With respect to the proportion of all students in the district are classified as special education, Amherst-Pelham is the district with the fifth largest proportion (18.6%), behind Frontier, Cambridge, Northampton, and Newton. Overall 17.1% of students in the state have been classified as special ed.
With respect to graduation rates, however, Amherst-Pelham comes in ninth (tied with South Hadley) in overall graduation rate (87.2%), above only Pioneer, Hadley, and Frontier. For special ed graduation rates, Amherst-Pelham falls to tenth, above only Pioneer and Belchertown. This 64.7% special ed graduation rate is higher than the state rate of 62.8%.
Another way to look at the data is to compare the difference between the regular ed and special ed graduation rates. In other words, does a district have equally high or equally low graduation rates for all students or is there a large difference between the proportion of regular education students who graduate and that of special education students that graduate? The latter might be a good way to determine whether the special education population of a district is being served with respect to this goal.
Amherst-Pelham has the tenth highest difference between regular and special education graduation rates (27.9%) among these comparable districts. Only Pioneer and Belchertown have a higher difference (data for Hatfield is suppressed due to small numbers). This does not indicate to me that the Amherst-Pelham district is equally meeting the needs of our regular and special education students, despite the amount of money spent on our special education programs and the fact that we have two separate high school campuses for small populations of special education students.
Districts like Hadley and Cambridge, on the other hand, have graduation rate differentials of 3.9% and 4.9%, respectively. Yes, Hadley is a much smaller district with a very small number of special education students, but Cambridge is not. Perhaps the Special Education Task Force could start by looking at what Cambridge is doing to help special education students reach the goal of graduation as well as looking locally to see what Hadley might be doing. It would be a good place to start.
23 comments:
This is extremely informative information Alison. Thanks for doing this. But, if I am reading it correctly it states what I have suspected all along and that is that Amherst does not serve its special needs students as the resources (money) they collect deems.
In other words you are using the graduatation rate of special needs students and comparing that with other districts as well as 'regular' ed students (in Amherst only) and it just doesn't add up? Am I right in this interpretation?
How can I find out what the number of nonwhite and low-income students are in this report?
I suspect they are high. I suspect this number is high and has been so for many, many years.
Let's take a deeper look at the numbers. But first, we should level the playing field a bit by considering the fact that the original numbers are comparing Cambbridge K-12 data with Amherst-Pelham 9-12 data. So, let's include Amherst K-6 data as well.
Cambridge has 11.3% of special education students in Substantially separate programs similar to Building Blocks, Bridges and ESAH compared to 7.7% in Amherst-Pelham and 8.6% in Amherst. This is on top of the fact that Cambridge has 22.1% of all students in sped compared to 18.6% and 18.7% in Amherst-Pelham and Amherst respectively.
The original numbers failed to point out that Cambridge also sports a better drop out rate among special education students, 3.1% vs. 5.3% in Amherst-Pelham.
How does Cambridge manage to have better graduation rates and fewer dropouts among students enrolled in special education? Well, in addittion to identifying a higher percentage of students has having special needs and placing more of them in substantially separate programs, they also spend $24,467 per student vs. $15,154 in Amherst- Pelham and $14,467 in Amherst.
Cambridge also (a) has a higher cost ratio, (b) a different population base, (c) a whole lot different social services network and (d) isn't Amherst....
Even College graduation statistics are meaningless. What you really want to know is how many SPED students have jobs 5 years out, how many are living independent lives and how many are institutionalized and/or in jail.
The statistic I always had was above 10% SPED and you were overdiagnosing although that was a decade ago.
And who says the graduation standards for SPED students are the same between districts? Without the common measure of a MCAS, there is no way to know...
Anon 5:18PM: The table allows comparison in a number of different directions--overall graduation rates among districts, graduation rates for special education students (or regular education students) among districts, and a comparison between regular and special education graduation rates within individual districts. I agree that another number to look at would be graduation rates among non-white and/or low income students. I just chose this analysis keeping in mind the idea of a Special Education Task Force.
Anon 11:11PM: Thank you for showing us an example of how you can further break down the numbers to help get at what might or might not be working in Cambridge. You are right that comparing K-12 and 7-12 districts is not exactly an equal comparison. As I delve deeper into the numbers I am struck by how relatively few 7-12 districts there are in comparison to K-12 districts.
You are right that Cambridge does spend a lot more per pupil than Amherst or Amherst-Pelham, both within the district and tuitioned out. If it achieves good results for those students, perhaps it is a good expenditure of funds. I am hoping our School Committee looks to see if our outlay of funds is netting the stated goals it has set out.
Looking at the proportion of special education students who are educated primarily through inclusion versus substantially separate, incidentally, is another measure I had planned to look at. In addition to hearing "we must get these kids to graduation," I also have heard, "we need to mainstream these kids as much as possible" as a (perhaps unwritten?) goal of special education in Amherst. Your point, however, seems to make the case for substantial separate education in order to meed the needs of the students. This is definitely something I think our School Committee should investigate.
Thank you for taking the time to give us your analysis.
Anon 11:54PM: Yes, no district will be exactly like ours. The idea is to pick either districts who look like ours with respect to our student population, with respect to results we wish to achieve, with respect to proportion of students classified as special education, or some other attribute we find comparable. My analysis simply chose local school districts as well as districts the School Committee routinely mentions as "top districts in Massachusetts." Whether or not any of these are truly comparable to us for a Special Education Task Force, I do not know.
Ed: Working in higher ed, I would agree with you that graduation statistics are not always directly comparable. If nothing else, different schools have different graduation requirements (as Catherine Sanderson pointed out in a recent blog entry, Amherst-Pelham's graduation requirements are among the lowest with respect to core academics). But at least in Massachusetts since all high school students now must pass certain MCAS tests, there is some minimum threshold of achievement among MA high school students. But, for lack of a better "outcome" comparison, graduation rate is what we have to work with. I would agree with you that the true measure of success for all our graduates is how well they function out in the world.
I think the goal of special education should not necessarily be to mainstream kids. It should be to educate them in the environment that is most conducive to learning for each individual student. The goal should be excellent education for all students - special education and regular education. If a child does better in a substantially separate setting than in a mainstreamed setting then they should be placed in a separate setting.
The Special Education Task Force should not only look at outcomes, but also the process that leads to the outcomes. I would like to know if the SPED system in Cambridge is an adversarial system where parents and the SPED department are the adversaries on opposite sides of the table, as it is here in Amherst.
There are many different issues that a task force could look at. I hope this task force does indeed come into being. The school system could gain alot from such a study of SPED in Amherst. Finally, if a Task Force is formed, it is my hope that it look at SPED from K-12, not just on a regional level.
Anon. 11:11 pm
Are you saying that added up Amherst/Amherst Regional has from K-12 a total of 16.3% of its students recieving special education? I am having a hard time understanding all these numbers and figures and percentages. I wish it were simplified into basic statements so that we all can be part of this discussion since it is one of such great importance. Thanks.
Ed--when we have little ones struggling through this special education system as it stands now, it serves little comfort to look at what the statistics show the graduates doing in their young adult lives. And it is not that I am saying that this is not important data to collect and review, but what can we do for them right now? I think it was a post from you that stated, 'How a fourth grade teacher treats their student can determine what that child will be doing when they are 20 years-old.' The teachers out there need as much help in their presentation of the curriculum as do some of our kids in learning it.
If Building Blocks has been in operation for 7 years this might be a great place to start collecting data of where some of those kids are today who were led to bang out their frustrations on a padded wall. I just can not imagine working in an office environment where one of them might get angry for any given reason and topple over their desk on my toes...
As I understand it, Building Blocks is in its tenth year in Amherst. Many of the students are included with regular education classes for parts of the day and don't stick out at all. Some of those students leave the program before getting to sixth grade and some exit sped altogether.
I think it's important to understand that if students are in these programs it's because a team of professionals which includes parents and sometimes outside service providers makes the decision that this is the least restrictive environment for them to be educated in. Once there they receive the help they need and hopefully move on to not need that level of programming.
I'm not sure where the perception of Building Blocks students banging on padded walls comes from, but I'm sure that if they get the help they need and make it into the workforce, no one has to worry about getting a desk toppled over on their foot. I think we've all seen young children who have had some type of tantrum and outgrow it.
To Anon 8:33, I agree with you that I hope there is an evaluation of the SPED program. Although I'm sure that you have good intentions to educate all students, the state of MA says:
Goals*
1. All children with disabilities receive a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment that promotes a high quality education and prepares them for employment and independent living.
The goal of the "least restrictive environment" essentially means that the goal IS to mainstream students when it is appropriate for them. Your stated goal of "most conducive to learning" means all students, SPED and Regular ED, are mostly in classrooms of 1. This, in effect, is spending $54,000 per student for a teacher plus another 10% administration costs and 25% for benefits and I'm sure would ensure an excellent education for all.
Graduation numbers aren't a good measure of SPED success. That is why there are "individual education plans" for SPED students. Some students just won't ever be able to read well enough to pass the MCAS- a graduation requirement. It doesn't mean that we are failing them. It isn't "leaving that child behind", it is just the reality of that individual's strengths and weaknesses.
Anon 7:44AM: Thank you for posting the stated MA goals for special education. Although I, too, read "least restrictive environment" as meaning "mainstream as much as possible," I guess there is a lot of room for interpretation. I also agree with you that graduation rate is not the best measure of the success of special education, but decided to focus on it after hearing so often recently that "we had to get these kids to graduate." Some kids, no matter how hard they try or how hard their teachers try, really will not be able to graduate. I think those who believe we need to focus on getting all kids to graduation are not being realistic. And finally, I agree with you that if ALL kids had an IEP (kids that need extra challenge, for example, as well as kids who need extra help), they would ALL do better. As you said, what child wouldn't do better with one-on-one instruction individually tailored to his/her needs?
Alison,
You did not answer my initial interpretation of this chart. Does it reflect that special needs students are not being served in a balanced way according to how much money is raked in? And how could one find this simple answer--How much of this SPED money goes to administrators in comparison to directly needed supplies, or services for the kids? Do you understand what I am asking? Where can one find the titles and salaries of the SPED administrators? This brings me back to my question--Who is really prospering from the special education services in this town...the kids or the administrators???
Thank You.
Anon 11:32AM: Sorry; I didn't realize what you were asking. I interpret the table as indicating that Amherst doesn't do as well as many of other area/top districts in meeting a stated goal of getting special ed students to graduation.
At the same time, our special education budget is growing at a rate much faster than the rate of our regular education budget. This makes me wonder...what is all the money for? But, graduation rate is only one way to measure success. I intend to investigate others as well.
The vast majority of the special education budget, like that of the regular education budget, goes to personnel, not supplies. But what proportion of that personnel budget goes to administration versus teachers versus paraprofessionals, I am not sure. "Administration" is itemized in our budgets in a variety of ways: central administration and individual school administration, for example. I have never, however, seen an exact breakdown of how much of the special education budget goes to specific special education administrators. I hope the Special Ed Task Force will ask for this breakdown because your question is a good one. Ideally, it would be the students benefitting from the increasing special education budget, but I really don't have the answer for you.
I have a question that I believe needs awareness just for the fact that it needs to be asked. How can a parent get her/his child's school to teach her child reading after s/he has refused sped testing?
The child in question is now routed to become a behavioral problem for the school because no one seems to be responsible in teaching her/him language arts!
I must say that if I were so frustrated and aware that there was no one else in my reading group--the child has been this far singled out already at the young age of 8--I might act out in ways not all that excepting from the adults around me. I am not saying his/her misbehavior is acceptable I am saying it is based on a specific reason and this being the adults failure to teach him!
Ed, you once suggested we file a complaint--but where does that get the child in the meantime??
...accepting...not excepting
Another SPED number...
Thank you.
Anon 9:23AM: I am not sure but am hoping that someone from the schools chimes in here. When I faced a similar situation for a particular math skill in my family (not taught by the prior year's teacher), I ended up getting some ideas from the teachers and then teaching it at home myself every evening. Not an ideal situation, but it got us over the bump and my child up to speed. Very damaging to a child's sense of worth and acoomplishment, though, I agree. I found the math intervention teacher to be very helpful with suggestions...have you contacted the reading intervention teacher at your child's school?
Anyone else out there with other ideas or experiences they could share?
I'm not sure I understand what is going on here with the parent who refused testing. If a child is struggling to learn to read, a comprehensive evaluation should shed some light on the problem. The school can then determine the best course of action once they have an idea of what is making this challenging for the child.
Think of it this way: if you had swelling in your throat making it difficult to swallow, wouldn't you want testing done to determine what was causing the swelling rather than to continue to take aspirin only to find out you have cancer.
I certainly don't mean to equate a learning disability to cancer. I'm merely making a point that without evaluating the cause of a problem, one cannot prescribe the appropriate method to alleviate that problem.
There are many interventions available in public schools to help the struggling reader. A team of professionals with the right information can determine which one is right for this child.
Anon 10:03 PM
The parent did not refuse testing for their child, but asked that this testing be done outside the school's own personnel. S/he strongly feels that there is a pre-decision already made among this particular faculty that is not in the best interest of the child. I don't really know how else to explain it. I must say I do appreciate your comparison of SPED to cancer because as unfortunate as it is children more often than not treat SPED kids as though they had some uncurable disease. I don't know where the responsibility lies in this, but it is happening. The child's peers are already calling him a low achiever. They are aware he does not read at the same level as they do and therefore he has become labled by them as 'low'. It breaks my heart. But, my question is how does this happen? Who is responsible for this? Not the 8 year-old calling his classmate slow... The system is set-up to outcast the struggling student. The teacher has resigned in a way with teaching this child. How else can I explain why he was found cutting out the pieces for a game board while the rest of the class was having a reading lesson?
I would highly recommend finding an experienced ed advocate. One with training who can be objective.
The law allows for a parent to seek an outside evaluation, but only if the school doesn't have someone qualified to do the evaluation or if they are not satisfied after it is done.
I would start by looking at the parent's rights brochure provided by the school and contacting a good advocate.
Another option would be to request that another qualified evaluator from the district conduct the evaluation.
About the child with reading difficulties: So many factors can play a role in reading difficulties. I have found that my children's schools (FR, Lev, and MS) have been amazingly helpful in educating my children as they need to be educated (with 504, IEP, and regular ed). Their teachers really do want to teach them well.
That said, I am sorry this family has not had good results in their meetings.
One thing that can affect children in learning to read, separate from reading or processing disabilities, is vision problems. I think that any child who has trouble learning to read should see a functional optometrist. My child did eye exercises for a year and her reading levels rocketed upward, as did her self-esteem. She now reads above grade level.
Testing can be hard on a child, but it is worth it if the problem is discerned. Then the teachers can begin to tackle the question of how to teach this child effectively.
I thank both Anon. 9:08 PM and Malia Whang-Carlos in their helpful suggestions with getting through this difficult period for a child struggling with reading. It had not occured to us to get a full eye exam done and the appointment will be made first thing Monday!
The parent is asking for an evalutaion outside of the school and has so far been refused. We are meeting next week to discuss why this child is being left behind during reading periods and why his peers perceive him as a low reader. I think this, no matter how hard we try to keep his self-esteem in tack, may leave a damage deeper than one can realize.
I think this is a larger picture of the way our public education system is set-up. I strongly believe and have concrete examples of how just how damaging a teacher can become to a child once s/he has been placed on this path.
We are in there kicking and I so appreciate your help! :-)
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