First
Citywide Special Education Conference Launched By Education Update & The
City College Of NY
By Emily Sherwood, Ph.D.
Stating that “one of the most unfailing tests of a civilization lies in how it
treats its special needs population,” Dr. Pola Rosen, founder and publisher of Education Update,
kicked off the first citywide Special Education Conference at CCNY’s School of
Education last month. A cast of luminaries, all renowned in their fields of
study, shed light on the scientific, policy, and educational perspectives of
living and learning with a disability, while breakout groups allowed participants
an opportunity to question and dialogue more deeply with the speakers.
On the policy front, Commissioner Matthew Sapolin, Executive Director of the
Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) since 2002, explained that
his office was created in 1973 to “insure that the rights of people with disabilities
were included in programs and services implemented by our city.” While
disability rights have been advanced since his office was established, Sapolin
conceded that service breaches still exist, noting that he is eager to “bridge
gaps, facilitate dialogue with the administration, and where possible, to
provide clarity.” Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum, originally elected to her
position in 2001 and formerly adviser to three mayors, added an urgent note to
the policy discussion. “The state of special education in the city…is in
crisis,” she decried. Due to recent dismissals or retirements of 1000
Department of Education (DOE) evaluators who had processed special education requests,
children are not receiving needed accommodations. Gotbaum further castigated
DOE for its “unacceptable unresponsiveness” to parents of children with special
needs, urging the Department to redouble its communication efforts and pledging
to help parents feel “that someone is there for them.”
A series of distinguished speakers offered a compelling perspective on efforts
that are now underway to study, remediate, and educate students afflicted with
ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and other learning disorders.
Dr. Jess Shatkin, Director of Education and Training at the NYU Child Study
Center, provided an overview of ADHD research, noting that it is the most
commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder of childhood (one in 20 worldwide) and
that three to seven percent of U.S. school children are affected with the
disability (boys outnumber girls nine to one). Most encouraging on the
scientific front are recent genetic findings indicating that ADHD runs in
families as well as neuro-imaging findings that clearly indicate deficiencies
in the brain make-up of individuals with ADHD. While these findings may provide
a foundation for future scientific cures, currently both behavioral methods
(parent management training and organizational skills management) and
medication (“most effective in focusing attention and decreasing
hyperactivity”) are effective treatments that are helping people to succeed.
Thomas A. Brown, Ph.D., Associate Director
of the Yale Clinic for Attention and Related Disorders at the Yale University
School of Medicine, reinforced Shatkin’s research findings, noting that
medications work effectively in 80 percent of those diagnosed with ADHD because
they harness the brain’s complicated neural networks to sustain the
individual’s focus, much as a conductor helps a symphony orchestra to manage
the actions of individual musicians. Brown definitively debunked the once-held
theory that ADHD is a willpower problem, concluding that, through medications
that target the chemistry of the brain, scientists can now successfully “manage
the management system” of the brain and ameliorate all of its key “executive
functions” (activation, focus, effort, emotions, memory and action).
Dr. Shatkin also briefly discussed the latest scientific breakthroughs in
learning disabilities (LD), explaining that researchers are now focusing on
abnormal cell migration and blood flow aberrations in the brain to account for
dyslexia. As with ADHD, these “profound findings” may prove fruitful for
scientific intervention, and ultimately perhaps a cure. Two young men, Brown University
graduate David Flink and Dalton School senior Sam Koplewicz, discussed their
personal struggles with dyslexia, which led Flink to found Project Eye-to-Eye,
a national mentoring program whereby college and high school students serve as
tutors, role models and mentors to younger LD/ADHD students, helping to empower
them to find success. “It’s a long and hard tunnel, but there’s definitely an
end. Struggling makes it that much better; you come out stronger in the end,”
summed up Koplewicz, who has started an Eye to Eye program at the Dalton school
to pair LD/ADHD high school students with similarly challenged middle school
children.
Dr. Lynda Katz, president of Landmark College, discussed her current work in
the area of “frustrated brilliance,” a term she has coined to describe
individuals who are gifted/talented (as defined by an IQ of 130 or above) and
have ADHD and/or LD. In many cases, these students get labeled as
underachieving or lazy, and all too often they struggle with work incompletion
and unrewarding academic experiences. Katz discussed intervention strategies
which she found successful in dramatically reversing the academic declines of
such “twice gifted” students, providing uplifting case studies and urging
educators to “be sensitive to these young people. Don’t lose some of the most
talented minds we have.”
On the subject of autism, several speakers shared their models for success in
working with children who have this pervasive disorder that impairs all aspects
of development—medical, psychological, educational, speech, fine motor,
and gross motor. Dr. Cecilia McCarton, founder and Executive Director of the
private McCarton School serving children with autism spectrum disorders, reeled
off the alarming statistics: one in 150 children is currently diagnosed with
autism, a disorder that is now more prevalent than childhood cancer, diabetes
and AIDS. “We’re in the midst of something that is growing that we don’t fully
understand,” cautioned McCarton, who advocated for treatment modalities that
are comprehensive (multi-disciplinary), intense, consistent, and integrated.
McCarton’s own program uses Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and incorporates
speech therapy, occupational therapy, socialization opportunities, and reinforcement
of learning through field trips, while requiring every child’s educational plan
to be rigorously supported by data.
A very different educational model for children with autism was presented by
Dr, Shirley Cohen, Professor in the Department of Special Education at Hunter
College, who has launched a new inclusion program within the NYC public
schools. Cohen’s program combines four higher functioning autistic children
with eight typically developing children and seeks to stimulate peer relationships,
social/communicative competence, self-regulation, and individual adaptations.
Noting that “if you don’t do inclusion well you’re not helping anyone,” Cohen
was quick to point out that her model doesn’t work for all autistic children
and there has been no formal research program yet to evaluate its effectiveness.
Capping off the morning presentations, Dr. Pola Rosen presented a first-time
award for Outstanding Special Educator of the Year to Dr. Bonnie Brown,
Superintendent of District 75. Brown—a tireless advocate for special
education during a thirty-year career in which she has worked as teacher, staff
developer, and administrator—noted that “there will always be challenges
in special education. Thirty years ago, we got classes out of the basement. Now
there are problems of equity and resources.” Ever the optimist, Brown lauded
the reopening of vocational shops and public-private partnerships, both
exciting advances that are opening up employment and educational opportunities
for individuals struggling with disabilities. “We have a commitment that all
children will be treated with dignity and respect so that they can reach their
individual potential,” she concluded passionately. For the special education
advocates in the room—scientists, policymakers, educators, parents, and
those confronting a personal disability— Brown’s words served as a battle
cry for continued research, advocacy, hard work and compassion on behalf of
those in our society who often have no ability to speak for themselves.#
