Every Child Deserves an IEP

The educational stance of Northport’s Superintendant of schools is this: Every child deserves an IEP (individual education plan). Every child deserves special education whether they are classified or not. All children are entitled to learn and succeed and have their individual learning needs met.

For 8 straight years I had a private math tutor on the payroll. Every year for at least one of my girls there was a need. It had to do with their teachers’ instructive skills---not my daughters’ innate lack of aptitude for math. Some of the math teachers at the high school are absolutely stellar—some not so much. It’s the not-so-much teachers that depleted my bank account. I am convinced that the tutor’s earnings from my weekly checks paid for his daughter’s wedding.

When Briana finished honors Math B at the end of her sophomore year (2005) she was recommended for honors calculus even though her grades were on the cusp. Her teacher that year was neither the best nor the worst. And I wasn’t certain whether Briana’s grades were on the cusp due to Briana’s own cusp level math aptitude or cusp level teaching. And since I strongly believe that at all times it is imperative to give your child the best possibility of success—and since the GPA of junior year is so pivotal, I sought guidance on where to properly place Briana for junior year math.

So I conferenced with Briana’s guidance councelor and Mr. Dods (the then head of the math department) to determine what was best for her. And we all agreed that GPA was the rate limiting step. Her math grade could make or break her college application. And even though honors math 12 (precalculus) was only open to seniors, Mr. Dods allowed Briana to take the course as a junior-- as it was deemed the best educational option for her. Mr. Dods bent the rules.

And Briana excelled beyond expectations in honors Math 12. And it became clear that Briana’s cusp grades in sophomore year were due to cusp level teaching and not cusp level aptitude. And so we faced a new dilemma. Clearly Briana was more than capable of AP calculus but she had not taken the proper prerequisite course (honors Calculus in junior year--pre-AP). So I conferenced with Briana’s councelor and Mr. Dods again. And even though it was against district policy, Mr. Dods offered this option: Briana had his permission to take Calculus I over the summer at Nassau Community College---and if she got a B or better, he would allow her to take AP Calculus. Mr. Dods bent the rules again.

And that is what Briana did. She took Calculus I over the summer session at Nassau and she got an A. While her friends were at the beach, Briana was in class. She sacrificed her summer fun to study and learn. But in the end she got real college experience and a transferable grade. And she used her experience to demonstrate in her college applications that she was a serious student fully capable of handling college level courses. It very well could have been the tipping point in her acceptance to the tier one college of her choice. And it was because the guidance councelor and Mr. Dods understood that unilateral educational policies did not address individual needs. They understood that every child deserved an IEP. Every child deserved special education.

This scenario would no longer happen in this school district. The current assistant superintendent for curriculum forbids students to take any college level courses outside of the high school building. The high school principal in conjunction with guidance and curriculum course coordinators may not make case-by-case educational decisions for individual students. Unlike in Northport and formerly in our district, educational opportunities for individuals are limited to the strict adherence of the district’s policy.

And the policy is all about retention rates in AP courses—it’s focus is to assure that the statistical data for enrollment remains constant. It has nothing to do with good education. It’s about counted heads in a classroom. I believe the policy is shortsighted. It fails to see that if students enroll in college courses over the summer (for high school and/or college credit) it will allow them to take other different AP courses in high school. Overall AP enrollment in the high school could actually go up.  It would also allow students to get transferable college credit that combined with achieved AP credits can save parents thousands of dollars in tuition. Everyone could have their cake and eat it too.

 Mr. Dods was both Briana’s and Samantha’s AP calculus teacher—he was one of their all time favorites. He was one of mine too--not just because he bent the rules and took a personal interest in Briana’s (and Samantha’s) education, but because he inspired my girls to be better people—and he made them believe that hard work had rewards—and they could aspire to higher things. Mr. Dods demonstrated that sometimes life was fair—and educators who cared had the power to make a real difference in the life of a child. My girls received special education during the days when every child could receive an IEP.