|
Special ed reporting beefed up
Detroit must reveal on 3 dates number of kids in
classroom
By Jodi S. Cohen / The Detroit News
/ August 26, 2002
School officials must tell the state how many students are in
Detroit special education classrooms on three dates this
school year.
The new requirement and about two dozen others are in response
to a state investigation of overcrowded Detroit special
education classrooms, which violate state law and threaten the
learning potential of students who can't get the individual
instruction they need.
The orders come a month after The Detroit News reported that
45 percent of classes for learning disabled, mentally impaired
and emotionally impaired students exceeded state limits in
March, higher than the 27-percent rate the state found last
September. Crowding worsened despite a year-and-a-half state
inquiry.
"We are going to be monitoring their progress ... by taking
data at several specific time periods," said David Brock,
supervisor of the state special education department.
The Wayne County intermediate school district also will audit
the class sizes this fall, according to the plan.
Detroit administrators said classes were overcrowded because
they couldn't recruit enough teachers for Detroit's 19,000
special education students.
State law prohibits putting more than 15 learning-disabled or
mentally impaired students in a classroom at one time. A room
of emotionally impaired students cannot exceed 10.
Under the new requirements, Detroit school officials are
expected to:
* Put eligible special education students into classrooms,
rather than leaving them on waiting lists.
* Report the number of learning disabled, mentally and
emotionally impaired classrooms in September, February 2003
and June 2003. Also report the number of classrooms that
aren't above the maximum number of students.
* Aggressively recruit teachers by providing employment
applications online, identifying districts that are laying off
teachers and training substitutes to work in special education
classrooms.
Detroit educators also are expected to review students'
individual education plans from the past two years and address
any lack of expected progress.
"It is an attempt to get at those kids, if they did suffer
educational harm ... and make some plan for correcting that,"
Brock said.
The Michigan Protection and Advocacy Service, a group that
filed the March 2001 complaint, isn't satisfied with the
latest plan.
"It falls short," said Amy Maes, director of advocacy
services. "What if they can't recruit teachers? What if they
can't retain teachers? The problems will still exist."
You can reach Jodi S. Cohen at (313) 222-2269 or
jcohen@detnews.com
|
