WARNING! This website is no longer actively maintained. It is an archive of 2 years work by Doug Belshaw who now blogs at dougbelshaw.com...
The EducationGuardian reports that the government has designated fifteen schools with SEN (Special Educational Needs) status. Although I welcome such moves, it’s a bit hypocritical when teachers are constantly hammered for the need of ‘inclusion’ and ‘differentiation’. So lets close special schools, move kids into mainstream education, and - oh, it’s not working - move them back…
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I still reckon that there are certain special needs that are best met by means of separate education - politically incorrect as it may be to say so.
My niece, who is both deaf and has "undefined learning difficulties" (undefined because the means for testing them do not exist when the test subject has communication difficulties) blossomed in a specialist special needs school. Why? The teachers were specially trained; the pressures of the standard curriculum were eased and could be adapted to suit the individual child; the child was relieved of the stress of sharing an evironment with average and high achievers.
If special needs schools are to be closed then all teachers should get special ed. training. I am a special education specialist and the training I got has helped me be a better teacher all round. Special education is not just about modifying kids' curriculum or impementing certain accommodations. It's all about teacher attitude. That's the key. Not everyone has the temperment to work with these needy kids. Presently, I work with kids who have behaviour issues. Often my class is their last stop before they get kicked out the door. If your motto is it's my way or the highway, your're in for a lot of frustration.
I agree with Karyn that some kids will need the sheltered environment of a special class. I've taught in classes where students, teenagers were so handicapped that they could not do anything for themselves and had to have a educatonal assistant feed and take care of other personal needs. I was never sure that my students got what I was trying to teach. I would just look into their eyes and look for that spark. If ithe spark was there I assumed they got it. If that spark wasn't there, then I assumed they hadn't got it, so I retaught whatever.
Elona and Karyn, you both make very important points about it being to do with training and that actually some students are better off in separate institutions. A lot of what the government calls 'integration' is actually segregation, just within-sight…