4 Reasons Why Charter Schools Should Not Do Special Education
A common complaint about charter schools is that they don’t provide special education. This makes charter schools much different from traditional public schools which provide services to all children.
Charter schools should not get district special education funding for services they do not provide. But I don’t think charter schools should provide special education. Here’s why.
1. Charter Schools are Not Equipped to Serve Students with Serious Disabilities
Done right, good traditional public schools include a professional team who come together to consider the needs of the student with disabilities and/or gifted students.
The Individual Educational Plan (IEP) meeting includes a variety of specialists. A school psychologist, a district special education staffing specialist, school counselor, principal or school special ed. representative, a special education teacher, a general education teacher, possibly a social worker, and significant others come together and provide valuable feedback about the child.
Parental presence and involvement at this meeting is critical and is a feature that creates the best kind of public school accountability. It is why the idea of an IEP for all children is enticing.
If a student is interested and can participate in the meeting, they are invited to attend too.
Many of the professionals that attend this meeting are support staff coming from the school district, not the individual school. That’s the beauty of a school system when it 4 Reasons Why Charter Schools Should Not Do Special Education: