severely retarded or emotionally troubled students. During our IPT meetings for middle school we were assured she was on the track for a normal student preparing for high school. When we became aware of the situation we had to go into mediation with the school and school system. She essentially began her high school with a two year deficit in learning. That is she began high school with a 6th to 7th grade education. Through absolute determination and extreme hard work on her part she graduated with a 3.6 from high school. Without my wifes constant attention to our daughter’s education well being the school system would have shot her out the other end with some kind of certificate of accomplishment instead of a true high school diploma.
Sorry about the long story but to put a cap on it. Special education needs to have better oversight from federal all the way down to campus.
#4–ML==you only missed it by a smidge there at the end: “Special education needs to have better oversight from federal all the way down to THE FAMILY MEMBERS STAYING CONSTANTLY INVOLVED.”
After all, who’s kiddie is it?
Back in the day, before conservatives gave up their neologism of P.C. – my family had to sue the local school system just to get them to allow my profoundly-deaf niece in the front door.
Don”t blather on too much about politics unless you’ve been involved with the decades-long fight to get minimal equal opportunities for kids with special needs. Yes, the programs and their advocates need to keep progressing. But, the school boards are usually too busy playing politics to spend time on issues like education.
#5 Bobblehead – Agreed, the most important oversight is definitely the parents or guardians. My wife and I were more than just mild pains in the ass to the school system. Without our relentless and pervasive presents the school system would have screwed my daughter no doubt. But given that parents are not always what they should be, oversight that can be legislated and enforced must come from government and civil entities.
Every child becomes an adult if they live long enough and at that time, may or may not be dependent on the rest of us. So in that sense every child is everyones responsibility.
#6 moss – Well said. Here! Here!
There are some many shades of gray when it comes to kids with special needs. My wife used to work in a group home for severely behaviorally disturbed children; young, ages 5-9. These kids were vicious. My wife had bruises all over her body every day. Those kids had no place in a regular class room. The company she worked for had very strict policies about takedowns, etc. There was a lady who got fired from another home where she broke the arm of an 18 year old girl that was coming at her with a knife. She didn’t follow proper procedure, so they had to let her go. We can’t expect teachers to require that training as well.
That being said, so many teachers think they are child psychologists as well. They diagnose ADHD, assign kids that probably exceptionally bright to special ed when they don’t know how to handle them, etc. There is not enough attention paid to the fact that all kids are different, and learn differently.
My 3 year old daughter has had difficulty with a speech delay. We have her in a preschool program with the school district that is specially made for preschoolers with developmental delays, etc. Out of the 4 days, 2.5 hrs a day that she is at school, there is a speech therapist there for one day only. We are putting her into private therapy as that is clearly not enough. Most of the kids have the same issues and that’s all the time they devote to it? It’s the same all the way up through high school. When I was in HS the special ed teacher wasn’t even really a teacher. It was all day handicapped day care. It did nothing for those poor kids.
#8–ML==you say responsibility but actually mean financial burden. To that end, I agree. Getting every child the best education they can benefit from reduces the financial burden on us all. To that end, I wonder how those with special needs could best be treted within a system always limited by money, time, and interest? Surely there is a better way than dragging everyone else down to provide an “experience” for a small minority?
#10 Bobsled – I am in complete agreement with removing disruptive children from the normal flow in a classroom but to deny children with physical and mental disabilities that can learn given the correct accommodations from a regular classroom setting is discriminatory at best.
What I am saying is that the school systems should have each child’s education welfare in mind and seek out solutions based on each student’s need. My experience tells me that our school systems are based on the Large Volume Used Car model. Who gives a shit about quality lets get them shoved through the system.
As far as funding, our school system is probably the least state funded. But, all school systems actually get federal money based on how many handicap children they have. Our local school system has miss spent the money that it did receive and even more has been wasted on litigation due to school systems in the state breaking federal handicap rights laws. To repeat, oversight is needed.
#11–ML==if you review this thread and others, we are in complete agreement. Kiddies, like healthcare, like national defense, like the space program, etc, etc, etc, is something that could find something to do with any amount of money spent on it. How to balance the competing needs?
Likewise with the kiddies. EVERY child, in fact every adult, ALL of us, are special needs. Aren’t we all special? Wouldn’t we all benefit from an educational system tailored to meet our needs? Yes indeed. but- How to balance the competing needs?
Funny. If one says “Look at the needs of MY child,” one sounds caring and compassionate. If another one says “Look at the needs of all the Children,” one sounds uncaring. Yes, funny how that works.
But to take up on one thing I do disagree with you on==”responsibility.” Its not true that everyone else in society has a responsibility to care for the offspring of others. We all get taxed, and we can’t deny our taxes to whatever issue gets our goat, but that is not the same thing.
Kiddies. I’ve seen many people with complete blind spots when it comes to their kiddies–and yet these same people can be very cold to other kiddies.
I wonder how consistent all the caring people are?
What I am saying is that the school systems should have each child’s education welfare in mind and seek out solutions based on each student’s need.
#11
Granted, that would be the best environment for every child to soak up as much education that they can, but it’s completely unfeasible in terms of amount of money and time. Not to be a kill-joy or anything, but what you are talking about is near communist ideologies.
In the USA, our economy is controlled by capitalism. when there are government funded programs within a capitalist society, those programs become the bottom rung of a specific market. In terms of schools and education, the public education system is the bottom rung, with private institutions making up the rest of the ladder.
What i’m saying is, don’t expect AMAZING service and programs within the bottom rung of a market. There are lots of schools that do just what you say, they are just more expensive.
I’m not saying it’s right or wrong, i’m just saying that that is the way it is. If you would like to send your son or daughter where there is personalized education, you best be looking in your pocket-book. You can’t expect the government to pay for everything
#13 gtriamy – The federal government is already committed to what I’ve discussed. Laws are already in effect to protect and ensure a basic education for all children. It is up to the local services to use the funding correctly. What is lacking is teachers that are not doing there job which is to be advocates and mentors (teachers) to the students academic well being. Most (not all) are more interested in getting all students pushed through with as little help as possible.
Just got this confirming email from a family member regarding two of our “normal” kiddies: “So I don’t know how to help her there; public schools are not equipped for children who don’t “tow the line” and behave in the general norm, and I”m thinking Alondra will have trouble – just like she had trouble at Montessori because she’s very physical and isn’t ‘the general norm’.”
So, you can pay those extra bucks for the special expertise and still be let down.
Your kiddies are YOUR kiddies, once you allow them into this world, you owe them ALL your consideration, not just at convenient times and not an excuse that the teachers should do their jobs when it is actually your job.
My US$0.02 is that these mandated programs are not funded well enough. Schools around here have enough trouble paying for what they need and dealing with having to teach kids just to take No Child Left Behind exams. If a kid can’t behave reasonably enough then something needs to be done about it.
I know two adorable kids with CP and a whole host of other problems (like many developmentally challenged kids they don’t have problems that fit within an easily named disorder). They take all their classes with the normal kids but they have an aide with them for when things get out of hand. It works wonders for them (behaviorally). The state even pays for the aid. So I don’t see why other children couldn’t get an aide.
As to the article itself… things like “seemingly aggressive” come across as poor writing to me. An aggressive action is aggressive even if there is a medical “excuse” for it. Don’t try to make it seem otherwise.
I am John Miller, father of Tim Miller in the NY Times Article by Ben Carey.
I completely agree that some children should be mainstreamed and some children should not be.
I agree with the law of the land that the least restrictive appropriate environment should be utilized.
In my son’s case, at this moment in time, he clearly and convincingly should be fully mainstreamed. His first year of high school is proof of this.
The Ben Carey article did not mention that a teacer wrote she laid over my son’s back during the twenty minute continuous prone restraint. It does not mention the crisis intervention and restraint training in place for school staff was from TCI (Therapeutic Crisis Institute) and that such training has no prone restraints in its restraint options.
I would suggest readers view the following website:
http://www.caica.org/RESTRAINTS%20Death%20List.htm
Whether or not a child should be mainstreamed is debatable.
Whether or not a child should be subjected to physical endangermnent and psychological and emotional abuse such as my son was or such as the many deceased children who died from such restraints listed at eht CAICA website is hardly debatable.
I suggest readers catch some more of the details at my blogs on the International Herald Tribune website:
http://iht.com/articles/2008/07/15/healthscience/15restraint.php?d=1&page=2
If any readers wish to ask specific questions re. Tim, I will try to answer through this site.
John P. Miller DPM
#17–JPM==How did your son go “misdiagnosed” or not have diagnosis corrected for 6 years?
How many times did you attend counseling sessions or teacher conferences during that 6 year period?
All I know about Aspergers I read this morning at wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asperger_syndrome
Reading that it sounds likely that a child with this condition needs one on one supervision when around other forming personalities. I hope you don’t want to advantage YOUR child by disadvantaging everyone else’s?
Having a child with challenges is one of the main reasons I chose to be child free. You have my sympathies as limited herein.
Re. Comment #3 by Bobbo Jo
Parents trusted the educators. They gave the school the autism diagnosis in writing in February of 2005. The student is supposed to be classified according to most defining disability, which in Tim’s case,was his autism spectrum diagnosis. The school, in all of the many CSE meetings attended during the six years of misclassification (speech impaired and then other health impaired) never advised parents that autism classification was an option or that it even existed.
Take a look at your state’s education regulations. In NYS there are hundreds of pages written in legalese that is within my comprehension, and would have been gone thru by me if I had any idea of the true interest of the school district.
I suspect the regulations would be outside of the comprehension of many parents.
There was no lack of involvement of Parents in Tim’s case. There was a great deal of misleading on part of school district as it denied services in interest of keeping its per special education pupil instructional expenses at half of what other school districts in the state spent.
Tim was not misdiagnosed by the system for six years. The system had his diagnosis. The “system” “misclassified for six years, thereby circumventing mandated services which accompany an autism spectrum classification. Withholding of these services, beyond the capabilities of most parents to provide on their own, and which are mandated for the schools to provide, as evidence based data indicates they are appropriate and will save society money in the long run if they are provided.
The IDEA is over thirty years old. The law is free and appropriate education. I believe the mandated services which accompany an autism diaanosis and classification are appropriate and can make a huge difference long term for autism spectrum individuals.
BobboJO knows not whereof he/she speaks when disparaging parents for not being adequately involved. Parents were involved. Have correspondence from last elementary school teacher before transition to house of horrors middle school in which teacher praised parents for their involvement and for being such a joy to work with.
Feel free to fire me some questions.
Parents were very involved in middle school but immediately treated as adversaries when raising any questions re. inappropriateness.
Parents met lies, denials, whitewashing and cover-up from school.
John P. Miller DPM
#19–JPM==are you actually JPM? If so, why write in the third person? Its weird making everything you post suspect/awkward.
Still, you do have access to detailed facts that make it difficult to discuss a topic “in general.”
You say “parents trusted the educators.” Well, that covers a lot of ground. I agree government regulations can be undecipherable which is why close communication with the teachers involved in your son’s care was paramount. Teachers can easily be overworked and misallocate time. So can parents.
How is your son doing these days? (I wish you both well.)
My dear salty tongued friend, bobbo:
I am JPM and I apologize if my literary style does not conform with what you think it should be.
First and foremost, Tim is doing very well today. He is relatively happy He has just completed an academically very successful first year of high school. He has done so in spite of and not because of his three years of hell at his middle school.
Tim wanted a new start at the High School. He was originally scheduled two study halls per day in a small classroom with a behavior therapist. The behavior therapist was to continue to conduct his first ever FBA which had begun the previous end of March. The behavior therapist was to us this time to conduct social skills.
The behavior therapist ignored the successful and previously begun FBA, ignored the behavior plan, acted outside of IEP and started the school year employing “planned ignoring” for purposes of behavior modification.
This behavior therapist was also the new provider of finally being provided parent education/training/counseling.
My son was miserable with this person. He did not respond well, to say the least, with this “expert” who was all about power plays.
On 9-25-2007, we had a parent counseling session from this parent in the morning. In that session I expressed my distrust of the school, in view of the lies, denials, whitewashing and cover-up we have been told over the previous three years and in view of the endangerment and abuse our son endured at the Middle School’s hands.
The behavior therapist stated in that same meetin: “I will never lie to you.”
About noon on day of the counseling session, the behavior therapist called me and stated my son had left the school grounds and asked that a parent pick him up on the country road between the school and the village in which we live.
He called back a short while later and asked if we had gotten our son. He then stated he needed to fill me in on what happened. He stated my son had tried to go into the principal’s office. (He wanted to go to the Principal’s office to tell her this behavior therapist was “planned ignoring” him.)
The behavior therapist stated he stood between my son and the principal’s door, in an anteroom. He stated he instructed my son to leave and my son, instead, tried to reach around him and open the door. He very clearly stated my son did not push him or attack him in any way. He stated he then pushed my son down to the floor.
He then stated my son got up and again, without attacking him in any way or pushing him, tried to reach around him and open the principal’s door. He stated he then wrapped his leg around my son’s, tripped him and pushed him to the ground.
He stated my son got up again and tried a third time, without attacking him in any way, and tried to reach around him to open the principal’s door. He stated he again wrapped his leg around my son’s leg, tripped him and pushed him to the ground.
The behavior therapist stated my son got up again and someone locked the principal’s door from the other side. He stated my son, realizing the door was locked (glass panels on either side of door) left the anteroom and headed out of the school building and off the school grounds.
The behavior therapist stated what he did was wrong, It will never happen again, He apologized. He stated he now realizes that any attention, even negative, serves as a re-enforcer for Tim’s mal-behavior.
I thanked the behavior therapist for apologizing. With all that had gone on in the school over the previous three years in middle school, this was the first apology I had ever received and I thanked him for that. I further advised that while what he did was wrong, it did not equate to the repeated abusive restraints over a four month period of time, as he was acting “in the moment”.
This behavior therapist never apologized to my son.
I called the school district superintendent three days later (on a Friday) and she was unaware of the physical intervention. She stated she would speak with the behavior therapist and with our treating clincal psychologist who had engaged in emergency clinical interventions regarding the renewed trauma in face of already existent post-traumatic issues. She stated she would do this first thing on Monday morning and get back to me. Education regulations require same day reporting to superintendent of physical intervention
I called the Superintendent on the next tuesday, as I knew she had yet to speak with my son’s psychologist. The superintendent stated she did not recall stating she would speak to behavior therapist and my son’s psychologist or get back to me.
I asked the principal for the behavior intervention report one week after the incident and none had yet been done. A written report was generated later that day and signed and dated one week after the incident.
The physical intervention report differed from near real time phone report the behavior therapist had given me.
The report stated my son had pushed the therapist and that he had stepped behind him and “lowered him to the floor”. It sounded so very peaceful. Even if my son had pushed him, which is contrary to my son’s version and to the original version from the behavior therapist, it would not justify three takedowns.
It was clearly a violation of education regulations which require a child specific exemption in IEP or Behavior Plan for any physical intervention.
The School District Superintendent investigated the incident and notified me she had determined the behavior therapist had acted in accordance with board policy. She was unable to provide me with such written board policy.
Because of the planned ignoring and the inappropriate takedowns (my son was a danger to no one), my son began intense related perseverations and ruminations. His depression went to an all-time high. Parents made a number of 200 mile round trips to the treating clinical psychologist for needed intervention because of what had happened. Parents requested the behavior therapist be disengaged from my son and request was denied. The treating clinical psychologist argued off record for same and the superintendent refused to disengage my son and the behavior therapist. My son’s treating psychologist finally went on record in email to school district superintendent that my son, because of the actions of and continued engagement with the behavior therapist, was depressed and suicidal and he feared my son might become a danger to himself or others if not soon disengaged. The School District Superintendent, even with this strongly worded written opinion from the treating board certified clinical psychologist refused to act upon request of parents and psychologist for disengagement.
I then called the regional representative of VESID, which is the wing of the NYS Education Department responsible for protection of the developmentally disabled. I advised of the on record statement of the clinical psychologist and the refusal of the superintendent to disengage. I was advised by the regional representative that she had already spoken with the superintendent and there was nothing more she could do. She stated she could not make the superintendent disengage my son. Can you imagine a parent with a child in a state my son was and with potential of killing himself or other’s receiving such response?
I pushed the issue further and the VESID regional representative suggested I contact the school board. I called the BOE president that very day. The BOE president did intervene. It took 9 days for disengagement to be effect. Is that how the system protects our children?
Once disengagement was effected, the depression, rumination, suicidal ideation, adverse academic impact lifted immediately and my son had a wonderful remainder of the year.
As far as the “planned ignoring”: The behavior therapist had provided parents (third person; easier than writing my wife and myself)with pages from a book he referred to as the bible of applied behavior analysis. I purchased the most recent edition of his bible which was twenty years newer and gave it to my son’s treating clinical psychologist (oops, back to first person; so sorry boobo). As it turns out, my son’s treating clinical psychologist received his PhD at the same university which published the ABA “bible” and he was cited in the text. He used to run the behavior therapy lab at the University. According to our clinical psychologist, “planned ignoring is mentioned in only three paragraphs in the book and each of the paragraphs explains why it would not be appropriate for my son.
My son had great teachers. His earth science teacher made written commentary at end of year that Tim is the most conscientious student he has ever worked with and is a pleasure to work with.
Tim turned heads with his academic performance.
To properly restructure the program has taken manythousands of dollars out of parents pocket and took three years after the known four months of abusive restraints.
Boobo: perhaps I bounce into third person in attempts to disassociate myself from this nitemare. The system is broken.
Whatever or wherever you think a student belongs, they should not be subjected to the abuse my son and many, many others have undergone.
After four months of restraints and a denied summer program because parents did not show their son qualifies for any type of summer program (12 month disability). “Moreover decisions on summer programming are generally based on evidence the student would regress at least six weeks during the summer in one or more areas if not provided with a summer program.”. When I stated in CSE meeting my son was regressing during the school year, response was: “regression during the school year is not same as regression during the summer.
Parents (My wife and I, Boobo) paid out of pocket for a program. My wife could not transport daily for the 200 mile round trip (closest known appropriate program).
Parents requested statement from special education teacher as to whether or not she thought Tim benefitted from program and she refused to answer and stated it was up to the CSE. I asked her in CSE meeting if she thought summer program helped Tim and the CSE chairperson interrupted, did not allow the teacher to answer, and stated it was not a matter for the CSE. When I replied with telling of previous interchange with special education teacher, the CSE chairperson ended the meeting.
It would seem no one in the school was allowed to go on record as to benefit of summer program because that would be evidence of appropriateness of program in an education administrative law hearing. Parents (third person, Boobo, but easier than writing my wife(who is also Tim’s mother) and I)) were responsible for carrying burden of persuasion in education hearing, which meant proving appropriateness would likely require having a psychologist from the program testify. Expert witness fees are not re-imbursable and the cost of expert witness fees, in absence of staff going on record as to appropriateness of program, could well be more than the cost of the program for which parents sought re-imbursement.
BTW, if I wanted to impersonate someone, I would probably stick with the first person.
John P. Miller DPM
#21–JPM==Well, the devil is in the details isn’t it? I came home from school quite often upset with how “bad” the schools were. My problem was not bad teachers but rather boring curriculum, large class sizes, and immature students (yes 12 year olds can be very immature!). My father had no sympathy. He told me to learn on my own in spite of the teachers if I could not learn from them. Course, dear old Dad had no time for anything but work, but most of my friends had the same situation?
So–welcome your son to the real world. Very few of us like it. Its exactly what we all have to come to grips with.
You know it would be nice if the schools had the resources to be all things to all people but they don’t. I think it amounts to about 7,000 or so per kid. A lot more in some districts than others. Spend more on one student and you have less for the others.
Bottom line. If a kid is messed up badly enough we aren’t going to be able to wave our magic wands and make it all better.
A lot of hard work may get some of them through with something.
I was real happy when one little boy started to talk a little. Based on what we now know it’s going to take an act of God, not Congress, to get much further than that.
#21, Mr. Miller,
I hear your frustrations. There are several “tricks” I advise most people follow when dealing with bureaucrats.
When asking questions, send a registered letter requesting an answer. They are a lot harder to ignore or deny if the subject ever goes before a BOE or Administrative Judge.
Second, carry and use a tape recorder. Place it in the center of the table. Refuse to remove it or turn it off. Again, this may become a record of the meeting and as such can go a long way to demonstrate that something was said, not said, a report was tabled, etc.
Often it is said information is power. If those you are fighting know how much information you possess, you are much more powerful and much more likely to prevail.
#15, Bobbo,
Your kiddies are YOUR kiddies, once you allow them into this world, you owe them ALL your consideration, not just at convenient times and not an excuse that the teachers should do their jobs when it is actually your job.
Bullshit.
You owe your child nothing. You are RESPONSIBLE to guide them to adulthood to the best of your ability. BUT, you don’t owe them.
This is a very common fallacy among the wing nut crowd. Whenever a child gets into trouble, the first response is to blame the parents. The parents didn’t throw the rock through the window or beat up the other kid.
Teachers are hired to teach. They are not hired to sit in a classroom and assign a ton of homework for the parent. If I am the one that is in charge of teaching my child, then why am I sending her to school in the first place?
I don’t stand behind the mechanic when he works on my brakes. I don’t stick my nose in the toilet when the plumber is fixing it. I don’t sit in the back of my kid’s class prepared to criticize the teacher for what they do. These people are all hired to do a job. Let them do it.
As you point out elsewhere, you don’t have kids. Your attitude verifies that.
Estimated prevalence rate for Autism is now 1:150.
Appropriate education, while more expensive than non-disabled student, is less expensive over life-time to society than not providing the education.
This is more than a matter of being bored and sucking it up.
What my son needed was not a magic wand.
Should there be special education interventions for profoundly deaf or blind? For developmental disabilities? For speech impairment?
Perhaps everyone should learn on their own and we should close all of our public schools?
What was done to my son was abuse. It would have been abuse had it taken place in or out of a school setting. Holding any individual on the floor in a prone position for approximately one hour until exhaustion is an abuse. It serves no good purpose. It would be abuse whether done on my autistic son or on a “neurotypical” individual.
If numbers do not justify a school district providing needed services for students; that is the very reason BOCES exist and provision of such services should be pooled by other school districts.
Yes, appropriate education is expensive for all and even more expensive for some. I support the IDEA.
John P. Miller DPM
is it OK to
#26, John Miller,
Appropriate education, while more expensive than non-disabled student, is less expensive over life-time to society than not providing the education.
Unfortunately, that is the problem. You have to put up the money today and act as if it is your problem. The traditional method has been to spend nothing today wait until the next person / school board / generation will handle it.
The bonus of early intervention for all types of disabilities is not only the cost savings. Many children that would have ended up being put into the criminal / justice system can not only lead productive lives, but contribute to society. Who knows which child today will invent the perpetual motion machine or solve the energy problem.
#25–Fusion==you raise a good point, one worth discussing. In this context, I see no difference between owing a child an education and being responsible for a child getting an education.
Debts and obligations are not met by assigning them to someone else. A child sent to the finest schools in the world remains uneducated without a degree of parental involvement. ((Thats more poetical and always true, but the point made for 99% is valid.))
I also agree the charge of “bad parenting” is too often used in a knee jerk fashion to avoid some institutional/governmental incompetence. That does not mean the charge is always invalid. When it comes to raising kiddies, I repeat parents owe their kids more time and attention than most give it.
And when it comes to making stupid arguments, I’d say requiring someone to have kids of their own in order to have a valid opinion/contribution is one of them. Good job, your parents should have spent more time with you. Perhaps you can reconnect?
#26–JPM==I thought the relevant issue was not money spent but rather or not mainstreaming was the best method not only for the affected child, but also for the remainder of the class?
The wiki article described Aspergers as a relationship disorder, that those affected often make those around them uncomfortable due to obsessive behaviors?
Again, its the details. How often and what kind of behaviors get expressed before mainstreaming is not fair to the other students is both debatable and fact based.
From memory, your complaint is that your son was held down and made immobile until he got too tired to act out and this resulted in some bruising? Maybe some other technique would have been more effective, but on its own, it doesn’t sound like the teachers were intentionally abusing your son. Claims of abuse ring a bit hollow on those facts alone. I’m sure you have additional facts.
Why do so many parents believe that everyone else should take care of their little monsters? Why are these defective abominations in school when they will never learn? Admit that what such parents really want is someone else to babysit for them while the taxpayers pick up the bill.
#29 Boobo
I think point of article best summarized by full title of article as printed in Science Supplement to NY Times on 7-15-2008: “Calm Down or Else…….Unable to handle behaviro disorders, many schools use forcible restraint. Is it abuse?”
My take on that adequately reflected in IHT comment # 4 linked above with special note of introduction. Also comment # 17 at this site.
Financial considerations in response to #23 deowll
JPM