As I mentioned in class there have been reports of students with disabilities being suspended from school for no reason. I honestly did not know this was going on, but I was not oblivious to the fact that this probably was happening in public schools. I have gone to public schools my whole life and I always realized that students that I went to school with and they were in special education classes because they were diagnosed with a certain disease or a disorder, were always the first to be suspended. These students were always the first students to be suspended. How can you expect students to learn effectively in school if they are never there?
The New York Times article says “According to a new analysis of Department of Education data, 13 percent of disabled students in kindergarten through 12th grade were suspended during the 2009-10 school year, compared with 7 percent of students without disabilities. Among black children with disabilities, which included those with learning difficulties, the rate was much higher: one out of every four was suspended at least once that school year.” So 13% of students were disabled and black were suspended, there is no mention of help being given to these students.
Of course it’s more so a question of resources available to the school. Children with learning disabilities and conduct disorders in poorly resourced neighborhoods will not receive the help they need. Most schools in troubled areas aren’t equipped with school psychologists or social workers. The only thing left for administrators is suspensions, which are clearly counterproductive. But when will this issue be settled and handled with the level of importance that it deserves by the govern
I really do not know if I am speaking out of context but I do not particularly agree with many of the things mentioned in this article. I have a thirteen year old brother who has been troublesome in school since he was in the first grade. For years his outbursts and such were dismissed as “behavioral problems.” But two years ago he was diagnosed with a learning disability. After being diagnosed and routinely being evaluated by school social workers, his problems did not go away. So, I do not believe that it is solely the responsibility of the school to alleviate the learning deficiencies of every child who attends that school. People are missing the fact that the schools do indeed (most of the time at least) try their best to help the children when they are doing poorly academically. I believe that suspension is a last resort. At least, it was in my brother’s case. He has been in trouble at school countless times and has never once been suspended. Also, I wanted to comment on the fact that the article says that black disabled children are the ones who are mostly sent home on suspension. It is not a surprise to me. If a child is disabled there are only a few options that a school can take and the rest of the responsibility falls on the parents of that child. Not to be stereotypical but I am almost certain that the “black disabled children” mentioned in this article are from poorer neighborhoods. If the parents of these children are not economically stable, how can they afford the academic resources that would help their disabled child? I can speak from experience because my brother falls under this category. My mother paid $550 every week to send him to tutoring sessions at the Sylvan Learning Center. His grades improved, but he is one of the lucky ones. What happens to all of the other “black disabled children” whose parents cannot afford to send them to private tutoring? They get suspended.
Are these schools suspending these students BECAUSE of their disability? Or is it because of the outbursts and misbehavior that were a result of their disability which they did not know of? I feel like in a way it is unfair for these children to be suspended and dismissed because they have certain disorders, yet I believe that they do not belong in the same school as students who do not have these disorders. They should be treated in a differnt institute, not because of discrimination, but because I’m sure the more effective teaching ways and handling these students are very different than a regular public school. I’m not sure if the governement provides special care and special institutes for these kids or is it only for qualifying incomes. Also, I understand they want to put these kids into the same environment as the rest of the kids but is it a good idea? I feel like especially in elementary, junior high, and high school, kids pick on other kids. Would this make it even harder for these kids with disabilities to go through this suffering?
According to the article, statistics of black disable students who get suspended are relatively higher than other races. Historically those statistics have been seen not 0nly in schools but in other categories. Why is the case?
One can see the difference between schools in urban and rural areas. The majority of people in urban places are working class families who may not have the sufficient funds to help their children. The parents who don’t have the sufficient means should be able to depend on the schools for help, although some schools from inner cities lack resources to help students. On the contrary, schools in the suburbs have social workers, adequate gyms, and extra-curriculum activities. This creates a conflict of interest for the parents and teachers who want to help the children with disabilities. Unfortunately some inner cities schools aren’t on the prior list for cities officials. Certain standards are made for schools to accomplish which in return may result in the school suspending those students that are not doing so well. Schools who don’t meet those standards not only lack resources but attention from the city. While the schools that meet those standards receive merits and attention. Students spend majority of their time at home and in school, therefore if the students doesn’t receive attention in either places mostly likely they will be guided in the wrong path. When statistics show an increase in crime and dropout students, the city then start worrying about how to lower those statistics. Issues such as lack of resources should be targeted before they become problematic.