AJC.com > Blogs > Get Schooled > Archives > 2008 > January > 10
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Cox: Focus On Lowest-Scoring Doesn’t Hurt Others
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
At the Georgia Board of Education’s monthly meeting this morning, state Superintendent Kathy Cox called out critics who say too much emphasis on special education is hurting more advanced students.
“I’ll challenge anyone anywhere to find a school where they’ve focused on the achievement of special education students [and] the scores of other students have gone down,” Cox said. “You can’t find it.”
As you know, under No Child Left Behind, test scores of special-needs kids count just as much as scores of their non-disabled peers. But, typically, special education students are among the lowest-scoring in a school.
To rectify that, public school principals have been keeping a closer watch on what’s happening in the classroom with special-needs kids.
Cox, in her off-the-cuff remarks, attacked the notion that every student cannot learn to the same high standards.
“Every school,” she said, “that has raised the achievement of their special education students sees the gains in the achievement of every other single group.”
.JPG)
-1.JPG)
Services »
