Social Injustice And Special Education

The special education programs in the United States have been designed to help children with special needs learn easier and fit in better with the education program. Unfortunately, many minority students get caught up in the mix and don’t get the proper attention they deserve. Furthermore, minority students are seriously over-represented in the educational programs. Many minority students are misdiagnosed and put into special education programs when in fact; they do not have a learning disability. This has become a growing problem in this country because it is seen as the easy way out. Schools all over the U.S. are doing this in order to not have to properly test and evaluate students for learning problems.

Today’s classrooms are becoming more and more diverse with students that have disabilities and those that come from different cultures. It is important for educators to ensure that their teaching strategies are appropriate for all of the children in their classroom. When it comes to the classroom there can be many cultural challenges that educators will have to address to ensure that all students are growing and developing appropriately. Educators need to make sure that they are capable of addressing each of their

In elementary school, my classroom had students with and without disabilities, and we all shared the same space while working towards a common goal, but over time this diverse community diminished. This phenomenon of tracking and hierarchy of opportunity in education that I notice today is also responsible for creating an environment in which secondary special education is often a segregated locale, physically and socially removed from mainstream public schooling. I've witnessed Syracuse University push against this norm and challenge these boundaries time and time again, and I feel that before entering my own my classroom I want to address these issues of homogeneity and continue to build my tool box of inclusionary practices that extend past my current

Special education is a relatively new concept in education. The question is why? Although, the Federal Government required all children to attend school since 1918, this did not apply to students with disabilities. Many state laws gave school districts the ability to deny access to individuals they deem “uneducable.” The term “uneducable” varied from state to state, school to school, and even individual to individual. If students were accepted into the school, they were placed in regular classrooms with their peers with no support or in classrooms that were not appropriate to meet their needs. This started to change with the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s. The lawsuit Brown vs the Board of Education sued to end segregation of public schools laid the ground work for Individuals with Disabilities Act. The next major impact in education was the enactment of Elementary and Secondary Act signed into effect by President Lyndon Johnson in 1965. The purpose of this law was to provide fair and equal access to education for all, established higher standards, and mandated funds for professional development, resources for support education programs, and parent involvement. Under this law, programs like Head Start were created and celebrated their 50th anniversary this year. Despite additional federal funds and mandatory laws, children with disabilities were unserved or underserved by public school due to loop holes with in the law. Many more lawsuit followed Brown vs

The problem of disproportionate numbers of minority students in special education can be attributed to a report by Lloyd Dunn in 1968 (as cited in Skiba et al., 2008) even though discrimination was evident long before that in America. The phenomenon of disproportionality as it relates to students from minority backgrounds being placed in special education refers to the percentage of students receiving services being a higher rate than is expected or that differs significantly from other races. Skiba et al. (2008) discuss the history of various aspects of the civil rights movement as they pertain to the issue of disproportionality of students from minority backgrounds in special education, the measurement tools used to determine the need for special education, the current status of disproportionality, and what factors have contributed to the discrepancies in numbers. Finally, recommendations are offered by the authors on how the existence of disproportionality of students from a minority background can be rectified.

Some students are subject to unequal representation at school, particularly those in a minority group. In the past, there were vast amounts of racial biases that spread across the United States. Unfortunately, racial bias still exists today, in the 21st century. There are those who feel that certain groups of people should not be given equal opportunities based on their skin color or how they may talk. They are not given the same opportunities as many others are given, and in this case, are assigned an impediment on their education. This paper will illustrate what disproportionality is; some factors that play a part in it; and what can be done and what is being done about it. This memo is being written in the hopes that it will be viewed by the U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, and that he will see what has been happening over the years and do his best to provide more advances in making a change.

For centuries the debate have been about the overrepresentation of minorities inside of special education. Analyst have called on the recount of misrepresentation of displaced students in special education labeling .An equivalent factor of minority is due to poverty, test bias and education process leading to achievement gap. Economic impoverishment and lack of exposure to general education curriculum contributes to life experience to take standardize testing. Poverty is the sole or even the crucial driver of racial ethnicity in a specific educational program. Ethnic students are subject to be isolated in educational settings and not exposing the student to the proper test material leading to test bias.

As we grow in education, it always seems as in there is someone that is left behind. Educators need to be able to reach out as many students as possible, but some may argue that it does not feel this way. Often, students with special education needs are considered to be too difficult to teach, or simple just a “lost cause.” The way we interact and care for all students not only shows in each student, but it shows in the impact it has on the community as a whole.

Markedly, there is a huge difference between a want and a need; therefore, teachers the distinctive concept of equality and fairness is not synonymous. For instance, if a student needs to put on glasses when in class to see the board clearly, equality would suggest that all student in the classroom are given glasses, on the other hand, fairness would be to ensure that the child is in a position to where his or her glasses. In essence, teachers must foster and create an opening and nurturing classroom environment for their students in order for them to successfully distinguish the teacher’s definition of fairness and the child’s definition of fairness. Arguably, this is one of the biggest challenges faced by teachers in ensuring that teaching strategies are appropriate for children who are culturally diverse. In conclusion, a teacher cannot effectively teach students to his or her fullest potential without having a fundamental understanding of a child’s disability or ethnic and cultural background. Therefore, it should be every teacher’s goal for all students in his or her class to exceed

Harry, B., & Klingner, J. K. (2006). Why are so many minority students in special education?: Understanding Race & Disability in Schools. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

From the first day a child is born, parents are there to nurture their child, to support them as they grow and develop. There is a lot to learn about raising a child under normal circumstances, but when a child has special needs parents must learn this whole new language of medical and special education terms (Overton, 2005). Parents enter this new world where navigating for the best interest of their child is riddled with challenges and obstacles that they need to somehow overcome. This is especially true when parents are dealing with the special education program in their child’s school.

Former Education Secretary Arne Duncan said "The undeniable truth is that the everyday educational experience for many students of color violates the principle of equity at the heart of the American promise. It is our collective duty to change that" (Ed.gov, 2012). This was in response to the U.S. Department of Education 's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) findings reporting that minority students across the U.S. face tougher discipline, have less access to rigorous high school curricula, and are more often taught by lower-paid and less experienced teachers. This inequality has been echoed on the field of special education where ethnic and racial disproportionality has been an issue

Children with special needs are slightly different from non-disabled kids, but they’re should not be a barrier between non-disabled children and children with disabilities. Special needs covers a wide range. Some children with physical disabilities use wheelchair, or cane while other children with learning disabilities such as, autism, or emotional disorder. Children with special needs are like all children they want to make friends. Non-disability children want respect, love, good education and job of their dream. Children with special needs can do the same things non-disabled kid do, but it can take them longer. It requires additional explanation or attention. Parents of children with special needs usually feel isolated and uncertain about their child 's future. Schools can help them find support that children are not alone and help is available. Teachers should meet with parents in order to get to know the children better, the specific of their children. Special teachers may come into the class to work one-on-one with the student, for individualized attention. Change begins with an honest examination of understandings, knowledge and belief. Children with special needs should spend more time with non-disabled kids. Children with special needs should study more at public school to learn from

For years children with special needs were ushered off to separate classes and schools. Children with special needs have the right to attend classes with their same aged peers in the same classroom with support. Students with special needs deserve the same opportunities they would have if circumstances were different. Inclusion gives those students with special needs the chance to be part of the community; able to form relationships outside of the family unit. All students benefit from inclusion; students with disabilities develop social skills and develop friendships while non-disabled students learn tolerance and acceptance.

The key to any successful school district is the administration. Teachers essentially provide structure, organization, and the background of a child’s future. To educate students with learning disabilities, it is essential that the staff has the training and resources needed for the appropriate people, place, and time (Lazarus) (What is Inclusion, 2001, n.p). It is unrealistic to expect that regular education teachers will always be aware of the latest research or be able to readily adapt the school's