Accommodate
Ask any teacher, and they will tell you that mainstreaming of students with educational handicaps is one of the biggest problems schools face today. Boardman Local Schools has always ranked as one of the top school systems here in Mahoning County. But for the last few years, their ranking has fallen. The Superintendent of Schools bluntly told the media after the last round of state testing, the reason for the decline in Boardman’s ranking was due directly to a hand full of students with developmental problems who are required to be tested with the rest of the student body, notwithstanding any physical or mental handicaps that would hinder their ability to learn. In another local system, the principal has warned the high school staff of the incoming 9th grade class which has a disproportionate amount of students with educational handicaps. Rulings from various courts require the school to “accommodate” these students. That means giving them special seating, special tests, reading tests ...