Special needs and mainstreaming

[bcp]

The question is this.
If you were to spend money to put your child in a tennis, or dance etc... class, and when you got there you discovered that the class had a special education student ex.. autistic, mentally challenged, whatever, would you be upset?
If that child is going to need more attention, and more time to learn, its going to detract from what your child gets as far as instruction.
Since you paid good money for the class, do you expect that those in the class be able to keep up with the course all the way through, or is it perfectly ok for your child to have less of a learning experience while the teacher and shadows deal with the child in question.

same for school, is it fair to the other children to be slowed down by the challenged child.

no need to get nasty, Im just curious.

 

[sockgirl77]

In school they have special ed. If they can't keep up they may hinder others from learning. As expensive as dance classes are, I'd want my child to have as much attention/teaching as I paid for.

 

[Nanny Pam]

Thus the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND issue!

It sucks. Children who are ready to move on, just can't. They have to wait for the slower kids to catch up.

I wish they'd bring back Special education classes. That way everyone moves at their own pace.

just my 2 cents

 

[bcp]

Thus the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND issue!

It sucks. Children who are ready to move on, just can't. They have to wait for the slower kids to catch up.

I wish they'd bring back Special education classes. That way everyone moves at their own pace.

just my 2 cents

Providing that the children get the specialized teachers that they need, I agree.
I think two things happen when they are put in regular classrooms.
1) the rest of the class will be slowed down a bit to allow the slower learners to try to keep up.
2) the class still wont go as slow as needed for the special education kids, and they will still be left behind.

I think it fails on both sides.

 

[sockgirl77]

Thus the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND issue!

It sucks. Children who are ready to move on, just can't. They have to wait for the slower kids to catch up.

I wish they'd bring back Special education classes. That way everyone moves at their own pace.

just my 2 cents

I'm pretty sure they still have them here. My son has a speech delay. A speech therapist pulls him out of class twice per week. This will eventually allow him to catch up to the other kids. If the teacher had to do that the other kids would not get enough time with her.

 

[Nanny Pam]

Providing that the children get the specialized teachers that they need, I agree.
I think two things happen when they are put in regular classrooms.
1) the rest of the class will be slowed down a bit to allow the slower learners to try to keep up.
2) the class still wont go as slow as needed for the special education kids, and they will still be left behind.

I think it fails on both sides.

yes, it does.

 

[muttdog]

I coached youth soccer for years and one year a parent came to me and told me that their son was autistic and might need a little me attention than the other kids. I found out very quickly that he listened better than any of my other kids, and follow directions to the letter. Instead of more coaching, he ended up helping me out by showing all the other kids how to do things, so as for your question bcp, I have been on both sides, so I cant say one way or the other.

 

[Vince]

Thus the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND issue!

It sucks. Children who are ready to move on, just can't. They have to wait for the slower kids to catch up.

I wish they'd bring back Special education classes. That way everyone moves at their own pace.

just my 2 cents

Schools in Maryland have special ed classes. They do not mainstream unless they feel the child can keep up. Parents can allow their child to be mainstreamed or not. If the parent feels his/her child is not capable of mainstreaming, he/she can be kept in special ed class.

 

[RareBreed]

I see "normal" kids who are as disruptive and/or more disruptive than any "special needs" kid could be so I'd go with the "wait and see" option. Some kids don't have the maturity level that other kids the same age have and the few "special needs" kids that I've had contact with seem to go out of their way (if able) to be/act as normal as possible to fit in with their peers.

 

[bcp]

I see "normal" kids who are as disruptive and/or more disruptive than any "special needs" kid could be so I'd go with the "wait and see" option. Some kids don't have the maturity level that other kids the same age have and the few "special needs" kids that I've had contact with seem to go out of their way (if able) to be/act as normal as possible to fit in with their peers.

This was actually more about things like, swimming lessons, dance tennis etc.. where you spend fairly decent money from your own pocket to have your child spend time in a class with a real instructor.
Thats what I was really wondering,
school is another story, if you got rid of every kid that was disruptive at one point or another, the classrooms might end up pretty empty.

 

[cattitude]

This was actually more about things like, swimming lessons, dance tennis etc.. where you spend fairly decent money from your own pocket to have your child spend time in a class with a real instructor.
Thats what I was really wondering,
school is another story, if you got rid of every kid that was disruptive at one point or another, the classrooms might end up pretty empty.

If their parents are paying, what's the difference? I think the issue of "paying" equalizes the playing field. If the parents of the perceived normal children don't like it, they are free to choose another organization. Although, in general, I don't have a problem with all children getting a chance to participate.

 

[RareBreed]

This was actually more about things like, swimming lessons, dance tennis etc.. where you spend fairly decent money from your own pocket to have your child spend time in a class with a real instructor.
Thats what I was really wondering,
school is another story, if you got rid of every kid that was disruptive at one point or another, the classrooms might end up pretty empty.

I'm talking about that too. My oldest had a kid who was disruptive at practices and games and basically made each event barely tolerable for the kids and parents. I just think some kids can handle participating in sports/lessons and some should just be kept at home. It should be pretty obvious to the parents how their kid will react to an organized activity. If they think they can handle it, go for it!! If it becomes obvious that they can't, do everyone a favor and remove them from said activity. Special needs or not.

 

[vraiblonde]

Mmmm...there's a lot to be learned by working with the handicapped. Patience, cooperation, compassion. Those qualities are more important to me than a wicked backhand and will serve you better throughout life.

So, no, I wouldn't be upset if there were a special needs child in one of my kids' classes. If the kid were really disruptive, that would be one thing - obviously he's not ready for that sort of experience and the coach/instructor should tell his parents that. But some kid who just needs a little more time and patience should be allowed to participate.

If you want your kid to take their lessons seriously and be the next Serena Williams, you should cough up for private lessons. Otherwise it's just for fun.

 

[bcp]

If their parents are paying, what's the difference? I think the issue of "paying" equalizes the playing field. If the parents of the perceived normal children don't like it, they are free to choose another organization. Although, in general, I don't have a problem with all children getting a chance to participate.

Well, the way I see it, if you spend dollars for the lessons, and the instructors time is taken up with the child that is special needs leaving the other children basically without lesson.
I think that is not fair, and it should not be on the other parents to find another course, by the time you figure out what is going on in the class, it is almost always too late to get your refund if you back out.

but, I understand that some people do think like you, thats why I did the poll.

 

[bcp]

Mmmm...there's a lot to be learned by working with the handicapped. Patience, cooperation, compassion. Those qualities are more important to me than a wicked backhand and will serve you better throughout life.

So, no, I wouldn't be upset if there were a special needs child in one of my kids' classes. If the kid were really disruptive, that would be one thing - obviously he's not ready for that sort of experience and the coach/instructor should tell his parents that. But some kid who just needs a little more time and patience should be allowed to participate.

If you want your kid to take their lessons seriously and be the next Serena Williams, you should cough up for private lessons. Otherwise it's just for fun.

Again, some very good points.
but, how about if the parents had the option of knowing before hand that the class included a potential issue as far as this goes.

 

[cattitude]

Well, the way I see it, if you spend dollars for the lessons, and the instructors time is taken up with the child that is special needs leaving the other children basically without lesson.
I think that is not fair, and it should not be on the other parents to find another course, by the time you figure out what is going on in the class, it is almost always too late to get your refund if you back out.

but, I understand that some people do think like you, thats why I did the poll.

But what makes your hard-earned dollar of more value than the hard-earned dollar of a parent with a special needs child? I somewhat understand the premise of your poll but I think the money aspect of it isn't the real issue.

 

[vraiblonde]

Again, some very good points.
but, how about if the parents had the option of knowing before hand that the class included a potential issue as far as this goes.

Key word highlighted.

Every kid has the potential to be a disruptive ass who ruins it for everyone. I wouldn't be alarmed just based on their mental capabilities, especially if I didn't even know the kid. Wait and see, as others have said.

 

[bcp]

Key word highlighted.

Every kid has the potential to be a disruptive ass who ruins it for everyone. I wouldn't be alarmed just based on their mental capabilities, especially if I didn't even know the kid. Wait and see, as others have said.

ok, Ill come right out and say it.
Im not actually talking about behavior as the problem
Im talking about parents that have autistic children, and the one Im talking about is not what would be considered a "functional" autistic child. Ive even seen a parent demand that their kid in a wheel chair be involved in a tennis class, who the hell can push a wheelchair well enough to keep up with a game of tennis? Mom better be in some damn good shape for that one.
this is an issue that is of no fault of the parent or the child.
What it does do is turns almost all of the attention to the child with the needs, leaving the others with less of an experience than they would have had in a class with kids of all the same basic skill level.

and yes, I can make positive arguments for both sides of this, but I tend to lean more to the side of the kids that can excel.

 

[Dye Tied]

ok, Ill come right out and say it.
Im not actually talking about behavior as the problem
Im talking about parents that have autistic children, and the one Im talking about is not what would be considered a "functional" autistic child. Ive even seen a parent demand that their kid in a wheel chair be involved in a tennis class, who the hell can push a wheelchair well enough to keep up with a game of tennis? Mom better be in some damn good shape for that one.
this is an issue that is of no fault of the parent or the child.
What it does do is turns almost all of the attention to the child with the needs, leaving the others with less of an experience than they would have had in a class with kids of all the same basic skill level.

and yes, I can make positive arguments for both sides of this, but I tend to lean more to the side of the kids that can excel.

Quit your biatching.

 

[bcp]

Quit your biatching.

no. but thank you for offering that alternative.