Feature Aititudes about equality need to be changed What is integration? Who will decide which children are integrated and how far that integration will extend? What will be the cost — for the school system, for society and, especially, for the special needs student who needs every possible advantage to combat a disability. Some of these questions — for one child at least — will be answered through legal action: Rick and Lauraine Deptford of Central Saanich have filed a human rights complaint against School District 63 in order to get their daughter, Kimberley, inte- grated full-time into a typical classroom. Some issues require negotiation: limits on the number of spectal needs children in one class and on the size of classes hosting special needs children were included in the latest contract between the Saanich School District and the Saanich Teachers’ Association. Some issues will only be resolved with experience, as more special needs children are gra- dually integrated into neighbor- hood schools. As the schools change to accom- modate a greater range of chil- dren, attitudes will also change, predicts lan wfurray, school dts- trict consultant for the special needs program. “In our society, productivity ts the goal. You have to have an end product,” Murray said. Working with special needs children may change that attitude — and also change attitudes about equality. “There’s many people out there whose concept of fairness is that everyone gets the same. That's a child-like view of fairness. I pro- pose an adult view of fairness is that people get what they need.” by Valorie Lennox The Review Jeff, Dean and Jody blend nght in with the student population at Stelly’s Secondary — the same jeans and T-shirts, the same excite- ment as they anticipate graduation and plan their futures. After class May 3, Dean and Jeff dropped in to the Victoria Voca- tional Institute to check out post- graduation Courses. “Td like 10 own my own busi- ness,” Jeff said, explaining his reason for searching out vocational courses. Jody has three possible summer jobs lined up, one of them cooking at a Brentwood restaurant, and hopes to take cooking at college. Dean helps his father with a gardening business and also works part-lime at a Victoria restaurant. He hopes to go into gardening full-ume. Typical plans for typical teenag- ers. Yet all three youths are classed as special needs students and form part of teacher Steve Dana’s educ- able mentally handicapped class at Stelly’s. But they also attend standard secondary courses: Jeff takes Law 12, cooking and family manage- ment: Jody takes cafeteria, wood- working, physical education, cook- ins. social studies, consumer Ccdu- PLANNING THEIR FUTURES, students Jody, Dean ane! Jeff will graduate. from Stelly’s Secondary this year. cation and family management; Dean takes physical education, power mechanics and cafeteria. Dana has 19 students in his program ranging from Grades 9 to 12. Just as in a typical classroom, each student has different strengths and weaknesses. Is integration worthwhile? “Nothing is a panacea for all people,” Dana says. “Most stu- dents benefit from the fact that they re in regular classes, particu- larly in the elective courses, either doing adjusted curriculum or hav- ing assessments modified.” In the five years Dana has spent working with special needs secon- dary students in the district, every student he has taught has been partially integrated into typical classes. In addition to picking up an often surprising amount of the course material, students also learn social skills, Dana said. But no student or parent has ever requested full-time integra- tion into secondary classes. “Tn the other classes, the school work would be harder. In the special classes it 1s easier and you can understand it,” Jeff explained. “When I do something like math — to do it in a regular school, it’s hard for me. Id fail, then I’d get frustrated,” he added. “Some stuff I could do, some stuff I couldn’t do. I'd get fru- strated. It would be very hard, especially French,” Dean said. Dana teaches modified math, English and life skills programs in a portable classroom on the Stelly’s school grounds. Class sizes are small, usually 10 to 15 students in each class. Dean admits sometimes Dana’s | classes are a little too easy. “It’s boring a bit because you do the same thing over and over again. You don’t learn anything. Other (typical) classes are fine.” Each special needs student is on an individual program, designed by the parents, the student and the teachers. “They build their own timeta- ble,” Dana said. The most popular combination is Standard elective courses, modi- fied academics and work study programs. Although many of the students in Dana’s program may have started their schooling in segre- gated special needs programs, Dana said the district has sup- ported increased integration, even providing extra staff to give Dana more time to work with students and parents. Dean recalls starting school in a small special class and joining the rest of the school population only Dollars delay integration There isn’t enough money for integration. School District 63 already sup- plements the official Ministry of Education budget for special needs education by over $150,000 annually, taking money from administration and other district programs. “Tt’s not a question of integra- tion in some cases, it is a question of funding,” says superintendent Hank Stefaniak. “We fund special needs students by taking funds from throughout the budget.” Confidentiality requirements keep him from responding to the Deptford’s claim against the dis- trict — however he notes that 209 of the district’s 263 special needs children attend their neighborhood school. All special needs students are integrated into typical classrooms between 15 and 100 per cent of the time and each student’s case is reviewed by the school-based team about every two months. “There’s a very conscious effort to move to full integration. I do not believe this district is behind any other district.” The Deptford’s challenge is the first such case in B.C., according to Marianne Burka, director of the B.C. Council of Human Rights. Similar cases in Ontario and Quebec established that school districts must accommodate the education needs of the disabled child, short of inflicting undue hardship on the district. Integration falls under human rights issues as education is seen as a public service which must be offered equally to all, Burka said. Any segregation based on physical or mental disability must be justified, she said. Once a complaint is filed, an investigation is done and a hearing held. Any order arising out of that hearing can be appealed through the judicial system. “No one is going to pretend it is a simple issue,” she said, adding that every case will be unique. The school district also sees every special needs student as unique, Stefaniak said. For some” students to be integrated, physical changes must be made for schools or additional staff added. For example, under the latest contract with the Saanich Teach- ers’ Association, class sizes must be smaller in integrated classes and no more than two special needs youngsters can be assigned to each class. These requirements alone could create a conflict if demand for integration exceeds the number of classes available at a specific neighborhood school, Stefaniak said. “Tr’s not a matter of meeting the needs of one child, it’s a matter of meeting the needs of one child Continued on Page A21 TheReview for band or choir “Normally, in the special class, that is where my friends were,” he said. Now he has friends both in the special class and in the typical classes, he said. Jody is looking forward to the teamwork which will be required Wednesday, May 15,1991 — A20 Trio is making the grade for graduation of all students during a May 24 to 28 camping trip on the West Coast _ Trail. Jody. counts his own efforts as his measure of success. “Tf I don’t pass, I say to myself, I did my work, I did my best. If somebody laughs at you, just ignore them.” Segregation breeds poverty A generation ago, students like Jeff, Dean and Jody might have been segregated into a special class throughout school and then been directed into a sheltered workshop. Many of those who were segregated from the community as children now “live a life of segregation and poverty,’ says Connie Clarke, a Central Saanich member of the Victoria Association for Community Living. Relying on GAIN or sheltered workshops for support and hampered by limited expectations, many do not achieve their potential. Typical is Clyde Williams, who was 25 years old before anyone suggested he could learn to read. Williams attended special education classes through school and graduated into a sheltered workshop. At 40 years old, while supporting himself with a janitorial job, he enrolled in the PALS basic literacy program at Stelly’s to learn to read, hoping to increase his chances for a better job. “Getting jobs that Bay a living wage is a major problem,” Clarke said. Some who have managed to find employment outside sheltered workshops have often surprised their employers, Clarke added. “Employers are beginning to understand that a person who 1s mentally handicapped can still be a valued employee. Such people are their own best ambassadors.” BEVAN SQUARE VIDEO “The Movie Store” 655-3136 (Beside Capital Iron) MON., TUES., & WED. (Offer Not Valid with Any Other Promotion) OPEN 10 to 10 DAILY (Excluding Holidays) #4-2353 BEVAN AVE. Pisa ye willed pes Old fashioned Quality and Service : using Craftsmanship and Technology XING oJ PRINTERS ESTABLISHED 1974 Your Local Paintal We may be litile hard to find, but we are worth looking for, right here in Sidney. 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