Kids in special education are struggling--it’s time to rethink their education

Key points:

Neurodiverse students often need more intentional support
Here’s how schools can better support neurodiverse students
Why special educators are key to behavioral equity and inclusion
For more news on special needs students, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Relatively common diagnoses for which there is insufficient mainstream educational or behavioral support, such as autism and ADHD, have risen enough that now fully 15 percent of the school population has special educational needs.

That is 7.5 million students–a record number–who might not get the support they require. In fact, one in five schools reported being understaffed for their existing special education programs in fall of 2023. That’s a serious problem.

Our kids spend between 6-8 hours at school every weekday during the school year. Their classrooms are one of the most important sources of social, emotional, and intellectual support they have. Yet so many neurodiverse children and their parents continue to struggle, largely alone.

Hope Technology School was founded, in part, because I didn’t know of any other way to make sure my own sons who have special needs had their needs met. In the more than 20 years the school has been functioning, it’s grown into something far beyond what I’d originally imagined. It is a genuinely alternative, inclusive model for education.

But more importantly, it’s an example of what’s possible when we are willing to radically rethink education and build a community around students’ needs.

We started from inclusivity. Centering inclusivity is a way to ensure that every child’s needs are met–without ever compromising on the quality of education or attention offered to neurotypical peers. Every child is as important as they are unique. Approaches we use, like Universal Design for Learning, embrace, rather than punish, diversity in learning styles and personality.

But methods of teaching are just one part of meeting a student’s unique needs. Any teacher knows a child’s educational experience is much richer and broader than the courses they take. At school, kids acquire social skills, valuable relationships with peers and teachers, practical life skills, and the confidence they need to flourish.

For neurotypical students, most of these emotional, relational, and practical needs are met through the normal day-to-day activities of class and after-school activity. But neurodiverse students often need more intentional support.

For instance, HTS offers a range of social and life skills classes. We all can and should go as far out of our way as we need to, in order to make sure each child feels empowered and capable upon graduating.

But a personalized, adaptable teaching and learning culture also requires significant resources and supports, which are often unavailable to public school teachers. Most public educators are overwhelmed and under-supported already. A highly individualized teaching method would demand more than they could possibly provide.

Yet neurodiverse students can still succeed in these environments. You don’t necessarily need an alternative school–you just need to rethink how you engage your students in the school you already have.

Recruit your neurodiverse students’ parents to support personalized education resources at home. Encourage them to build educational and social support groups outside your classroom wherever possible. Develop relationships with them and their families. Set up meet and greets with them ahead of the school year.

Every chance you get to insert a bit of adaptability, empathy, and personal connection to your students’ educational experience, do it. Each of these little wins is a monumental victory for every one of them, and their aggregate effect can make all the difference.

If the children in your classroom have special needs, never give up. You are never alone. Their education is one of the greatest gifts you can give them–and so, too, is your advocacy.