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To: maried. who wrote (16690)	7/5/2002 10:41:31 AM
From: J. C. Dithers	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 21057

Maried, you are too polite in explaining burgeoning disabilities... You "overlook" the fact that disabled children bring in extra SSI money to poor households. Welfare cheating is not exactly unknown. Why would we not expect it to occur with respect to disabilities? Coaching children to mimic ADD/ADHD symptoms doesn't require Actor's Studio training. I am surprised that the author of Karen's article never thought of this possibility to explain the mystery of why the number of "disabled" children is rising so dramatically.

To: maried. who wrote (16690)	7/5/2002 10:51:19 AM
From: Lane3	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 21057

I have some thoughts about the information presented in this article from the latest census numbers.... Makes sense to me. I don't doubt that the numbers of kids labeled "handicapped" includes too broad a range for our traditional understanding of that word for all the reasons you state. Whether or not all those kids are really handicapped or not, though, they all represent at least a small amount of extra attention from the teacher, even if it's only to remember not to leave on a field trip without making sure little Johnny has his inhaler with him, at least a small amount of distraction for the class, and at least a small amount of extra resources from the school. We're talking about two kids per typical classroom according to the article. And that's not counting all the disruptive, unprepared, or emotionally damaged kids who are not currently labeled "handicapped." My point to Laz about cherry picking by private schools was that there are large numbers of kids that public schools now handle and private schools probably exclude. If those kids show up at a private school with voucher in hand, what will the private schools do? Exclude them? Or include them and see their performance drop and their costs go up? And what's the net effect on the education system(s)? I am concerned that the current disparity between private and public schools that makes the prospect of vouchers to private schools seem so attractive to voucher proponents would not materialize, particularly since lots of these kids who come equipped with a voucher might not come equipped with your typical private school parents who are willing and able to give extra help to their kids. I would like to be sure this situation is factored into their projections.