The Importance Of Special Education

“I’ll always go in for my child,” these were the words spoken by a concerned expressing her role as a parent of a young, black male in an inner city. In spite of this student’s discipline record which consisted of twenty documented infractions, this mother was adamant about justifying her son’s behavior. I listened intently as the mother nearly cried, when reflecting on some of the issues her and her family had been coping with throughout their lives.
As the mother listened to the team recount incidents which involved her child, she interrupted apologetically, desperate to be heard. She needed us to know that her child was struggling with a diagnosis of ADHD, that she worked tireless hours, employed different discipline strategies at home, and that their family life was haunted by tragedy. She desired for us to take all of these factors into consideration and make the recommendation that her son be placed in a therapeutic setting for students with extensive emotional and behavior disturbances. The rest of the team felt that such a placement would violate the child’s right to be …show more content…
The special education lead teacher agreed but presented the option to place the student in a self-contained classroom. Conversely the assistant principal suggested that the student be serviced in an alternative school since his behavior has consistently disrupted the learning environment. This disparity in opinion led to an emotional debate which deviated from the facts and the needs of the students. I was completely torn because my desire was not plausible due a limited budget. Building a departmentalized resource unit would require reduced classroom sizes and a new teacher. Though ideal, it was not an option, an unfair reality that many in inner cities