I know that main stream vs self contained is something that should only
be decided based on the individual kids needs. Still - it seems like many
parents have their own philosopy regarding where priorities should be
and what will allow their kids to thrive. I have thinking a lot about what
kind of environment will teach the best social skills and how much and
what kind of structure will be beneficial.
I have had my ups and downs (mostly downs) with our schooldistrict. My
ds is currently in a mainstreamed school with a pretty weak and
disorganized resource room and many many special ed students. There
are 28 kids in class with 1 teacher and a .5 para and it is pretty chaotic.
But I really like their social skills focus and they are really embracing all of
the kids. And while my ds is doing okay and the resource room is doing a
bit better with me micromanaging and checking - I think it could be
much better. Before he was at a school that was pretty organized but I
always felt like that there were the 'real kids' and then kids like my ds
who were an imposition on the teacher. His last school also told me that
they feel he will not be able to stay in mainstream due to his high anxiety
but at the IEP meeting (and I did ask) they did not consider self-
contained appropriate for him.
I had mentioned before that we might be moving cross-country and a
job offer finally came through this week (we have not accepted yet but
likely will). I will likely fly out in two weeks to check out schools. I think
the new school district has a pretty good autism team and has been
successful in main-streaming asd kids. But part of me thinks that I
would love for my son to be in a setting that is designed for kids like him.
The district has a charter school that is half asd and half typical (or kids
with adhd or LD) and I could see my son thrive there. But will he have a
harder time reintegrating once the middle school years come? Is a high
amount of structure just going to make him thrive short term but less
flexible in the long run?
What is your philosophy of mainstreaming vs. self-contained?So far we are doing both. My ds is younger than yours but we started out self-contained which has been fantastic for him because the class is small 1 teacher 2 paras to 6-8 kids. Because he is doing so well he also goes integrated into a regular class for an hour a day for social skills. This is the first year we are really seeing him thrive in school. He is excited to go. I would say it is whatever works best. I really see the self-contained class for us as a great thing because it takes ds a long time to calm down and he has a tendency to run. Not only that but the one on one seems to be doing wonders.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Kristys. Definitely food for thought. My oldest is in 4th grade now, and we're considering sending him to a special school (connected with a regular elementary school) for junior high, if not sooner. However, I dread this decision because, like you, it feels/felt like a "step backward".
In 2nd and 3rd grade, my son had so many pull-outs that he basically was only with his class for lunch daily plus music, gym, and nature day (each once a week). He wasn't a full-fledged class member. Now he has matured and is able to participate, concentrate and ignore the noise, etc. so he's more integrated in the class again.
I also agree with kristys comment about the richness of the social experiences. My son isn't EXCLUDED from unstructured social situations (play, recess, etc.) but he isn't ACTIVELY INCLUDED either. None of the adults quite know how to support him socially, and not all kids have that combination of leadership and mothering instinct to bring him into the fold. A special ed environment might actually give him a higher quality of social experiences that he could build on in other settings. I've really got to go and see the place. The special ed consultant at the district has already volunteered to go there with me, it's just that we haven't prioritized it, given that the present placement is going better than ever and we're heading towards a full-blown assessment of our younger son.
Anyhow, I'll be following this topic with interest. Hopefully some more parents will chime in with their experiences/philosophies.
I agree with what is said here. When Daniel was still in school he got no recess/pe a lot of the times. To me he learned more in SE all day than Se 20% of the time. If you do 50-50 the other kids tease them even more so. If Daniel was still in school it would have to be more ST and Language arts/reading in Se. Our problem was the principals refusal to take my ideas. I also suggested when was younger redoing 1st grade. May birthday was another reason I wanted him held back. I hate grade levels anyhow. My ld school we did levels instead and you didn't move on til you past that level. Daniel's 11 he still can't blocked out the noises even after AIT/Tomais both. My son goes to a self-contained class for most of the day, for about an hour a day in the morning he goes to a regular kindergarten class for specials, so far it's going well but he still gets more from being in the self-contained class. For my son the one on one attention he gets is really good for him.
I am very happy that my son is not mainstreamed. He has so much backup and support in his TEACCH classroom, he is surrounded by people that are trained and have 20+ years experience with children all over the spectrum.
I don't know if/when he will be mainstreamed, but for right now my child for sure has the right placement.
I think self contained is great if the kid really needs it cause less kids and more staff. I hate that some kids are mainstreamed at all because some kids comprehension levels are so low. What good is it to mainstream a kid in any grade who can't understand the lessons taught in the room. 1:1 is Great for lot's of kids. Daniel learned lot's more with selfcontained all day than accomidations in a maistream room. To me the Govt is doing mainstream for 2 reasons to save money and cause there is no SE in life. I'm tired of 1 size fits all anything in life.
I looked at a Private school similar to what you said put it's not something we can afford. It's mostly for those just with adhd only. The school in Plano.Tx is called Great lakes Academy it's k thru 12 also.
My personal philosophy is whatever works! In one school district, the best option might be mainstreaming and another self-contained.
A child won't necessarily learn to be independent and flexible in a mainstream setting, and won't necessarily learn to be passive and inflexible in a self-contained setting. The question is, which setting is able and willing to give him the tools he needs to navigate the middle school environment?
Good luck making all the decisions connected with the job offer and move.
We wanted whatever Sarah could progress in and be happy. Since her school years would be at least 12 years or more I wanted the most positive for her. I was scared to death she wouldnt tolerate a mainstream class of 24 without falling behind or through the cracks but she is thriving. I thought she deserved the chance to try mainstream and see if she could do it before putting her in self contained..she worked so hard to get this far and I am so glad she can handle it for now....I don't think I'm for mainstreaming for mainstreaming sake. I think that you have to find what is right for your child and that may be different for every child or their specific school district in what they have to offer. This may mean a little trial and error and constantly reevaluating the situation to see if it is still a good fit.
Last year we mainstreamed for kindergarten with 1:1 aide and pull-out for speech, OT, resource room and social work group. It was a half-day kindergarten which is all that is offered in our district. (We did private therapies - speech and OT, in the afternoons.)
Pros: He was in a typical class and had exposure to the typical experience.
Cons: He got pulled out quite a bit so missed alot of class. He became dependent on his aide for prompts to complete his work. There were some behavioral and sensory issues that had to be worked through. Senory seeking behavior prevented him from being about to focus well in class.
We really struggled with C's placement for 1st grade, as did the entire team. We were all on the fence, so we together visited a few of the possible placements. We finally decided to go the SpEd route. C is in what our district calls a LOP (Learning Opportunities Program) class. This is the highest tier in our SpEd program and many kids go on to mainstream from this class. C is in a class with 6 other kids (class can go up to 12) with 1 teacher and 1 aide for the class. He is mainstreamed with regular 1st graders for PE, art, music, computers, recess and lunch. Two other boys in his class mainstream with him on the same schedule so the three of them go together which is really nice.
Pros: No behavior issues, the 3 behavior goals from the last IEP are collecting dust as there has been no data to collect, the behaviors are simply gone. He has made real friends, not just a playground pack. The small class environment has allowed him to connect with other boys on a deeper level than if they were part of a large group. Now C asks for playdates with specific kids and talks about "his friend." Now that C is in an environment that accomodates his sensory needs (he is sensory seeking and needs alot of input) he is performing better academically. C is the most advanced kid in the class in terms of skills. (He's not gifted, he's just ahead of the others). I was afraid this would happen and that it would be a bad thing. Instead, it's turned into a blessing. The teacher is doing an awesome job keeping C challenged and balancing the needs of all of the kids, and C is helping other kids. What a wonderful skill for him to build and what wonderful interactions he's having with the other kids. And not to say what it has done for his self-confidence.
Cons: He's not in a "regular" class. We need to assure the great skills he's building now will transfer to a larger group. He's being bussed out of district so he has to go to a differnt school than his twin.
What I found most interesting is that my biggest fear of SpEd - that he'd be missing out on social opportunites - turned out to be completely unfounded. He's having great social experinces this year, and because they're occuring in a smaller group environment in the presence of someone trainined to help kids with social skills, they are richer experiences. In addition, school is not C's only social outlet. He has an NT twin, we have playdates all the time, and he plays sports (soccer, t-ball and soon basketball), and he goes to camp with all NT kids, and of course there is Sunday school.
All in all, I was freaked out about the placement in the spring but it turned out to be the best thing for him. To be honest, a part of me felt like we were going backward by going from mainstream to SpEd and I felt bad about it. But now I think it was the best decision we ever made. I have no idea what we're doing next year, but I refuse to even think about that until after the holidays!
my 7y/o son is going to start a private school soon for ASD kids, i too worry about giving him alot of support and then trying to put him back in public??
i really had no choice, he made NO progress in district last year...hoping we make progress this year, btw, i am in NJ and he will be going to High Road in Parlin as soon as they hire an aide for him, he has cp and needs a 1:1.....i will update how things go.
kristin
My son was never 100% self-contained, but he was for reading and math and had an aide in the classroom. THis worked so well that now that he is in high school he is only in Special Ed for one class, sort of to touch base with the teacher he knows the best. I think self-contained is a great chance for our kids to progress, with so much attention. ASD kids can get so easily distracted and left out in the cold. As for social skills, my son THRIVED in self-contained and made a lot of friends both there and with some "typical" kids. I think the early help helped him for today.