Public Law 94-142 and IDEA as a form of Social, Political, Economic, and Educational Reform - Essay Example

Q1 Would you consider Public Law 94-142 and IDEA as a form of social, political, economic, and educational reform? Why or why not? The public Law 94-142, also referred to as IDEA could not have been better defined than making the above reference to it. For avoidance of doubt, it is proper that we remind ourselves about the salient proposition of the law; Enacted by the then US president, Ford in 1975, the law guarantees children with disabilities the right to pursue education just like mainstream ones without any discrimination whatsoever (Hodkinson, and Vickerman, 2009). The law in this regard, qualifies to be seen and considered a political, social, economic, and as a reform in the education sector. It recognizes the rights of the disabled children, which is reflection of what the constitution says that no one should be discriminated against based on any social, political, religious, gender, attire, and societal status (Rhodes, 2012). The law necessitates inclusion program in the schools where no discrimination on disability applied. Inclusion has culminated into fostering cohesion among the children of different status at the earliest possible time and they get the very opportune time to appreciate one another and utilize the potentials each of them have, as opposed to what critics says (Satcher, n.d). One should remember and pay attention to the fact that these are member of the society and at one point, they have to be integrated in the society at the family level, workplace, churches, or in public places (Howley, 2013). Public schools then allow the students to understand one another and relate normally without biasness. In this regard, public schools still remains as viable as they were and the process of inclusion has not changed anything apart from making education accommodative to all (Young, 2009) Q2 Are Public schools still Viable? The presence of the gangs near and in the public schools must be looked into for what is it. The occurrence should not warrant terming the schools not viable. On the other hand, the presence of the gang in and around schools comes with several challenges, which includes; death, in cold blood, recruitment of the students to join the gang or using them as a conduit for the gangs to access schools environs. Following the presence of the gangs within vicinity, students are being recruited for commercial sex through pimps associated to the gangs (Young, 2009). The fear of the gangs invading the school during scheduled school activities has seen schools postponing their activities. For instance, south end school failed to commence their scheduled basket ball game in fear of the same. In terms of the development of the gangs, it is complex to give accurate information about their growth in number because they operate in disguise. Regarding their activities, we can construe that it has spiraled high. The gangs have participated in shooting, harassment, and recruiting students into their activities (Young, 2009). In a counter response, the stakeholders have decided to beef security in the schools in an attempt to keep off the gangs. Students have fallen a prey to the gangs who have joined them due to poor personal understanding-they fall for anything. Student’s demands have also increased and they have to find supplementary income to cater for their peculiar needs, the only way to do this is by joining the gangs for income. Gang membership can be kept at a bay from the students by educating them to appreciate abiding by the law. The students in this regard should be provided with adequate needs so that they do not have to find for themselves a deficit. Security personnel and other guards should also be engaged to investigate, spy, and take actions appropriately in eliminating the vice. Q3 Can Federal Initiatives Save Schools? Following the elaborate action plan scheduled by the federal, I have no doubt that it will have a significant impact on schools. What the federal government has done can be referred to as benchmarking, it allows the schools to have their focus on paper work and then use the structured plan to reach it (Nickson, n.d). Rotherham in his paper a new partnership makes a categorical proposition on the accountability of the funds set aside to help improve the academic standards in the federal schools-the funds targets the minority and the poor (Colvin, 2013). He says that without the accountability, it would be impossible to assess the money for the intended purpose. In his proposal, he asserts that the prescriptions must go in tandem with structured consequences. This he believes is a recipe for positive change. Rotherham compares the 1994 accountability that was haphazardly made and quantifying the role played by the resources, set aside for the purpose was impossible (Colvin, 2013). Clarification of accountability criteria he says brings out results that can be measured. I find his proposal realistic if real changes in the schools are matters of concern. Without accountability, accounting for the results may be difficult given the fact that some of the resources might be used for such activities not intended or that has no impact on the grand plan of the initiative. Q4 NCLB: Can all Students meet the standards? The states have to contend with the fact that acquisition of highly qualified teachers for the plans proposed will have to take time. Most of the teachers were not trained for attending to the proposals made by the NCLB (Rhodes, 2012). The plans come with a plan that requires special attention from the teachers. It will therefore be prudent that the states equally embark on training teachers for the new role necessitated the program. As such, the program will have to face substantial challenges in the initial stages before it can pick and significant changes to be realized (Hess, and Petrilli, 2006). Following The challenge, the federal states should plan to create the required human resource to implement the projection appropriately. In the data provided, English proficiency and economic hardship contributes significantly to inability to meet the set standards (Learning first Alliance, 2003). In addition to proper staffing, there should also be rigorous English language training for students whose first language is not English so that they improve their English proficiency. This is urgent because, the assessment is done in English and this indicates that one has to have a good mastery of English. The states should also consider having special arrangement for the student who comes from economically challenged backgrounds. This level of intervention can be considered to cover subsistence, welfare, fees, and any other need that will make the student feel comfortable in an academic environment. References Colvin, R. L. (2013). “Taking Back Teaching”. Education Next. Retrieved from http://educationnext.org/taking-back-teaching/ >. Hess, F.M., and Michael J. P. (2006). No Child Left Behind primer. New York: Peter Lang. Hodkinson, A. and Philip, V. (2009). Key issues in special educational needs and inclusion. London: SAGE. Howley, N. L. (2013). “Get Active and Move More in School (and Have Fun)”. Learning First Alliance. Retrieved from http://www.learningfirst.org/get-active-and-move-more-school-and-have-fun Nickson, G. (n.d). "History of Special Education." Brain Training - LearningRx. Retrieved from http://www.learningrx.com/history-of-special-education.htm Rhodes, J. H. (2012). An education in politics: the origins and evolution of No Child Left Behind. Ithaca [N.Y.: Cornell University Press. Print. Satcher, D. (n.d). "Education World: Special Education Inclusion." Education World: The Educators Best Friend. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr320.shtml Young, B. (2009). "Local News | Seattle schools scramble to outsmart gangs | Seattle Times Newspaper." The Seattle Times. Retrieved from http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2008800988_gangsandschools02m.html Learning first Alliance. (2003). Major Changes to ESEA in the No Child Left Behind Act January 2002. Retrieved from http://www.academia-research.com/filecache/instr/w/6/787696_w6_nochildleft_1_.pdf Read More