The Notebook

Stories tagged: special needs

Parents can take these steps to prevent and deal with bullying

by Sonja Kerr Posted in April 2013 Edition | Permalink

In 2009, three researchers – Wall, Wheaton and Zuver – reviewed all U.S. studies done on bullying and developmental disabilities. The results were consistent and staggering.

All 10 studies found that children with disabilities were two to three times more likely to be victims of bullying than their non-disabled peers. Additionally, research showed that the bullying experienced by these students was more severe and most often directly related to the child’s disability.

‘Portfolio districts’ promise responsiveness to student needs – but is there accountability?

by Judith Gran Posted in October 2012 Edition | Permalink

Philadelphia’s current restructuring plan is based on the “portfolio school district” model, where there is an array of public, charter, and other schools operated by independent organizations. Parents have choices among a “menu” of schools, including schools that are not operated by the District. District administration manages the portfolio of schools based on performance, closing poor-performing schools, expanding capacity in those that are doing better, and opening new ones designed to meet community needs.

District, Mastery reach agreement on serving disabled students at Clymer Elementary

Submitted by Benjamin Herold on Tue, 06/12/2012 - 21:52 Posted in Latest news | Permalink

Updated, 7:55 p.m.

by Benjamin Herold
for the Notebook and WHYY/NewsWorks

The School District of Philadelphia and its largest charter school turnaround operator have agreed on the outlines of a deal that will prevent the relocation of 12 severely disabled children from one of the city’s Renaissance charters.

The deal avoids a potentially traumatic move for students in two Multiple Disabilities Support (MDS) classrooms at Mastery Charter Clymer Elementary in North Philadelphia. It also allays, at least for now, the concerns of disabilities rights advocates that the District had established a precedent for exempting charters from their responsibility to educate some of the city’s most vulnerable – and expensive to serve – students.

“I think we came up with a really positive solution,” said Courtney Collins-Shapiro, deputy chief innovation officer at Mastery Charter Schools.

“I think this is a good sign of the District and charters partnering.”

Listen to Benjamin Herold's report for NewsWorks Tonight

Disability-office counselor talks about finding services at college

by Samantha Byles Posted in Summer 2012 Edition | Permalink

The transition from high school to college is difficult for any student. But for special needs students, who often depend on tailored instruction and targeted resources at the high school level, the move to higher education can seem even more daunting.

About a third of District graduates who attend college enroll at the Community College of Philadelphia. We posed some questions to Theresa Tsai, who has been a counselor at CCP's Center on Disability (COD) for 20 years, about the transition to college life for special education students.

Navigating the digital world

by Wendy Harris Posted in April 2012 Edition | Permalink

As a result of the big changes underway in the School District, teachers will soon be given more freedom to be creative. As part of our April print edition, the Notebook and NewsWorks took a multimedia look inside the classrooms of five exemplary Philadelphia teachers to get an on-the-ground perspectives of the great teaching and learning that is possible.

South Philadelphia senior Marcus Johnson stands at the front of his classroom eager to give his presentation on mammals. But there are no poster board cutouts here, no sketches across a blackboard, no pages borrowed from an animal encyclopedia. Johnson, with his back to a class that has iMacs and iPads, works the keys on his laptop computer with the focus of an engineer in a computer lab. After a few clicks, he turns to face his peers, and the website he designed – which gives vivid images and rich content about the animals he loves so much – fills the interactive projector at the front of the room.

Video: Kimberly Paynter for WHYY/NewsWorks

Lower Merion School District response to post by PILCOP

Submitted by Guest blogger on Wed, 09/28/2011 - 15:44 Posted in Community voices | Permalink

This guest blog post is a statement of the Lower Merion School District, submitted by Director of School & Community Relations Doug Young.

The Notebook recently published an inaccurate, misleading, and inflammatory guest commentary by attorney Sonja Kerr and communications assistant Dave Hanyok both of Philadelphia Public Interest Law Center (PILCOP). Kerr is part of the team of attorneys that have pursued a 2007 federal lawsuit against Lower Merion School District (LMSD). The case is scheduled for trial very soon in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia.

Why are all the Black kids in special ed? Or, why you should always demand a second opinion

Submitted by Guest blogger on Mon, 09/26/2011 - 15:58 Posted in Community voices | Permalink

This guest blog post was written by Sonja Kerr and Dave Hanyok of the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia.

As demonstrated in study after study and acknowledged in the text of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), minority students (and especially Black students) are disproportionately diagnosed with disabilities and placed in special education or lowest-level courses.

Many people don’t understand how this is possible. They think: Isn’t it clear when someone has a disability? Can’t you just administer an IQ test, look at test scores, and be done with it?

Unfortunately, the evaluation process is much more complicated than that – and as it’s actually implemented, it leaves a lot more room for human error.

Students with disabilities must know rights in face of School District budget cutbacks

by Jennifer Lowman Posted in October 2011 Edition | Permalink

The start of this school year is markedly different from past years. Dramatic state cuts to education funding have Philadelphia and other school districts facing unprecedented budget shortfalls.

It's not clear how cutbacks will impact students with disabilities. The Education Law Center will be working with parents and school officials to monitor this.

One point remains clear: Though school budgets have changed, a student's rights have not. Here's a reminder of what parents and students with disabilities are guaranteed by law:

College-going students with disabilities must know their rights before they enroll

by Rocco Iacullo Posted in Summer 2011 Edition | Permalink

Going to college is filled with academic and social challenges. Those issues can be compounded for students with disabilities if they are limited in their access to programs, services, and activities.

Colleges and universities are prohibited from discriminating against students with disabilities in all aspects of their college-going experience, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (RA). "Discrimination" includes the refusal to provide reasonable accommodations.

Children in city Family Court system need timely evaluations by School District

by Sonja D. Kerr Posted in April 2011 Edition | Permalink

The District is responsible for educating some of our most vulnerable children – children with disabilities who are among the 6,000 or so foster home children in our Family Court dependency system.

"Dependency" arises with an allegation that there is a lack of parental care so that the court legally assumes the parental role; in these cases, the child is dependent on the court to advocate for their education.