Since Sarah
cannot pay the cost to fix her car, nor buy a new car, she has been taking the
metro. Because Casey has a disability, she is able to get a discount. it is
$1.75 for her to ride the metro (Metro, 2014). There is also a deal for people
with disabilities where they get a discounted price on the metro ticket so this
could work in Casey’s benefit. However,
one day on the metro, a man started to make fun of Casey. This is because her
appearance is different because of FAS. She has many facial abnormalities, including smaller eye openings and flattened
cheekbones. She also has poor coordination and as soon as the metro started to
go , she wasn’t holding on, so she fell over.
Casey’s
class that she entered into high school with has graduated, but since she has a
disability, she is able to stay in the school system until she is 18. Now that she is older they are working more
on life skills, since she has competed most of the academic curriculum. Every
week she travels with her class to a local community center where they have
certain jobs such as cleaning the pool, vacuum the carpets, and clean the
railings. Sarah is upset that they are making her do these types of jobs
because she thinks she is capable of so much more.
Casey
has continued playing soccer and her skills have greatly improved. She is learning
the concept of group sports. They offer lessons such as
"win as a team, lose as a team," which focus on overcoming individual
mistakes or spinning one person's standout performance as just part of a team
effort. In a team sport, a young athlete may move into or out of a specific role
on the team as their skills develop or diminish in relation to their peers.
When that happens, the athlete must learn to adapt to that different role. They
remain a member of the team, though, and the culture of team sports encourages
the athlete and his or her teammates to accept and make the most of those
changes (Sampsell, 2012).
After months
of court dates, the court decides to rule that Sarah and Jacob have joint legal
custody. Joint legal custody is when both parents retain joint responsibility
for the care and control of the child and joint authority to make decisions
concerning the child, even though the child's primary residence may be with
only one parent (Judicial System, 2014). Since Jacob is a part of Casey’s life
and tries to provide for her as much as possible, it is fair that he gets to
see her just as often as Sarah does. However, since Sarah is the main provider
to Casey and pays for a lot of her expenses, Casey will live with Sarah and
Jacob will visit when he wants to. This will hopefully help Casey transition
into her parents getting divorced that way one of her parents aren’t taken away
all of a sudden and she can never see them.
Sarah and Jacob are concerned
with what to do with Casey after she graduates high school. She is approaching her
22nd birthday meaning she won’t be able to be a part of the public
school system. Her parents are exploring other options such as a college
career, working, or an independent living facility.
Sarah has been very stressed
and has now just found out that she is pregnant with Fred’s baby. Sarah is very
concerned how Fred will react because he has said that he doesn’t want to have
children. They have also only been dating for sixth months and Sarah can’t
imagine having to care for another child since Casey requires so much of her
attention already. She is also concerned with how Casey will react to having
another child in the house. Sarah is also hesitant to tell Jacob because she
knows that he will be furious.
1)
Do you think it is ethical to have the special education
classes do custodial work at local centers?
2)
What are some other options that Sarah and Jacob could look
into for Casey after high school?
3)
Do you think 21 is a proper age for teenagers with
disabilities to age out of the school system?
Decision
Point: How do Jacob and Fred react to the news that Sarah is pregnant?
Sampsell, S. (2012, July 11). Team Sports
vs. Individual Sports | Kid Sports Magazine. Pittburgh Sports Report. Retrieved
July 9, 2014, from http://www.kidsportsmagazine.com/PSR/node/4619
Lynchburg Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court: Custody, Visitation and Support. (2014, November 3). Custody, Visitation and Support. Retrieved July 9, 2014, from http://www.courts.state.va.us/courts/jdr/Lynchburg/custody.html
Lynchburg Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court: Custody, Visitation and Support. (2014, November 3). Custody, Visitation and Support. Retrieved July 9, 2014, from http://www.courts.state.va.us/courts/jdr/Lynchburg/custody.html
1) Do you think it is ethical to have the special education classes do custodial work at local centers?
ReplyDeleteI think having the special education classes do custodial work at local centers is a great idea for the kids in the class that could use some experience interacting with others and helping out their community. For situations like Casey’s however, I think she deserves to be put in an environment where she is given more opportunities and greater responsibilities than what she is receiving now. I think the idea of getting these kids involved in the community is a great idea because it helps build their skills and responsibilities but you don’t want to give jobs that are too easy for some kids because it could give them the wrong feeling and reasoning for wanting to help. As long as each kid is given the correct job for their disability it should only be positive outcomes.
2) What are some other options that Sarah and Jacob could look into for Casey after high school?
Transition services teach students with disabilities life and work skills while they are still in school. These services provide the student with a plan of what their best future could look like and instruction that moves the student forward towards those post-secondary goals. A federal law requires schools to provide these services. The law is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, also called IDEA. IDEA says that transition services must help students with disabilities move from life in school to life after school towards their goals. Transition services are tailored to meet a student’s individual strengths, preferences and interests (IDEA, 2014).
Transition services can help your student:
· Develop self-advocacy skills
· Learn Independent living skills
· Explore post-secondary education opportunities
· Attain job skills for future employment
· Improve social and relationship skills
You student can work on independent living skills goals by participating in activities like school sports, drama, or other clubs. Sometimes students will also need specific instructions and/or services to learn these skills. Schools might say that these are not education-related and that the student should learn these skills outside of school. But if the skills are connected to what a student needs to learn in order to have a job or live independently as an adult, then they are related to his or her education and the school must address them. You should observe your student’s friendships and social involvement. Does he or she fit in with any particular part of the student body? Participation in activities can be an excellent way for your student to make progress. (IDEA, 2014).
3) Do you think 21 is a proper age for teenagers with disabilities to age out of the school system?
ReplyDeleteAll students with disabilities must receive a Free Appropriate Public Education, also called FAPE. The government provides special education and services at no cost to families. This right is called an “entitlement” because your student is “entitled” to this education by law. Students with disabilities are entitled to a FAPE until they graduate from high school or reach the age of 22 (IDEA, 2014). I definitely don’t think 21 is the proper age to stop schooling for children with disabilities. Having a child with disabilities is extremely strenuous on the parents are caregivers for these kids so cutting the schooling off when they are 21 is not a fair trade up. These kids are not at the same academic level as students when they graduate from high school, so schooling should be given to these student with disabilities for a longer period of time; possibly until they are 25 where they are more independent and able to function on their own.
Decision Point: How do Jacob and Fred react to the news that Sarah is pregnant?
When Fred finds out that Sarah is pregnant he is very disappointed and shocked to hear the news. He doesn’t know what the right thing to do is. He is very conservative and doesn’t believe in pro-choice but at the same time he isn’t ready to have a child with Sarah. He suffers from this dilemma of what to do since he doesn’t believe in abortions, but he knows that he doesn’t want to spend the rest of his life with Sarah. When Jacob finds out he is furious. He thinks that Sarah should have been smarter when getting involved with Fred since she already has a daughter with a disability. He thinks that since she is pregnant now with another child that Casey wont get the same amount of time and attention she needs or has been getting in the past from Sarah so he wants to go back to court and fight his case that Casey won’t be getting the appropriate amount of attention Casey needs and deserves.
• "Planning for Life After Special Education". (2012, December 18). . Retrieved July 14, 2014, from http://www.dlc-ma.org/_manual/LASE_manual.htm
• Brown, A. (2012, June 4). Twin Cities Daily Planet. Twin Cities Daily Planet. Retrieved July 14, 2014, from http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/news/2012/06/04/life-after-high-school-challenges-ahead-students-disabilities-they-graduate-minneapo