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

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

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