Skit about Special Education

Tonio

Tonio

Asperger's Poster Child
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37482-2004Mar30.html

I'm surprised parents got so upset over this skit. From my reading, it sympathizes completely with their struggles. It seems to say that school bureaucrats care more about the school system than about what's best for special-education students, which is 100% accurate, in my view. I've met both parents and teachers of special-education students, and I have some sense of how much those parents have to fight to make sure their kids get the services they need.
 
jlabsher

jlabsher

Sorry about that chief.
I saw the guy on TV, it was hilarious! I'd imagine working with disabled kids would be real stressful and there is nothing wrong with blowing off steam, just don't videotape it. The parents who are getting their skivvies in a bunch are crybabies, I imagine dealing with the parents would be worse than dealing with the kids.
 
willie

willie

Well-Known Member
When they talk about special ed. I'm not sure if they are talking about thugs like the football star recently killed in D.C. or the mentally handicapped that you see in groups at the mall at lunchtime. Any way you cut it, those teachers, counselors, whatever, deserve applause not criticism.
 
T

tlatchaw

Not dead yet.
My brother has taught special ed for almost 30 years and I know through talking with him what his job must be like. My 11 year old daughter has a mentality that has been measured as similar to that of a three year old.

The prognosis of her ever living her own life are slim. She will always need help and attention from loved ones within the family. Can you imagine the emotions of a parent whose child was born in extreme distress, a parent that watches her struggle with the simplest details of life, when some numbnut decides that her walk is worth a good laugh? Times like these make a parent very angry.

My wife has gone so far as to comment to people at the grocery store, "Yes, she's disabled, that's her problem. Why do you have a problem with manners?"

Maybe the parents of disabled children are hypersensitive, but the way disabled people are treated stings like a sunburn that will never heal. To have a supposed professional make light of the situation shows an astounding lack of judgement on his part and I think he should resign. Maybe he could be a stand up comic! I'm sure Bill Maher (who claims that the retarded are like dogs) would think he's very funny.:burning:
 
justin anemone

justin anemone

AKA BK
Special Education is my field, and I can tell you that we have what we call the "M*A*S*H*" mentality.
When you do this work and you're in the trenches day in and day out, you definitely have to let off steam. I admire my co-workers so much for the work they do, and I understand completely when they (and I) feel the need to just let some of it go. I doubt if many of them would find it offensive at all!
JMHO
 
justin anemone

justin anemone

AKA BK
Originally posted by cariblue
I thought your field was entertainment.
Click to expand...


9/11/01 put a huge hurt on the entertainment business, so I (was) bailed before my company tanked.
I'm now working as a special education teacher and it's the toughest job I ever loved...
 
SuperGrover

SuperGrover

jack of all trades
Originally posted by justin anemone
9/11/01 put a huge hurt on the entertainment business, so I (was) bailed before my company tanked.
I'm now working as a special education teacher and it's the toughest job I ever loved...
Click to expand...

NOW I UNDERSTAND about your remark earlier when everyone thought that they were being really cool attacking me... which actually made me laugh.

good on you for taking on such a tough and rewarding job. :clap:
 
K

Kain99

Guest
If more people in the world could laugh at themselves this would be a much happier place.:smile:
 
SuperGrover

SuperGrover

jack of all trades
Originally posted by Kain99
If more people in the world could laugh at themselves this would be a much happier place.:smile:
Click to expand...

i agree, but people with handicaps have had to fight tooth and nail to be accepted by society. no, they are not normal in the sense of the majority, but they deserve to live a peaceful and productive life like anyone else, and by making fun of their plight, it trivializes all the hard work that they've done.

i'm not saying your post was mean or anything (actually, i agree that this should be the case for "normal" people), but that people with some sort of a handicap have had to endure alot throughout their lives, let's not use their plight for our amusement.

i need to see the video to make a full judgement about the attorney, but it seems like he might have been making fun of the "no child left behind" act with unattainable examples from a special needs class.
 
T

tlatchaw

Not dead yet.
Originally posted by SuperGrover
i agree, but people with handicaps have had to fight tooth and nail to be accepted by society. no, they are not normal in the sense of the majority, but they deserve to live a peaceful and productive life like anyone else, and by making fun of their plight, it trivializes all the hard work that they've done.

i'm not saying your post was mean or anything (actually, i agree that this should be the case for "normal" people), but that people with some sort of a handicap have had to endure alot throughout their lives, let's not use their plight for our amusement.

i need to see the video to make a full judgement about the attorney, but it seems like he might have been making fun of the "no child left behind" act with unattainable examples from a special needs class.
Click to expand...

Wow! I think that this is likely the first time that I agree with you 100% (One of us must not be feeling good). Thanks for sounding a sympathetic note for the disabled.
 
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