A Charter Boost for Special-Ed Students and English Learners: Lessons in Inclusion at Boston Charter Schools

Autor/in	Setren, Elizabeth
Titel	A Charter Boost for Special-Ed Students and English Learners: Lessons in Inclusion at Boston Charter Schools
Quelle	In: Education Next, 20 (2020) 2, S.52-60 (9 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1539-9664
Schlagwörter	Special Education; English Language Learners; Students with Disabilities; Inclusion; Public Schools; Charter Schools; Access to Education; Student Needs; Educational Environment; Special Needs Students; Educational Quality; Classification; Academic Achievement; Competitive Selection + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Special needs education; Sonderpädagogik; Sonderschulwesen; Student; Students; Disability; Disabilities; Schüler; Schülerin; Studentin; Behinderung; Inklusion; Public school; Öffentliche Schule; Charter school; Charter-Schule; Education; Access; Bildung; Zugang; Bildungszugang; Lernumgebung; Pädagogische Umwelt; Schulumwelt; Sonderpädagogischer Förderbedarf; Quality of education; Bildungsqualität; Classification system; Klassifikation; Klassifikationssystem; Schulleistung
Abstract	Maximizing the potential of all students is the stated goal of many schools. When some students have specialized needs, however, the best way forward isn't always clear. Nationwide, special-education students and English learners account for a significant share of total enrollment: federal data from 2016 show 14 percent of all students receive special-education services, and nearly 10 percent are English learners. Students with specialized needs exist in significant numbers and generally show low levels of academic achievement. Little causal evidence exists for how to improve the educational trajectories of these students. To understand the tradeoffs between investments in targeted supports versus investments in overall school quality, Elizabeth Setren looks at public schools in Boston, where about 50 percent of students are classified as either special education or English learners and 17 percent of students attend charter schools. The city's mix of school types presents a unique opportunity to look at how reduced access to targeted services and exposure to high-quality general-education practices affect the achievement of students with specialized needs, because students who apply to charter schools are admitted by lotteries and therefore randomly assigned to one of the two models. To be sure, targeted services for students with specialized needs can make a major difference in helping overcome specific barriers to learning. But Setren's findings highlight the importance of the overall school environment as well. Combined, the findings show that it is feasible for many students with specialized needs to make large academic gains in a high-quality general-education program without access to specialized services. Districts and schools deciding how to invest their resources may find that an increased focus on overall school quality can improve outcomes for all. (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	Hoover Institution. Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6010. Tel: 800-935-2882; Fax: 650-723-8626; e-mail: educationnext@hoover.stanford.edu; Web site: http://educationnext.org/journal/
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2022/1/01