ALEX BARTON -- THE FIVE YEAR-OLD VOTED OUT OF CLASS -- REVISITED

    The CBS Morning Show interviewed Alex's mother, and the interview is available to watch.  (See the link at the end of this post.)  I strongly recommend watching this interview, then sending links to my blog to everyone you know.  The response of the school is truly amazing, as is the response of many, many people who don't see anything wrong with what the teacher did. 

    For example, one person commented: "when a special needs child is holding back the rest of the class from learning, then it is time to remove that child from being 'main streamed'."

    Another person agreed and commented:  "This 'poor kid' was already known to have been special needs. (sic)  He should not have been in the normal classroom to begin with. Yes, I agree, the
method was a bit thoughtless. The truth of the matter is that the child should have been in a classroom for special needs where he could be better cared for and the other children''s educations would not be
impeded.

"Suggesting a lawsuit is ridiculous. Having your feelings hurt is a part of life. Grow up and stop hiding behind the judicial system."

COMMENT BY PAUL:

    We who are parents of children with special needs live with these kinds of ill-informed attitudes all the time.  Children with special needs are all too often viewed as inconvenient, not really entitled to take up space in "real" classrooms.  That's why most of our freedoms and civil rights need to be protected by the federal government through federal legislation and federal enforcement.  Our freedoms and civil rights are simply too important to be left up to the whims of local governments.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/05/27/earlyshow/main4130288.shtml

Tags: specialneeds, voted out of class, disability information, autism,