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tpsbmam

(3,927 posts)
18. madfloridian, thank you for your awesome work on education over the years.....
Wed Feb 27, 2013, 08:55 PM
Feb 2013

I had to retire early (disability) and don't have any kids in public schools, so I don't stay up on the issues. When I was working professionally, many of my patients were in special ed -- I worked with kids who had medical illnesses/injuries, like head injuries. I helped implement an awesome program in Chicago for head-injured kids -- it was done through research funding that enabled us to install cognitive rehabilitation software on their computers for the kids to go through rehabilitation helping to improve their learning and other cognitive abilities. (The computers were these incredibly old things but were able to take our programs nonetheless.....I guarantee that schools in white suburbs not only don't have anything as ancient as these things were and would have been horrified to have those computers in their schools.)

The teachers I worked with were AWESOME! Boy, they gave those kids their all. This was an inner city Chicago school and some of the even little kids had head injuries because of gang violence around them, not that they were part of.....these were kids around 3rd grade & younger. When I was training (as a neuropsychologist/medical psychologist), I also worked for a full school year at a school for kids with learning, behavior, & often multiple medical problems leading to the need for special school services....the kids that the area public schools didn't have the resources and/or ability to handle. Most (not all) of the teachers I worked with were, again, awesome. Hell, I worked with awesome inner city public school teachers when I volunteered for Head Start in the 9th grade in NYC.

When I think of the shit that has rained down on our public schools and teachers starting with Shrub & continuing with Arne Duncan, it breaks my heart. Since I'm no longer working and don't have kids in school, I'm not as up on education issues as I used to be, but follow your posts with great fascination and appreciation! I care very deeply about what's happening with our schools, education in this country and to the teachers. I naively hoped Bush's disastrous programs & NCLB with all of the testing and bullshit that came along with it would be trashed.....what a naif I was!

So here's a thanks for you and all who are in there fighting for the kids and for education in this country. And thanks for educating me!

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