Going To School by Richard Cohen

                                                                      

                                         

         

           Going To School by Richard Cohen is a short film that touches on the issues of a particular district in Los Angeles and that argues that the locals in charge have been taking advantage of parents and guardians of students with disabilities.  The film revealed that there were many instances that students who required more assistance with their learning or mobility where placed in a holding pattern for many years where they were secluded from their local communities and local peers.  Instead these individuals were bused many miles away from their local school that their peers attended and were not afforded the opportunities to be exposed to the general education setting.  Although IDEA was passed in 1975, there were approximately 1 million students who were separated and prevented from going to school with those who did not have a disability.  This link to IDEA takes you to the government site that has several resources to help those with questions and concerns. (Government - IDEA)

 

         The numerous links within this site are easily to navigate through and offer a plethora of information from definitions, laws and policies, current data reports, grants and funding available, and news and media information.  The news and media link connects to Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. There is also an opportunity to subscribe to their handful of newsletters as well as access to the archived reports.  The site is transparent in their intent and purpose.

           These basic human rights that were stripped from students and their parents received push back by several parents who believed their child should attend school of their residence; therefore demanding inclusion for all.  They has their voices heard that this was a civilized way to instruct ALL people. As Martinez stated, “I am fighting for a general education setting for my son.”  Martinez now leads PRN, Parent Resource Network, where other parents can turn to for assistance with understanding theirs and their child’s rights concerning free appropriate education. The following link (Family Resources) brings you to a site that has 13 Family Resources Centers in Los Angeles county. Their mission statement states that their purpose is to, “promote, expand and share available resources with families that have children with special health care needs and / or other disabilities in Los Angeles County.”  The help from the network is to “liberate parents to help them advocate for their child regardless of the disability or the language spoken.”  Having a voice to express concerns or approval should be a practice all people in our society has the option to do.  Unfortunately, those with little knowledge of the system, the country, or the language would create a roadblock in order to make this simple act not so simple.

            This video takes me back to the article, “Teaching at the Intersection.”  The following quote from the article states, “navigate the world, and the way the world respond to them,” (pg. 6) is critical for all people in society to feel safe and accepted. The parents’ of students who were moved to their school of residence stated that now when they are out shopping in their local stores peers come to them and greet their child, whereas previously, children would walk by and not even know who their child was. 

Let's spread like a meme.

                                                                 

Another article I connect this video to is the “The Silenced Dialogue.”  It states, “There are codes or rules for participating in power; that is, there is a “culture of power,” (pg. 25).  This particular quote also reminds me of the following TED Talk I was introduced to.  It focuses on how people speak differently, but non- the-less, communicate their ideas.  Click here for the full video that Jamila Lyiscott describes 3 Ways to speak English. (TED Talk - 3 Ways to speak English)    

Although this video discusses the different dialects, it shares the underground notion that they way one communicates is judged.   I believe if the students such as Martinez, Nalley, and Nhien were mainstreamed the same time as their peers,  there would not have been any “getting used to” them in the first place.  As Nalley’s parents shared, children were warehoused in segregation.

            The video captures a whole community as it navigates the topic of children with disabilities while getting the attention of policy makers and the public. The discussion of inclusion, integration and discrimination is at the forefront. Awareness is knowledge and knowledge is POWER. The following link offers steps to create a safe productive environment for all students.  (Crisis Prevention)