ld teacher being moved to the locker room to teach next year

No help, just anecdotal evidence of lack of support for students with special needs in public schools.

One of the (many) reasons that I left the school system that I used to work for was that my next classroom was designated by the architect of the building as a “janitorial supply closet”. It didn’t meet legal requirements on any level, including minimum square footage per student, didn’t have a blackboard, storage of any sort, windows, adequate vetilation, etc., but I was REALLY tired of fighting those battles. If you chose to fight them, start with your state requlations for square footage, lighting, etc. in a special education classroom. Make sure that these are being met. If they are, there may not be much you can do.

Parents are really the only people with the power to make quick, effective changes under these circumstances. Do you know the parents of any other students who will be served in the same room next year? Maybe as a group you can help to find a more appropriate setting for your children.

Karyn

During the peak population of our elementary school, resource room was held in a janitor supply closet, too. This was when the neighborhood was newer and there were kids in every house. I’m talking 20-25 years ago. Now the school is undercrowded and the resource room gets half a classroom. Reading recover is in the other half.

Parents must complain to make things happen!!

I have been MOVED 5 times in the last 6 years. This year, I was given another assignment in special education and moved into a conference room. I was only allowed 1/2 the small room, because they continue to use it for meetings. Sometimes these meetings are going on while I am teaching. I was also given ZERO dollars for budget. I found chairs and a table in storage, but everything else (including shelves) came from my pocket. When I approach administration or members or the school board, I am basically told, “parents of special education students won’t complain, so why are you?” I find that depressing and it makes me very angry.

A couple of questions to ask: How pressed is your school for space? How pressed is the system for money?

When my daughter was in high school, there were 3400 kids ina building built for a maximum of 2500. There were eighteen temporary classrooms on the parking lot — more than many schools have for classrooms total. Actually, those temps were preferred by both students and teachers because they had windows, which the 1970’s prison design of the main building didn’t, and because you didn’t have to force your way through the herds inthe halls. They had gym classes meeting in corridors — large carpeted corridors, but still not rooms; Latin classes with 45 students, meeting in the library; a limit on how many physe ed classes kids could take, I think two in four years, because the gym was packed full; four shifts in the cafeteria and still no seats; and so on.
There was also a waiting list to get into the school because it was far and wide the best in the area.

*IF* your school is this badly overcrowded and everyone is taking part of the load, then you can take your part of the load too

Same issue on money. I have heard of schools that are supposed to be struggling, but honestly haven’t seen any that are anywhere near the ones I went to for tight budgets. Our district elementary schools had no libraries and no gyms; there just wasn’t money to build them. Our textbooks were used for a minimum of twelve years, often twenty (good texts in general, and if it ain’t broke, why fix it?). At that time, teachers’ pay was dreadfully low too.

Again, it’s a question whether everyone is sharing the load. If the gym and art and science and every other department are also broke, well, you can work with everyone else.

On the other hand, if this is just a case of an administration that doesn’t care and wants to shut *those* kids away in the basement, let the public know how bad it is. Invite parents to the class regularly, and when they are shocked, tell them to *write* to the school board. Have a community open house and invite the community newspapers and if possible TV. You don’t have to say anything about the conditions — in fact it looks better if you keep up a brave front and say that this is what the school can afford to give to you and well, you just have to work within the budget. Someone else whose job and credibility isn’t on the line will start a campaign pretty quickly.

What do these schools who cannot find space or buy supplies do with the Federal money they receive for the Programs?

Lots and lots and lots of things — and often they’re even educational. IN many jurisdictions there’s not a lot of follow-through on just what happens to those funds — they go into The School Budget.
Those new football uniforms? Or textbooks…. and those monies would hardly be enough to build an addition to the school.

I currently teach in a tiny, tiny room. And I have 12 student desks, my desk, three computers, a printer, three bookshelves, a cubby, transparency stanc, and chart stand all shoved in here! :shock:

In just a few months, they will be remodeling our building due to space issues. My new room will actually be SMALLER than this one! :roll:

Victoria had some excellent suggestions. Make noise, but in a good way.

You could also hang a sign on your door that says “Welcome to the Charles Dickens’ Classroom for Spec Ed”. If you can find a picture of Oliver to hang on the door, even better. :lol:

In all seriousness, my co-workers and I did exactly this type of thing when trying to get our company to cough up the money for much needed and essential software. We literally had to shame them into it.

One doesn’t have to look far sometimes to figure out a school’s priorities. When I was doing the rounds of high school open houses, one school bragged about their multi-million dollar sports facility that was being built with some federal funding and the rest through alumni donations.

Meanwhile, the inside of the school looked horrible. It needed new paint, better lighting and one classroom had a map of the US hanging on the wall where Florida was missing completely. And here we all have been told California will be the first to break off to sea.

2 million dollars for a space to play basketball, but no one has 200 bucks for a decent map. Sheesh.