[Grovenet] Education Week: High Court Hears Special Education Case

[Jamsm at aol.com]

I have to agree that the schools in Oregon have a long way to  go.

While we lived in FG we were at constant odds with the school  system. 
My son was diagnosed with Autism (high functioning)/ Aspergers (AS)  at a 
very young age.
Needless to say we were constantly at odds over my  son's education needs.
They wanted to  focus on his 'social issues' only. They had no  desire to 
challenge him or address is educational needs.  As long as he did  not 
disturb the class, he was allowed to come and go from the classes as he  desired 
or quietly wonder around the classrooms.
 
[He just came to me and stated that he wants to learn to write cursively!  
Yea! ]
 
After what essentially was fighting with the school system, we pulled him  
from school near the end of the 4th grade (we had learned that this teacher  
had been repeatedly sending my son into the back of the classroom behind a  
partition out of sight and out of mind many times throughout the year, all 
the  while claiming everything was fine) and home schooled him for a year.  
At  that time, I had started to look into where to move to.  Yes, we "ran"  
to get away from the trash in Oregon. (Now all you  
liberals/progressives/socialists will start making personal attacks on  me.) 

Oregon has a history of spending millions to prevent their having to give  
appropriate placement and assistance to special ed students out of fear that 
if  they give one student 'X' then all the other special ed students will 
want  'X'.  Most parents are reasonable and only want their children to get  
an education respective of their childrens' abilities.  The  school system 
in Oregon wants to provide the  minimum they are  required to give to those 
that are 'different.'  They do not see the  capabilities of many (including 
'normal' kids) and believe they 'know' more than  the parents as to what a 
child can learn. We just want to get our  sons/daughters a proper education 
within their ability.  The school  system wants to put all their efforts and 
money toward the so called 'normal'  students and their sports!  If my son 
did not have autism or AS, I am quite  sure they would have bent over 
backwards to challenge him in his  studies.   
 
While in Oregon, my son was getting straight A's; but that does not  mean 
he was getting a proper education.   So many times we would go to  a parent 
teacher conference and all the other students would have this huge pile  of 
things that they had completed on their desks.  While on my  son's desk, 
there would be just a few sheets of paper, essentially a fraction of  what the 
other students would have.   Where was my son's work?  I  would never get an 
answer other than - "Oh, he is doing just fine!"   What we figured out what 
that really meant was that he was not disturbing  the class.
 
After selling our home in FG, we moved to the Beaverton area.  There,  the 
school system was talking about having my son skip 3 grade levels and put  
him in his Sophomore year!  We found that they were attempting to give my  
son a 'modified' diploma.  This type diploma is a special education diploma  
that is below the standard of a regular diploma.  Today, he is working on a  
advanced placement diploma in a east coast state!
 
Since moving to this new school district  - out of Oregon - my son has  
actually started to learn how to 'study'.  He has started to learn what  home 
work is.   His grades - mostly A's - has picked up some B's  because he 
failed to get some of the more involved projects completed. Oh, the  teachers 
here actually expect him to complete his work! YES!
 
Are Oregon schools good. NO!  Never have been, even when I was in  school.  
I moved to Oregon in the 8th grade (giving my age away - that was  back in 
'65.)  After just a few short weeks, the teacher started using  me as a 
teacher's aide.   I was administrating several subjects for a  select group of 
my fellow classmates.  Gave them instruction, assignments,  graded the 
assignments and administered and graded the tests.   This group was the 'normal' 
8th graders of my class.  I will give  that teacher credit in that he was 
attempting to spend his time with about half  the class that were very far 
below the grade level education that they should  have had.   Some did not even 
know how to add or subtract!   This low performing group had been 'passed 
forward' for years with their  never having learned the material.
 
So much for my rant.

Y'all have a nice day  now!

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