Special Education WHAT????

[function]

What exactly is special education anyway?

I have covered for absent special education teachers and to my surprise have met highly functional students who can think, reason and grasp academics like regular students in regular classes.

I think schools label certain students as "problematic" when they are not in need of such programs. There are students who spend their entire school journey in special education courses without a need for this program.

What is special education? Who needs it? Why?

Students who are academically slow, students with emotional problems or BOTH?

[Muah]

Special education is for children with learning dissabilities. Such as autism, deafness, apraxia etc. I'm sure the children you have seen with emotional problems will soon be ruled out and sent elsewhere. My son attends special ed. and everyone in his class are in the right spot. However I do believe sometimes children are held in special ed for 1-2 years too long, so when they actually go to regular school , they get sent right back to special ed because the school board did not cut the ties when they should have.

[D T R]

In our children's school special education is for children with some type of learning disability. To qualify for services the school will do a host of testing coming up with the child's IQ and their academic achievement level. If the point spread is greater than 15 points they qualify for services. Under "No Child Left Behind" an IEP is put into place to help the child get up to grade level.

It is not uncommon for an LD child to have a very high IQ. They just need to learn the tools to get the information in or out of their heads.

[Kate]

A child in a special education class can range from having difficulty in a certain subject (being mainstreamed for most of the day) or need help all day long.

[wordy]

Using only these two criteria -- academic slowness or emotional problems -- unfortunately glosses over the complexities of different learning styles and needs.

Some kids may have disabilities that are harder to recognize on the surface. For example, kids with Asperger Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder, are by definition of average IQ and in some cases really smart. They can think, reason, and learn. But they tend to have trouble with subtler, more abstract academic skills, as well as social interaction, including understanding teacher requirements as well as peer relationships. This can make it really hard to function in regular settings.

Even emotional difficulties can be so debilitating that it's hard for kids to keep up with the normal pace and pressures of school life, although they are bright and can learn well.

I'm sure you're right that some kids are inappropriately classified. It's a shame, especially if you're talking about a separate special ed classroom, as opposed to an inclusion setting where kids can do as much as they can handle. It is true, though, that there are many subtle disabilities -- high-functioning autism, dyslexia, and more -- that kids really need help with, even if it's not readily apparent.