Funding Teacher Aides

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Who is responsible for funding teacher aides? The Ministry of Education here in New Zealand, claims they provide adequate funding and support for children with special needs, and so parents shouldn’t be paying for teacher aide hours. The schools say they … Continue reading →

New School; Same Ministry.

It was no easy task finding my children a new school. I researched our options carefully, and chose my local top preference. The visit to that potential new school went worse than I could have imagined – the principal told … Continue reading →

Naming and Shaming Schools that Mistreat the Disabled

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There is a story and radio interview out today about a local school – that goes unnamed – where disabled students are treated awfully and actively discouraged from enrolling. The school is a public school, and for some people in the … Continue reading →

Private Versus Public Schools, for Special Needs: The example of the Mt Hobson Middle School controversy

It was with a sad sense of deja vu that I read a story today on Stuff.co.nz, about the treatment of an autistic child at a high decile private school here in New Zealand. The story is one of miscommunication, … Continue reading →

Should Special Schools Be Shut Down? (Includes Poll)

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Should all special schools – schools that specifically and exclusively cater to children with special needs – be shut down? My personal experiences, and a look at the reality of what the two types of schooling have to offer, once made me … Continue reading →

Disability Representation on School Boards of Trustees.

Here in New Zealand, legislation and the New Zealand School Trustees Association, (“NZSTA”) both encourage school boards of trustees to be representative of their community. Specifically, they advise that when a school board is seeking to co-opt or appoint new … Continue reading →

Why mainstreaming my son is exhausting me.

My eight year-old son has completed his first year of mainstream education at the local school, after having being in a Special School for his first two years. There are so many good and bad aspects of mainstreaming him, in … Continue reading →

Understanding and Reacting to “Non-Compliance:” A Letter to Teachers.

The following is a letter I have just written that I shall be giving to my son’s teaching team next week. He has attended a mainstream school since the start of this year, prior to that he spent two years … Continue reading →

Mainstreamed

My son spent the first two of his school years at a Special School. That was where he needed to be. That was where he learnt the skills, and received the immense support that was necessary to get him to … Continue reading →

Forced to Choose Between Therapy and Education.

There are certain skills required for learning, that need to be actively taught to children like my son: Skills that are taken for granted in most “normal” children, and therefore skills that are not a natural part of the curriculum … Continue reading →