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<p>Where I’m from, the parents of IEP kids are under no such delusions. They are well aware their kids are receiving special accommodations. And most of them realize that college is not in the picture. Some of the kids do go to CCs and enter certificate programs, some of them quite successfully.</p>
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<p>The article makes that point.</p>
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<p>Who’s this “all?” A large number of kids from our local HS spend much of their junior and senior years at a nearby vocational center that serves 11 school districts; they just announced an expansion to accommodate the demand. Many kids at our school are motivated by the need to maintain the C average in academic subjects that is required for entry into one of the vocational programs.</p>
<p>Our leaders have never heard of the “Bell Curve” and still maintain that everyone is “college material” . They have over estimated the progression of technology and pushed the “the only jobs will be for those who have a college degree” mantra. Take a look on Craigslist…there are hundreds of jobs listed daily (I know that some are scams) in every city for laborers, and other jobs that do not require a college education.</p>
<p>Poetgirl, There are learning disabilities and than there are learning disabilites. </p>
<p>The kids that I am speaking about are not kids who should be attending community college or any four year college. I can speak of a few kids from my town alone who when growing up they were the kids that were pulled out several times a day for special services. I often volunteered as a class mother when my kids were little and I had a chance to get to know many of the kids. These are the very same kids who were in my son’s classes back in middle school so I am going back several years. All of these kids should have graduated college at least two years ago and some this past May. Most are still attending community college or have just transferred to a four year school. They are struggling terribly taking a few classes at a time. These are kids who are 22 to 24 years of age. For the ones who do graduate what is that degree going to mean when they have low GPA’s and no internships because they go to school in the summer as well. This is where I think these kids have been misled. They are not kids who should have started college, and if we were in a different economy, and a different time they would have been working at jobs they might have been able to grow with. I can’t imagine how the parents feel seeing their kids struggle along at this age, with no graduation in sight. If you multiply this by every school district in the country, and than account for the kids who are also economically disadvantaged and learning disabled I think the problem is even more severe. This is not a problem that exists at only CC it is going on at private small colleges that are known to offer special tutoring and other services. All I am trying to say is that back in my day this was not happening. Today, parents and kids seem to think college is this place where all highschool grads go. We have essentially turned the average college degree into a mandatory education that all must attend. It is just not realistic.</p>