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Monday, March 26, 2007
Special Ed: What Happens When A Student Falls Through The Cracks
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Late last week, a federal judge ordered Atlanta Public Schools officials to pay at least $34,150 a year for a former student to attend a private school to finish his education — a ruling that could end up costing the system more than $136,000, not including attorneys’ fees.
According to AJC reporter Kristina Torres’ story, school psychologists misdiagnosed Jarron Draper as “mildly intellectually disabled” when he was a fourth-grader. They didn’t realize Draper actually had dyslexia until he reached high school. By then, he was at least six grade levels behind his peers.
Draper’s family had to fight to get him re-tested — even though federal law requires that special education students be evaluated every three years — because they knew he wasn’t mentally disabled. Had they not had the gumption to take on Goliath, as his aunt put it, Draper, now 20, may never have had the chance to graduate.
Thinking about this case, I can’t help but wonder: Is this an extreme example of a student slipping through the proverbial cracks or does this happen more often than educators care to admit?
