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WINSTON -- Ivory Pike has never passed a state achievement test. She's more concerned about being on time for P.E., one of her favorite subjects at Douglas High School. She also likes art and sign language. She's not so fond of working in the greenhouse, but she does like tech academy, where she can practice her writing skills by e-mailing a buddy across the United States. Pike doesn't care much about grades or test scores, and neither does her mother. They have more important things to worry about. Pike, 21, has Down Syndrome. She's one of about 80 students at Douglas with disabilities ranging from severe autism to mild learning disabilities. Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, nearly all students with disabilities are expected to meet state standards just like their peers. The law considers growth from one year to the next, but by 2014, 98 percent of students will be expected to perform at grade level. In Oregon, about 13 percent of all students have a disability. At Douglas, the number is 18 to 19 percent, according to special education teacher Ted Martch. Last year Douglas didn't meet the federal designation of "adequate yearly progress." To meet, half of all students had to pass language arts tests, 49 percent had to pass the math test, and 95 percent of all students had to take the tests. In addition, the law looks at subgroups, such as ethnicity, low-income or English as a second language. Douglas High School passed muster in every category except one. While its overall test scores met the mark, its students with disabilities did not. Just four of 19 special education students tested passed the language arts tests. That's progress over the previous year, but not enough. Douglas isn't alone. There are 150 high schools in Oregon that have special education subgroups. Just 24 of those schools' special education students made "adequate yearly progress," leaving 126 without the designation. Like Douglas, 13 other schools met in every area except for their students with disabilities. Schools who receive federal Title I funds could be in danger of losing that money and eventually face restructuring if they don't improve their scores. Even though Douglas doesn't get Title I money, the designation
doesn't look good to parents and the general public, who may
not take the time to learn what "adequate yearly progress"
means. Principal Kevin McDaniel said No Child Left Behind has
helped the school see where it needs to improve, but he believes
the "adequate yearly progress" designation is too
simplistic. Ted Martch started the special education program in a hallway 24 years ago. Today hundreds of students, with and without disabilities, spend time in the program, which Martch named the Center for Educational Partnerships. Martch tries to give his students skills they'll need when they are out of school. He connects his students with local businesses and with students without disabilities. He believes that's been good for all Douglas' students, not just those in special education. "I do believe that no child should be left behind," Martch said. He believes his students are achieving high standards, but what they're learning isn't measured on tests. "I am not going to waste my time doing something I know is not going to be of value," he said. He gives the tests, but he doesn't spend hours preparing students or staff for them. Raphael Powell, an instructional assistant who teaches sign language, appreciates his approach. "We know that we need to do some things to prepare the students," Powell said. "Our concern is, are their physical needs being taken care of? Their emotional needs? Their social needs? And quite frankly, we don't have time to worry about the testing." On the language arts test, for example, students are expected to demonstrate their ability to use technical manuals, understand historical documents, create sophisticated outlines, infer meanings and differentiate reasoning styles. Martch developed the special education program based on the needs he saw among adults with disabilities. He focuses on vocational, cognitive, social and physical skills. Students get physical education every day, and students with disabilities play alongside students without disabilities. Many take regular classes. They also receive help from Partners Club members and "cadet teachers" -- student instructional aides -- who help students with disabilities feel at home and succeed in school. Most of Martch's students participate in Special Olympics and they learn landscaping in a greenhouse. When they're ready, the students work on landscaping and building projects at nearby Wildlife Safari. From there, they can find jobs in the community. "I think we've worked at every business in this town," Martch said. Ivory Pike's mother, Pam Moore, doesn't believe her daughter has been left behind. "She has been helped along every step of the way in every way I could have asked," Moore said. "The ultimate goal is that she should be able to have a job and live independently," she said. "If she has behavior issues, they're also addressed. ... Her academics are also addressed. I want her to be able to read and write." Moore understands why No Child Left Behind is important, and she said parents who want their children to perform well on the state tests can include that in their child's individualized education plan. Students who don't need the skills emphasized on the tests shouldn't have to take them, and they wouldn't affect the whole schools' rating, Moore said. Donna Kerrick's daughter, Heather, finished her schooling at Douglas in 2004. Heather works at Goodwill. Her mother said she's never late and was upset when she had to miss a day because she was sick. Kerrick believes Heather was more prepared for the workplace than many students without disabilities. "She met the standards that for her life were more important
than geometry, perfect sentence structure, reading 'Gone With
the Wind,'" Kerrick said. "There's no one in the county who won't speak very highly of Ted Martch and what he does for kids," Keizer said. He said the Winston-Dillard School District has more special education students per capita because it has such a good program. Keizer would like to see No Child Left Behind changed, though he and Martch agree that the law has value. Like many educators in Douglas County, Keizer advocates a growth model, where the same students are tracked over time. Currently, high school sophomores take the state assessment. Those students are compared with previous sophomore classes. Oregon has applied to use a growth model twice, but both requests have been denied by the federal government. Keizer also believes No Child Left Behind is in conflict with the federal special education law, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Each law is more than 1,000 pages, he said. While No Child Left Behind says all children should be able to meet the same standards, the special education law requires schools to meet children where they are, Keizer said. He thinks the growth model could combine the high standards of No Child Left Behind with the individual approach of the special education law. "There's that question of are we serving kids or are we serving tests?" he said. "... And sometimes I have to ask myself, are there any jobs out there for test takers?" * You can reach reporter Teresa Williams at 957-4230 or via
e-mail at twilliams@newsreview.info |
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