Monterey Bay Forum » SDC http://freedomok.net assessment, autism, children, health, law and life near Monterey Bay Tue, 07 Feb 2012 04:08:06 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Some (SDC) special education students in California (PVUSD) with normal abilities are never taught to read or write. Why? What to do? http://freedomok.net/2011/03/some-special-education-students-with-normal-abilities-are-never-taught-to-read-or-write-why-what-to-do/ http://freedomok.net/2011/03/some-special-education-students-with-normal-abilities-are-never-taught-to-read-or-write-why-what-to-do/#comments Sat, 26 Mar 2011 22:47:19 +0000 jaj48 http://freedomok.net/?p=4375 DrCameronJackson@gmail.com
Every child with an Individual Education Plan (IEP) needs regular measurement of the child’s abilities to see if the IEP “fits”, or if the child has “outgrown” it or that it is not appropriate and needs to be changed. Regular measurement of the child’s progress typically is done every three years.

But some children’s IEPs are never “measured” again after the initial placement in a Special Day Class (SDC) placement – the most restricted educational placement. That’s wrong. It harms the child. It wastes money. The system must be more accountable.

What to do? Taxpayers speak up!

Maybe its time that parents of special education students got vouchers that followed their disabled students and could apply for any school of their choice? When parents of children of special education have more choice it’s highly likely that the quality of the education will improve.

Maybe it’s time for taxpayers to require that all California special education students are assessed very year as to progress made toward expected goals in reading, writing and arithmetic. And maybe it’s time to tie teacher pay to progress made by special education students.

It’s often the case that Special Day Class (SDC) students stay in the same class with the same teachers and aides for 2-3 years in a row. And too frequently there is no regular assessment of SDC students with standardized measures.

Some special education students in California go through 12 years of public education with minimal initial measurement of their abilities using standardized tests. Once a child is retained that child is typically passed on year after year whether or not that child has made any progress in reading and writing.

If you are a special education student in California you are about 1/2 as likely to become Proficient or higher in reading. Forty percent of California general ed students are Proficient compared to 20% of special education students. Of course, that highlights that 60% of California students are not proficient in reading.

In 2007-08 the national average per cost of student was $7,268. California paid a bit more than the national average — $8,853 — and had a ranking of 43. That means that only 7 states were lower than CA in ranking.

The County Office of Education (COE) in Santa Cruz spends $24,600 per student. COE receives 6.2 million for 252 students.

The biggest special education cost is for separate classes for students in a Special Day Class placement. One third of the special education budget went to pay for separate classes in 2006-2007.

Think of a pie cut into thirds. One-third of the special education “pie” goes to pay for separate classes for the Special Day Class (SDC) students. So why not take that 1/3 of the pie and turn it over to parents to create Alternative SDC Voucher Placements? I bet parent-run classes would require more progress in reading, writing and arithmetic.

California spends 20% more on special education student than the nation as a whole, partly due to higher wage costs. Targeted federal, state and local funds totaled $4.7 billion in 2006-07 to defray the additonal costs associated with special education.

If you are a parent with a child in a SDC placement in California it’s time that you required your school to regularly show progress based on standardized measures. Alternative methods of testing do not give you –or the taxpyers paying– the information needed to show that the public is getting value for money spent.

What say you? Time that parents with children in special education got vouchers? I think so. DrCameronJackson@gmail.com

sharebookmarx Some (SDC) special education students in California (PVUSD) with normal abilities are never taught to read or write. Why? What to do?

]]> http://freedomok.net/2011/03/some-special-education-students-with-normal-abilities-are-never-taught-to-read-or-write-why-what-to-do/feed/ 10 Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. http://freedomok.net/2010/03/aptos-ca-psychologist-stories-of-courage-and-faith-are-all-around-us/ http://freedomok.net/2010/03/aptos-ca-psychologist-stories-of-courage-and-faith-are-all-around-us/#comments Thu, 11 Mar 2010 07:21:45 +0000 jaj48 http://freedomok.net/?p=2508
cap Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us.

Diploma earned by CA youth with autism



There are stories of courage and faith all around us. This one is about a Catholic family with a special needs child. Recently, now age 18, I had the opportunity to assess their son.

This young person has substantial, multiple difficulties. To protect the family’s privacy, some information has been changed.

I will call their son Thomas. Not Thomas the Doubter but Thomas the Tenacious.

Early on, Thomas’ family knew that their middle child was very different. Though not a problem at home, he got kicked out of a private pre-school for behavior issues. By age four, assessment suggested that he had substantial communication and social delays. Other assessment suggested an array of delays.

In Kindergarten, Thomas’ parents turned down an SDC placement (more than 50% in special ed setting) and insisted on mainstreaming him. His family wanted and got a regular ed placement. He had an aide.

Assessment in second grade showed that Thomas had normal, average cognitive IQ abilities and quite low other abilities. However, thereafter when Thomas’ cognitive IQ abilities were tested his scores were in the bottom 5 out of 100.

“No, we are not going to use the mental retardation label,” the parents said to themselves and to professionals. To Thomas they said, “You can and will graduate from high school”.

The parents set the bar high for Thomas. The parents helped him every night at home and negotiated with the schools for support services to assist Thomas. At times he had an aide. He had Occupational Therapy and Speech services. Throughout high school he had RSP support.

Outside school, Thomas was able to complete religious classes and in high school was confirmed in his church. But he never had any friends.

“If Thomas misses 1 class it is as though he missed 3″ said his mother to me when I tried to set up an appointment to assess him. ” And absolutely don’t take him out of History …” And I did set up appointment times that did not conflict with any of his academic subjects.

And guess what — this June Thomas age 18 will graduate with a high school diploma. True — he has not been able to pass the California exit exams. However, he has completed all the work and taken all the necessary classes. Thomas has worked hard and long to get a diploma.

It has been a hard road for Thomas. It takes him 2-3 times as long to finish his homework compared to fellow students. Though he would like friends — he has no friends. And he cannot drive a car. And except for work experience through Special Education, he has had no part time jobs.

Thomas has a disability called Autistic Spectrum Disorder. It substantially affects his communication and social abilities. Sometimes he mumbles and sometimes he nearly shuts down in his abilities to communicate with people.

When assessing Thomas, one thing shined through — Thomas has sold, normal, average cognitive intelligence. That Thomas has normal, average intelligence is a real strength that will help him in all of life’s situations.

All of us have strengths and relative weaknesses. Thomas has strong intelligence and incredible tenacity. Once he knows what to do and how to do it, he persists and keeps on trying until the task is done. And that willingness to persist and keep on trying was passed along to Thomas by the faith and courage of his parents.

sharebookmarx Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us.

email Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. aol Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. backflip Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. google Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. digg Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. amazon Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. blogmarks Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. facebook Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. gmail Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. read it later Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. blogger Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. reader Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. live Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. yahoo Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. vodpod Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. technorati Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us. share save 171 16 Aptos, CA psychologist: stories of courage and faith are all around us.

]]> http://freedomok.net/2010/03/aptos-ca-psychologist-stories-of-courage-and-faith-are-all-around-us/feed/ 2