How have students with severe disabilities been impacted by No Child Left Behind?

Question

How have students with severe disabilities been impacted by No Child Left Behind?

Answer 1

In Illinois we have the Illinois Alternate Assessment to follow students progress for No Child Left Behind. I teach moderately to profoundly mentally impaired students. The assessment allows us to use manipulatives such as blocks, counting bears, pictures, etc to adapt the test to their level. For some students, this is fantastic, but the problem is it does not differentiate between students' disabilities. My student who is functioning at a 9 month old level takes the same assessment as my student who is functioning on a preschool academic level or on a 1st grade level. Obviously, this does not show the severely impaired student's abilities. It only shows that he can not do grade level work even with modifications which we knew anyway. He will never be able to do this work, no matter how badly our legislators want him to. He simply does not have the ability to do this. It is so frustrating to me to see him making progress with what he can do but to have all of the "official" testing show that he can not do anything. In the past, there was the Illinois Assessment Portfolio, which was a portfolio demonstrating how he could meet certain goals and objectives to the best of his ability. It was so much paper work, and a lot of time and effort was put into this, but at least we were able to show what they could do. In my experience, the legislators would prefer to pretend that the severely mentally impaired students do not exist. Sorry this is so long, I finished this assessment with my students last week and I'm so frustrated!

Answer 2

My son has a learning disability and next year will be the first year of the big testing here in Connecticut it's called CMT (Connecticut mastery test). My son has an IEP and we will write something about the testing in his IEP for example he may be allowed to use a number line for the math if we write it into his IEP.

Answer 3

I would say that NCLB has had the most devastating effect on students with mild disabilities (LD, MIMD) and has probably had the least effect on students with severe disabilties. It has craeted more work (preparing protfolios, alternative testing, etc.) for the teachers of students with severe disabilties.

Answer 4

Children with severe needs are assessed individually using an APA (Alternate portfolio assessment)

I haven't seen that much of an impact on the students-just more work for teh teacher

instead of taking a test- a portfolio showing their progress toward their IEP is used.

Answer 5

The most severely disabled children are exempt from No Child Left Behind requirements.  My son was until he was 18.

Answer 6

I am a special eduction teacher.  Students with mild to moderate disabilities are impacted severely by no child left behind.  The testing required makes them feel like more of a failure then our school system was already doing.  The focus on academic proficiency has all but eliminated vocational training for these students.  But your question references severe disabilities.

I am seeing more and more severe disabilities being mainstreamed into the mild to moderate level classes. These students will never be proficient based on the standards set by this act (All students will be proficient by 2014 based on NCLB).  Most of these students are serviced by county programs which are considered failing schools under NCLB so the parents choose to move them to "better" programs but it is not the schools that are failing it is NCLB.

Answer 7

I raised two children born in 1983 and 1984 while they were not Special Ed they were TAG (talented and gifted) and we adopted two Federally/State identified Special Needs foster children in 2003.... Our daughter started Kindergarten that year and it has taken us five years (k-4) just to obtain an IEP...

In the meantime our daughter spent most of 1st and 2nd grade in a (Psych) Day-Treatment and was in Residential Treatment for the bulk of 3rd grade... Both of the Treatment programs Promised Up Front to Help us get the IEP with the school... Both FAILED to deliver....

Eventually I had to remove her from School and Demand Evaluations--which were delayed until summer break last year---and they were not completed until October 29 this past fall....

It required three Advocates, a county mental health expert, the Child Protection Services and a Lawyer to get things in place.

Even with the Federal/State Identification and Recommendations from three doctors that a "Theraputic" classroom or day treatment program was what she needed... The school held to the "least restrictive" environment and decided to have her suffer a series of FAILURES each of which resulted in "Re-entry" meetings, Manifestation Hearings, and Re-Do's on the IEP...

We have been to 15 meetings since January 10.... and on March 4 we were finally told, "You are right--she belongs in Day Treatment"

Yesterday we had the orientation---in a different District...miles away and will need to go to More IEP meetings...

The fact of the matter is that Our Daughter has literally Lost Five years of education and Been HURT in order to "qualify" for what she needs and what Everyone has Known She needed from the day we met her at the age of five years old.

Our daughter has FASD (fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders) Specifically Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder and an IQ of 78 with NO Working Memory and very little Processing... Her Adoptive Behavior Scores from teachers and parents were less the 40 and considered Sever.... and Her Functional Behavior Assesments indicated sever need from the start... YET she had to be put though all of the hoops just to Prove she needed more special attention...

The REALLY sad part is that the Only thing they can offer is Day Treatment--with the only kids in her class being ALL BOYS and with a "Behavior Modification" modality... Anyone who knows anything about Brain Damage should know that it Can't be Modified....

So.... I doubt she will have her needs met any better when she starts the new program after spring break... The saddest part is that she has Never had the chance to attend a full school year in one place....

So.... my kid sure has been Left Behind...

her brother started Kindergarten this fall.... Teacher has told me he is having problems but, "She is out of Ideas" I asked for the school to "child find" and offer him services a week before Thanksgiving and have yet to hear a word.....I assume he will be Left Behind too....   :(

Answer 8

Everyone has been impacted by that lame NCLB act!

It has to be one of the worst ways of measuring a

teacher's abilities and rarely do those who pass

the NCLB standards should be deemed as "

highly qualified". The tests and expectations that

the NCLB has are completely relative.

Answer 9

I'm sorry to say this but I did a research project for college about 1.5 years ago and what I found was disturbing. Certain states, like Texas, New Jersey, and Michigan were producing fraudulent scores on the yearly tests to obtain more federal money than they deserve. Other states, like Colorado and New Jersey, were not only lumping the learning disabled students with the gifted students to to make it look like these students did better on these tests than they really did so they can obtain more federal money, but some schools even went as far as not only denying these students the "right" to be tested academicly with their peers but also denying the learning disabled students the right to be promoted to the next class unless these students made at least a grade of B in every class. Yet; these same students were denied the right to graduate with honors because these students were deemed "learning disabled." This just proves that The NCLB Act does nothing to help the severely disabled because the Department of Education at the local and state levels won't allow it to help these students.

Edit: BTW, I failed to mention that the states of Michigan and New Jersey were also lowering the standards of the learning disabled so they can get more federal money. This don't count the remaining states that were a little more underhanded in their dealing with the NCLB Act and its policies, and therefore did not get caught. In my opinion, if these states truly cared about educating the learning disabled instead of lowering standards, producing fraudulent scores, and just down right denying the learning disabled a chance of an equal education to obtain more money these states might spend a little extra time actually educating these students instead.

Answer 10

As the parent of  two children with LD's both severe but in differen't ways I would say yes!!!!! The No Child Left Behind law was next to going to war the worse peice of work that Bush has put into place. 15 years ago when my oldest daugther graduated from High school even as seriously disabled child due to developmental delays There was more of a say what was needed for the child from the parent.  I have a child who's in high school now and I have to fight for each of her modifications even though she's in a school for children with Learning disabilites and has been for the last four years. Even though she's on the honor roll it's because I'm in contact with the school several times a week to make sure that she's getting the services that she needs and deserves.  The NCLB  law has required more from the schools and the students yet has not provided the money to go along with those requirements.  Where does that leave the school's with even less money than usual to do more with.  Bush thinks with his bottom part of his body, I'll be so glad when he's out of office I'm holding a party.

Answer 11

I have been a special educator for 30 ears  EVERYTHING has impacted these kids!!

The tests that they are required to take have been changed, and the graduation requirements are very different.  Hopefully, the tests reflect he needs and and basics that these kids need as adults.  but the problem is that the LD or mildly MR kids are the ones who don't get enough changes in their educational program.

They are expected to do everything that a "normal" kid is supposed to do w/o appropriate adaptions....the whole thing is un fair...there will always be kids who have special needs and just how can we help them??