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| May 27, 2008 |
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Teacher allegedly allowed class to vote out kindergartner
A Florida parent may sue after her son, who may have Asperger's syndrome, was voted out of his kindergarten class. The teacher allegedly asked each student to say something they didn't like about Alex Barton, 5, and then held a class vote before sending him to the nurse's office. School officials said they could not comment. Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)/Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers (5/25)
Hearing disorders may mimic ADHD
Auditory-processing disorders may prevent students from living up to their potential, writes certified speech-language pathologist Lynn Carahaly. Testing for hearing and auditory-processing disorders can help explain ADHD-like symptoms, she says. The Arizona Republic (Phoenix) (5/25)
Georgia officials don't know fate of students who fail high-stakes tests
Because it has no tracking system in place for keeping tabs on students who fail high-stakes state competency exams, the state of Georgia doesn't know whether the roughly 36,000 Georgia eighth-graders who failed a state math test required for high-school admission in 2006 and 2007 entered high-school anyway, repeated the eighth grade or dropped out of school. "My guess would be most districts are probably going ahead and letting students go on to the next grade," said Ron Dietel, an assistant director of UCLA's National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards and Student Testing. "But if you don't know that, how do you know if the test is doing what it is supposed to do? How do you know if the remediation is doing what it's supposed to do?" The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (5/25)
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Obituary: Educator had talent for reaching children with disabilities
Laura (Levine) Sherman, 78, slowly lost her hearing and increasingly relied on lip-reading during her quarter-century of classroom teaching, but she never lost her knack for reaching out to children with special needs, relatives and colleagues said. "She heard with her heart," said her daughter, Rosslyn Shamash, after Sherman died of cancer May 16. The Boston Globe (tiered subscription model) (5/26)
Obituary: Learning disability specialist was among top D.C. pediatricians
Dr. Franklin L. Stroud, 69, specialized in treating D.C.-based children with learning disabilities until his death Monday in an Illinois car crash. Stroud, named to Washingtonian magazine's list of top doctors, had treated the children of many Washington insiders, including former Vice President Al Gore. The Washington Post (5/27)
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Top five news stories selected by CEC SmartBrief readers in the past week.
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GPS devices help Dallas schools track students who ditch
Forty-six students ordered by a Dallas judge to wear Global Positioning System devices 24 hours a day for six weeks last year due to chronic truancy improved their attendance from 84% to 97% last year, but funding cuts have limited the program to nine students this year. The Dallas Morning News (free registration) (5/25)
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U.S. adults with ADHD lose a month of productivity annually
Adults with attention-deficit disorders lose an average 22.1 work days due to their inability to concentrate according to a new international study published in Tuesday's online edition of the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine. In the U.S., 4.5% of surveyed workers displayed ADHD symptoms, and averaged 28.3 days of lost work performance. Forbes/Associated Press (5/26)
Beijing Paralympic guide filled with stereotypes
An official volunteer guide for the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics refers to people with disabilities as non-social, stubborn and controlling, angering at least one athlete who has decided not to participate in the Beijing games. "Volunteers should offer assistance on a basis of equality and mutual respect," the guide reads. "Disabled people can be defensive and have a strong sense of inferiority." The New Zealand Herald (5/27)
Connecticut district under federal investigation
Alleged racial discrimination has prompted the U.S. Education Department to investigate Greenwich, Conn., schools after a school with mostly minority students closed down due to mold; school officials declined comment. "It was only when our children were recently dispersed into other Greenwich schools that were gushing with beautiful resources like a fully stocked library and a computer lab that I realized how much our children were robbed of a proper elementary school experience," said parent Mina Bibeault. "I find myself wondering, 'Why us?'" The Boston Globe/Associated Press (tiered subscription model) (5/25)
Health problems may continue to plague childhood cancer survivors
Some 270,000 people who have survived childhood cancer may face increased risk of breast cancer, heart problems, infertility, depression and other health problems for the rest of their lives due to the effects of chemotherapy and radiation. "It really hits home when you see a young adult who comes in with congestive heart failure because of their radiation exposure," says pediatric oncologist Jacqueline Casillas. Los Angeles Times (5/26)
School's special-needs competition honors former student
Bobby Stone, 11, loved to compete whether he won or not, his family said, leading school officials to name a track-and-field competition for other students with special needs in Bobby's honor. In September, Bobby died of a lung infection after lifelong immune problems following a heart transplant as a toddler. The Sun (Baltimore) (5/25)
Placebo pills for children raise concern
Some medical experts, particularly bioethicists, are questioning the premise behind Obecalp -- chewable placebo tablets manufactured by Efficacy Brands -- which will be launched June 1 as a general treatment for children. Conditioning young patients to rely on drugs to cure every ailment could make them believe "that the only way to get better is by taking a pill," one doctor said. Obecalp's manufacturer emphasized that the product, which will be sold as a dietary supplement, does not promote drug use or specify which health conditions it could treat. NYTimes.com (5/27)
Other News
Promote children's participation in the EC curriculum with CARA's Kit
CARA's Kit is a new resource that provides guidance for adapting daily activities and routines so children ages 3 to 6 years can participate in the class curriculum. Teacher and consultant version available. Find out more.
Looking for cost-effective ways to train your staff?
CEC's Professional Development options -- now on the Web -- offer cost-effective strategies to train large groups of people. Check out CEC's new Web seminars, regional workshops and online trainings offered for 2008. Find out more.
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