Florida school teaching math for life skills to learning disabled must now teach Algebra I. New law.

[madfloridian]

Education reformers are now making their mark on education in this state. Some of us at DU have written about how Special Education students will soon be expected to perform at levels they simply are unable to handle. Why? Because Arne Duncan has fallen for the reformers' pitch that we need to get tougher and more demanding, and that there will be excuses for failure of any kind. Rick Scott Republicans agree, and few Democrats are speaking out...maybe afraid of going against the party line on it.

Few seem to care, and that disturbs me. We have nearly overnight become a nation lacking tolerance of individuality.

The teachers at this Florida school have done a good job of preparing students with varying disabilities for skills they might need to get into the work force. Now they are going to be forced to spend their time teaching Algebra to these students.

In Florida there has been a special diploma given out to students with needs. This won't be happening anymore, and a state representative is proud of herself for the role she played. She calls this hard-earned diploma just a pat on the head. She pushed to get rid of it so these students could get the "same education" as their peers.

Many of these have Individualized Education Programs called IEPs. They have been already acknowledged by educators and psychologists not to need the same program as their peers. This is a result of the notions of one-size-fits-all, zero tolerance movements.

The article is a little unclear to me, but it looks like those with IEPs will be given a little more time.

Florida Law Has All Students Working to Same Standards




ROOSEVELT ACADEMY teacher Phillip Miles teaches a life skills math class at the school Monday in Lake Wales. Miles said rather than struggling to teach students math they aren't likely to use in their daily lives, he would rather teach them number skills they will need, such as making a budget or calculating sales tax.
RICK RUNION | THE LEDGER

LAKE WALES | On Oct. 13, after nearly two months of school, 9th-grade Roosevelt Academy students were called out of their classes for a meeting.

.....They learned they have to work toward a standard diploma, rather than a special diploma. They found their schedules rearranged, with classes like Algebra 1 in place of intensive math. They were told the whole model of their school, which prepares students with learning disabilities for work and helps them find jobs, would have to change.

"When I got home, I cried because of how much that diploma meant to me," said Georgia Collins.

This paragraph points out the absurdity of requiring the others to fail for four years before qualifying for the special diploma.

"They have to fail for four years before they even get a certificate of completion," said Henry Smith, vocational teacher and career placement coordinator for Roosevelt. "I guarantee you the dropout rate is going to be astronomical."

I agree with the teacher mentioned in the article who said "Rather than struggling to teach them math they aren't likely to use in their daily lives, he would rather teach them number skills they will need, such as making a budget or calculating sales tax."

[SheilaT]

1. While I personally think algebra is fun,

I recognize that I'm a bit strange, and that not everyone -- even those who do not have any learning disabilities -- may not agree with me and may in fact find algebra difficult.

This makes absolutely no sense at all. Whatever happened to the Individual Educational Plan, or whatever it may be called there.

I have been told that New York State now requires everyone to get a Regents Diploma, which originally indicated the student had passed certain Regents exams in various subjects. This is almost like requiring everyone to take AP classes. Totally stupid.

added on edit: This may open the door to a whole new set of charter schools which will actually cater to this population. Not necessarily a good thing, but I can see it happening.

[LWolf]

15. The IEP

has to document the "accomodations" we provide for them so that they can successfully meet "grade level" benchmarks/standards.

When we "modify" curriculum (standards/benchmarks) in any way, they are, at least in my state, no longer eligible for a "regular" diploma. So "modification" is reserved for those who would usually have benefited more from a life-skills curriculum than the regular academic curriculum.

Shhh...don't tell anyone, but we sometimes modify curriculum and call it "accomodation," just so that we can give a student something that begins to be actually possible.

This may just be happening in Florida. When I was teaching in CA a decade ago, it had already happened. We had our own high-stakes, standards and accountability system in place state wide before NCLB. When the two collided, our special ed classes...those full time classes for those who were disabled enough in some way to not be able to mainstreamed into regular classrooms for any part of their day...they had to take on grade level text books and tests, and their teachers, who, in addition to teaching them academic skills at whatever level they were able to access them, were required to drop the other things they did, like the garden they grew and the marketing of their produce, the wood and metal working, the cooking, the shopping and budgeting, and all those other valuable skills. So that they could spend more time with those grade level standards.

[PasadenaTrudy]

51. I found it fun too

I hated arithmetic but loved solving equations. Like solving a puzzle to me.

[SheilaT]

64. I bent back to taking math classes as an adult, and really got into it.

I needed to take math only through college algebra for a particular program I was applying for, and was liking it so much I went on and took a semester of calculus, which I assure people is the reward you get for taking the lead-up algebra classes. My son, the math and physics guy, assures me that differential equations is the reward you get for taking three semesters of calculus. I don't think I'll get that far.

Oh, and I also took a probability and statistics class, again because I was liking math so much.

I know. I'm weird.

[pnwmom]

2. Thank you, madfloridian. This is nuts, of course. A kind of insanity that's infecting

most of the country.

[msongs]

3. follow the $$. who will cash in from this? similar happened to spec ed in california when they

introduced a standardized test for spec ed moderate to severe. reading questions to deaf kids who then failed to answer the question. counted as a zero on the score. stupid.

[Live and Learn]

12. +1 nt

[Starry Messenger]

4. wtf.

[madfloridian]

5. Gonna happen

Arne wants special ed kids to have access to IB courses to get them ready for college....or something like that.

[barbtries]

6. it's cruel

and counter productive. i just don't get the meanness in this country anymore.
i went to the demolition derby at the state fair. for maybe the first time in my life i found myself utterly unmoved by the national anthem. i am so sick of the right wing and the media tearing this place up. really makes me sad.

[wcast]

7. This is already the case here in PA

Of course 1/2 of my evaluation will be based on the results of my students' test scores and achievement.

[LostInAnomie]

8. It is a damn shame what "education reformers" have done to Special Education.

I remember when I was teaching children with emotional disabilities, I was forced to give them the ISTEP (Indiana's standardized test). I had a classroom of 15 children with disabilities ranging from autism, to panic disorder, to schizophrenia, to ODD, and everything in between. Many were heavily medicated, and most had learning disabilities.

These children were expected to perform at the exact same level as the children in other classrooms. Unless they had specific instructions in their IEP, there was nothing I could do to assist them. Eventually, the stress and pressure started to get to them. We would start a test and students would start to have outbursts. These are timed tests, and the clock does not stop once it starts. Every second I had to spend calming them down or removing them from the classroom counted against them. If they missed a test completely, there was nothing they could do to make it up. It would be a big fat 0% that would destroy their total test score.

If that wasn't bad enough, their failing scores reflected on me and the rest of the school. Out of my class of 15, I had 4 pass the ISTEP. The other 11 failed miserably. Their scores were averaged in with the whole school and as a result we didn't meet AYP. Needless to say, my principal was not pleased.

[Art_from_Ark]

9. That sounds so totally messed up

It must be really tough being a public school teacher these days.

[LostInAnomie]

10. I quit teaching in 2008. From what I hear, it's worse now.

[pipi_k]

18. OMG

I am speechless and horrified...


What has happened to our country to make us so cruel and clueless?

Or have we always been this way?

[hifiguy]

35. The slide into the sewer began on 1/20/1981

and no one has done one damned thing to stop it.

[madfloridian]

38. In fact Obama has taken things far beyond what George Bush dared.

And he and Arne are not backing down one bit.

[hifiguy]

39. Whatever Goldman wants, Goldman gets.

You ain't seen nothin' yet. Just wait for HRC or whatever Repuke slimes their way to the nomination.

The system is broken beyond repair.

[kelliekat44]

11. Isn't this Florida's law and not a Federal law? nt

[madfloridian]

14. It's Florida's law specifically, part of the national reform though.

Florida just gets to stuff quicker than most because of Rick Scott Republicans in the legislature. They stopped giving new teachers tenure in 2011. It's haven for charter schools here now, they can't even be turned down if their past history was bad.

[Smarmie Doofus]

13. Oh jesus. Make them stop. PLEASE.

n/t

[yellowcanine]

16. I have taught algebra and I believe many Special Ed students could learn basic algebra.

It just takes longer and one needs to be more creative and patient. Knowing basic algebra (solving for an unknown, for example) would assist students in learning "life skills math." You can teach Special Ed students to use a calculator but if they don't know whether to divide or multiply they cannot solve the problem. Knowing a few basic algebra skills would help with that. We do students a disservice when we don't give teach them skills which they are capable of learning with a little patience and creativity. When any student learns a new skill it gives them confidence which will serve them well in whatever they try to do next. With a firm grounding in basic algebra, a student can figure out how to solve many day to day problems. On the other hand, it does not make much sense to teach Special Ed students how to factor and solve quadratic equations.

[madfloridian]

21. One statement of yours is shocking to me.

We do students a disservice when we don't give teach them skills which they are capable of learning with a little patience and creativity.

Isn't that what the teachers at the school in the OP are doing? Yes, it is.

[yellowcanine]

40. Hopefully so. I wasn't sure that they were - some "life skills" math courses can be pretty basic

and not really equip special needs students to think for themselves as opposed to just memorizing formulas.

[kiranon]

24. The special ed kids that can learn algebra are

learning it now but more than many cannot do so. My special ed daughter (adopted at birth) has had the finest teachers out there and she still cannot add 1 + 2 or any other numbers. She has had private school, public school and tutors and has been diagnosed as cognitively delayed - the new term for the old "r" word. The public school special ed teachers are wonderful but many leave the field - it's just too hard, too underpaid or under appreciated. Teaching regular subjects is cruel and unusual punishment for most of these children who will act out or drop out which may be the wish of those who came up with this money making idea.

[jwirr]

25. I aced algebra as a freshman. Never used it until I took statistical analysis in college for a

MSW. I have never used it since then. I am 73 years old. That it is going to be forced on all Special Education students is crazy. Some of those students cannot even talk let alone do math. As a parent of a severely disabled student I would sue the school district for failing to address my child's true needs.

[Puzzledtraveller]

47. Really? Can't talk?

Maybe learning algebra does more then just teach them math, ever thought about that?

[jwirr]

59. My daughter has severe developmental disability. And yes can't talk. Wears diapers and has never

developed beyond the age of 1 years in mentality. She was not expected to and did not. She has always been in a wheelchair and cannot feed herself as she is tube fed due to digestive problems.

What a lot of people without children in Special Education miss is that there is a wide range of IQ levels in these classes. Some are there for something like learning disabilities - I assume that some of this group can learn algebra and are mainstreamed. But there are a lot of children like my daughter and they are there for less intensive classes. This is the group that is hurt by this idea. The IEP has always been used to determine the needs and abilities for both groups. Instead of requiring all to take algebra which is what I see in this article the IEP could be used to give the those who would benefit the chance without taking something away from the others.

Are you actually saying that teaching my daughter algebra might benefit her and the others like her in some way? How?

[madfloridian]

61. .....

and more

I can't believe that was said to you. Hang in there. So sorry.

[jwirr]

66. It is okay. Too many people do not understand what is going on in Special Education. They can ask.

[kcr]

65. Yes, really. Can't talk.

WTF?

[ecstatic]

17. I'm not comfortable with your point

If given the choice, I'll always err on the side of trying and failing as opposed to never trying at all. It's wrong to preemptively decide who gets to learn certain things and who shouldn't. Unfortunately, many educators take this approach based on other unfair criteria, like race, income, and gender.

[madfloridian]

20. Trying to be kind about this, so I can't describe to you exactly...

the abilities of some of these students affected.

I am not comfortable with the assumption made too often here that teachers are not already trying very very hard with these kids.

That is the saddest thing done by Obama, Arne and the billionaire reformers....they make it sound like teachers have not been trying with special ed students.

Your post is echoing their lack of understanding. Those with IEPs have been diagnosed by professionals who work with them, many by physicians as well.

You are putting your opinion above theirs, just as Obama has done.

[yellowcanine]

46. Note - I am not agreeing with replacing the "Intensive Math" with Algebra I etc.

What I am saying is don't assume that some Special Ed students cannot learn basic algebra and benefit from it.

[jwirr]

28. That is what the IEP (Individual Education Plan) is all about. Determining the needs and abilities

of each student. This new method does not allow for consideration of any disability. None at all. It overrides the IEP to teach a subject that they may or may not be able to get any benefit from. No one has said that some of the students are going to be exempt. There are students in Special Education that will never grow beyond the profound level. They are going to be lucky if they learn the living skills. To take something like physical therapy away from them for algebra means their muscles will atrophy.

[missingthebigdog]

33. Where does it say they are taking physical therapy away?

IDEA is Federal law. Whatever the state is doing does not trump Federal law. They will still have to comply with IDEA.

The main issue seems to be this "special" diploma. Kids at the profound level of disability are unlikely to understand that issue anyway.

[jwirr]

57. A previous post talked about the subject. Something - not necessarily PT would have to be removed

so that they would have time for algebra.

[yellowcanine]

41. I thought I just said pretty much what you said. Either you missed something or I did.

[jwirr]

60. So developing a tool like the IEP is wrong? It is the only teaching tool that takes into account

both the needs and the abilities of all of the children. Has nothing to do with race, income or gender. Has to do with the level of ones disability.

Edited to say that there are teachers both in Special Ed and regular classes that do use the criteria you mentioned. They should be fired.

[Demsrule86]

19. Sad that such ignorant elected type can cause so much harm to kids

I taught math and science for years...and I will tell you there are kids that will never pass algebra...not ever. There should be two diplomas ...college track and general...just as there used to be...these so called demanding curriculums which were tried in Georgia ( O quit teaching then because of the no child and state nonsense ...it was akin to child abuse)and other schools(massive failure) do nothing but drive up the drop out rate.

[Puzzledtraveller]

44. So what will these kids be consigned to do for their living?

[dembotoz]

22. married to a spe ed teacher

recently she had a couple kids ( much older than Preschool) who were still in diapers....

algebra? yah that is gonna happen

[madfloridian]

23. Thank you for posting that.

I did part of my re-certification through the years by taking courses and tutoring some such kids in their homes. I wasn't sure how to post the reality, so you did that.

The most awful thing done by Obama's education reforms is to punish such kids and their devoted teachers.

I see red when people say teachers are challenging them.

My best to your wife. Special ed teachers are saints.

[dembotoz]

43. it is just nuts

can not go into detail
the frustrations she shared....

am just so happy my kids are just normal

[madfloridian]

50. In my courses we visited special schools for profoundly handicapped.

My kids were young then, and I went home and thanked the Lord for them everyday.

I think every child should be required to do their best, but the "best" is different with each child.

At one visit to that school there was a celebration for a teen-ager who had just learned to tie his shoes. It was a heartwarming occasion.

There is so much harm in demanding the same of everyone.

[jwirr]

30. Absolutely.

[yellowcanine]

42. All special ed students not equal. Some can learn algebra.

I sincerely hope that your spouse has a different take on it than you do.

[Puzzledtraveller]

45. Really weird to see some of the responses here.

Perhaps it's partisan, maybe if it were California and not Florida most replies would be for it.

[d_r]

26. There is a really serious flip side to this

There is the opposite danger of putting children with special needs in to specialized classrooms where there is no access to the general curriculum, with the assumption that they will never be able to learn.

This is a soft bias. This is believing that the children with disabilities shouldn't be challenged or after to be stressed because they will never graduate high school or have a job, etc. They just need basic life skills, and they will be happier with other children like them where they won't feel pressure, according to this view.

If it was the "right" way, children would be in typical settings as much as possible, and receive individualized accommodations and modifications to the curriculum based on their needs (and strengths).

Unfortunately, that's hard and costs money.

So many districts take a one-size-fits-all approaches between two extremes that are both inappropriate.

[missingthebigdog]

27. Your description of the "right way" is actually what Federal Law requires.

Getting school districts to comply is a challenge.

I doubt your concern about soft bias will be well received here. Been there, done that, accused of bashing educators. YMMV.

[d_r]

29. I know

And I know that some districts are better than that.

But too many do the bare minimum that can get by with as being legally required, and would rather spend money on attorneys.

[madfloridian]

32. You mean Least Restrictive Environment, I think. Here's the law.

http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/lre.osers.memo.idea.htm

I do get upset with those who talk as if teachers have not demanded the best of their students. It's reformer speak.

[missingthebigdog]

36. You and I have gotten cross-wise before

I really am not trying to upset you, but you speak in such absolutes.

There are MANY teachers who have not demanded the best of their students. I believe you when you say you are not one of them.

I don't support many of the "advances" that are being attempted in public education, and am very concerned with where this is all headed. But, at least as to the special education system, there are significant problems with public education that need to be addressed. Responding to concerns with defensive comments about "reformers" is not working toward a solution.

The fact that a "reformer" says something, or that Bush said it, does not make it untrue. We can acknowledge the shortcomings of the system without agreeing that their way is the best solution to address them.

[madfloridian]

37. Public education in no way deserves being turned over to the Gates, Broads, or Waltons.

There are always a few exceptions to any rule or law, anything.

Public education can not advance when their funds and resources are being diverted to charter schools and private schools that mean profit for the already wealthy.

It has been and is a deliberate attempt to make public education and public school teachers look bad so the system can be privatized.

The testing conglomerates are getting rich by using secretively formatted testing which is causing schools to fail so they can become turnarounds.

Arne just devoted millions to training "turnaround" principals so they can be ready to takeover failing schools.

As far as being critical of reformers, I am calling bullsh** on that. I am going easy on them. They are harming students with their push to get richer.

[madfloridian]

31. Your term "soft bias" sounds a lot like "soft bigotry of expectations"...

Perhaps it is not meant that way. That was coined by Bush I believe, and used by the education reformers to make teachers look bad.

[d_r]

34. No that's not what I mean

And I don't mean the pedagogy of poverty.

I mean treating children with disabilities as the disability not the child.

[loyalsister]

48. That's exactly right

Self advocates and their parents have driven the movement to increase expectations. I heard a parent of a person with an intellectual disability give a talk. She said that when she asked a more experienced parent how she would know if she was parenting her children "right" the other parent said that she would know she's making some mistakes if her daughter never got in trouble.
The tendency to try to protect youth from mistakes comes from a sense of kindness, but people with disabilities want a right to take risks and even to fail.
I don't know full details of this and I think it's possible to go too far in that direction and neglect the need for accommodations. But self advocates have been demanding higher expectations for a long time. They are willing to work hard and they know some things will take a long time to learn, but inclusion is about being part of the challenge.

There is a trend towards people with intellectual disabilities attending college and pursuing careers....

http://lifeafterieps.com/college-options-for-students-with-intellectual-disabilities-think-college/

[madfloridian]

49. If that is what they are demanding...then they are getting it.

Bigtime.

[loyalsister]

54. The people who value "special education"

Are not the students.

People with intellectual disabilities are sick of the overprotection. They want a curriculum that recognizes their strengths and weaknesses and opens doors for success and failure. What they want is not particularly novel.

They want to be challenged in their education just like any nondisabled person who enjoys learning.

[madfloridian]

56. "They want a curriculum that recognizes their strengths and weaknesses" Exactly.

They are getting one now that refuses to recognize such strengths and weaknesses. That is tragic.

I have always worked with students in the most individualized way possible...disabled or non disabled.

I am glad I am retired, because I would not be able to do that anymore. I would be teaching every single child to pass or fail a test that fits one size.

Parents of students with needs have very differing opinions in many ways. Demanding that every child take Algebra in place of math that was meeting their needs is not a good thing..

[d_r]

62. there is a different approach

What is described here in the OP is obviously developmentally inappropriate. This is what is coming from the "reform" people and it makes it obvious that they don't have a clue about children with disabilities.
The other extreme, though, even though it can be well-intentioned, when you put in limits of time and money it makes the same mistake. The idea that all kids with disabilities will not be able to succeed and you can know that before you even try because of the disability.
There is a different way, and that way is exactly what people were thinking of when they pushed for passing IDEA. That is to treat each child as a unique individual.
What is described in the OP is a mistake. Putting all kids with disabilities into specialized settings with limited curriculum also is a mistake.
We do have to treat the children with different abilities in a different way, but it is a way that requires us to think and evaluate and determine what is best for each individual child.
We knew this. I worry that we are losing this.

ETA MadFloridian, you get this idea, we get this idea. It is a progressive idea and it is intuitive to us. Unfortunately this corporate reform movement has lost it. It becomes a sort of false dichotomy between being inappropriate one way or being inappropriate another way. It's a shame that it has gotten to this, and by my way of thinking the blame falls to the "reformers."

[madfloridian]

63. Thanks for your post.

I agree with most of it. Probably all. I worry that the parents who are pushing for more demands for their special needs children may find it has backfired in the hands of these billionaires running the show now.

I often wonder if Obama really wanted or expected this drastic change to happen when he appointed this basketball buddy, Arne. He says he doesn't believe in high stakes testing, but remains silent when schools like Roosevelt are forced into complying such standards.

I wonder also if it is just plain out of his hands now.

[daleanime]

52. K&R....

[daleanime]

53. K&R....

[JCMach1]

55. Wow, just wow... Full Evidence why politicians should not be allowed

to make decisions about education.

[madfloridian]

58. Good to see you.

Your input is always welcome, and we nearly always agree. Hi to family.

[JCMach1]

68. I will!

[liberal_at_heart]

67. I have to wonder if some of the apathy from some Democrats is that they want to force students to

learn more even if it means pushing them beyond their limits. Many Democrats see Republicans as uneducated idiots and Democrats as intellectual and enlightened. So it would only seem logical that if you force people to be more intellectual then they would have liberal ideas and vote for democrats. Personally I don't see how forcing people beyond their limits is liberal, intellectual, or enlightened.