Should special ed students be required to pass the HSAs?
That's the quesion that Liz explores in her story today. How to test special education students has been a dicey subject for years. But previously in Maryland, much of the debate centered around the consequences for a school (i.e. sanctions under No Child Left Behind) if special education students weren't tested or couldn't pass standardized tests. With the advent of high school graduation exams, the students themselves could potentially be denied diplomas if they fail. Some advocates say the tests will ensure that schools give special education students a basic education, while others say they're unfair and can't account for the range of students' disabilities.
What do you think? Should special education students be held to the same standards as their classmates?
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Comments
Will their classmates be held to them?
In general, I'm a fan of standardized tests. Yes, there are some typically-developing kids who "don't test well", but part of making it out there is to live up to demands even if they don't play to your strengths.
That said, "making it out there" has a whole different dimension for special education students. There are students out there who flourish under the rigors of tests, and others who can't read the print on the page despite having all the knowledge locked away in their brains.
If we can set up IEPs to dictate how a student is to be taught, why not extend it to how they are to be tested?
Posted by: steegness | October 22, 2007 5:30 PM
Maybe we need to re-think the whole issue. People without H.S. diplomas attend community colleges. Having a bachelor's degree doesn't ensure future success or a guarantee of employment. What is a H.S. diploma worth? What is it's true value? In this context, it seems like it's supposed to be a passport to acceptance by the larger society. Maybe the real issue is the lack of true integration of students with disabilities in our schools and our society. If my child had all the services and teachers he needed at our neighborhood school within a regular classroom so that he had grown up with typically developing neighborhood peers thus ensuring that he would be accepted and appreciated for the totality of who he is, would a H.S. diploma loom so large in importance?
Posted by: Sue Keller | October 23, 2007 9:06 AM
What students are labeled "Special Education" for HSA purposes? The general definition of Special Education encompasses such a wide range of students, from those with Down Syndrome to those with mild learning disabilities such as dyslexia. There's been reports of affluent parents therapist shopping to get a learning disability diagnosis for their children to taken an untimed SAT, what's to stop them from them using this same tactic to ensure high school graduation if they drop HSA requirements for Special Education students?
A better suggestion would be to have a review person/board/committee that consults with the parents & doctors to determine if the student should be capable of passing the HSA, and if not, set alternate requirements for graduation on an individual basis, based on needs. The goal is to encourage the school to do everything possible to ensure that children who are capable of meeting the requirements HSA tests, do, and to still provide the best possible education for children who cannot pass the HSA.
Posted by: B | October 23, 2007 9:59 AM