Special education teacher: Why it’s ‘idiotic’ to force my students to take standardized tests
The top picture is from November of 2014 and the bottom picture is from January 2015. Both pictures are from the same student.
This is the remarkable story of the challenges facing one special education teacher in New York City whose days are difficult not only because of the nature of her job but also because the system used to evaluate her and her colleagues uses the scores of tests her students are required to take — but sometimes can barely understand. Her story is not singular; many special education teachers in New York and across the country face similar issues that often go unappreciated within school communities.
The teacher is Chanel M. Quintero, who works in New York City’s District 9, one of the poorest congressional districts in the country. Quintero has been a classroom-based teacher but this year works on a school-wide basis, with tasks that include working with students in crisis and helping teachers implement behavior plans.
Last year, she said, her class was comprised of students with autism, speech and language impairments, emotional disturbances, and intellectual and learning disabilities. Many came from transient homes and shelters, and their lives were affected by instability and abuse. A few were almost completely nonverbal and several were chronically absent. Skill levels of students ranged from pre-K to third grade. Among the things she worked on with her students was toilet training and making eye contact when speaking to another person. For much of the school year she was pregnant, and when she ran into some health issues, she chose to keep working to help her students.
Quintero’s school is located in the South Bronx, a few blocks from Yankee Stadium. Her school houses kindergarten through fifth grade and is comprised of both general education and special education classes. General-education class sizes currently range from 28 to 31 students, and the school offers both self-contained classes (which are legally mandated to have no more than 12 students and 1 teacher) and Integrated Co-Teaching (which means one general education teacher and one special education teacher) to meet the needs of students with special needs who have Individual Education Programs, called IEPs. Self-contained special-education class sizes currently range from 10- 14 students. Of the 713 students now at the school: 23 percent have special needs, 24 percent are English Language Learners, 68 percent are Hispanic, 28 percent are black, 1 percent is Asian, and 1 percent is white.
Quintero’s story is best told in her own words. She wrote the following about Special education teacher: Why it’s ‘idiotic’ to force my students to take standardized tests - The Washington Post: