The flip side is that they were taken care of by their families and not expected to contribute and their presence didn't distract the school system from turning regular kids into contributing adults.
A complex problem, Karen. Back when we were kids, there was no place for children with learning problems in our schools. This was true for those who were blind, deaf, retarded, and those with antisocial behaviors. No one even knew about learning disabilities back then. The problem was that these kids ended up in state institutions with no educational resources and were heavily medicated to keep them controlled or stayed home, sometimes locked in closets or rooms for years. The really tough students went off to "juvie halls" and stayed there until they behaved or ended up in prisons.
By the 1960's, most school systems were lumping all of these students into one special education class...the antisocial students still sat in "juvie halls". But black students in the south were only included in public schools if they were average or above average students. The less-able still remained at home without any education. Many of these children ended up in a life of crime and were sent to jail.
In 1973, PL. 94-146 stated that all children nationally had a right to an education. A good law...to allow those special education students a right to a free education. The problem began when all of our state institutions were closed because of their poor management and abuse. That also closed "juvie halls" and put all of these antisocial students back in public schools.
Any good public schools system can educate our deaf, blind,retarded, physically handicapped or learning disabled students with the proper resources without effecting the education of our more capable students. But those students with behavioral disorders, when included in a regular classroom, cause disorder and a breakdown of the educational process.
IMO, if we could separate those students who are truly special needs students from those whose behaviors are out of control, we could have an inclusive educational system that does not disrupt the learning of the average students. The rub is where to we put the behaviorally-disordered students.
I have taught high school classes that were designed for those students that were considered dangerous to a school environment. They included young rapists, fire-starters, and students that had a drugs and alcohol addiction. These students were not allowed to associate with the general population until I (and their parole officers and shrinks) said that they were safe. A tough job...( I was way younger!) but it worked. |
