My Biggest Failure As a Teacher Is Failing to Fight Special Ed Stigma
“Mr. Fan, is this special ed?”
“Ohhh, you’re in special ed! Does that mean you can’t read?”
“You’re in special ed! You’re dumb!”
These are quotes I’ve heard from other students in my short time teaching say about kids in special education. As a self-contained special education teacher, I’ve heard these comments time and time again. They hurt my feelings. But above all, they hurt my students’ feelings, and perpetuate ableism against special ed kids.
As much as I’ve preached and told people they were wrong for holding these ableist attitudes, it doesn’t do much to actually change those attitudes. Students not in special ed have asked me whether I teach kids who are “different” and when I ask them what they mean, often they will circle their finger at the side of their head. Other students have asked if I teach a class where all the students have anger problems.
Special ed stigma needs to stop, but I have no idea, honestly, how to do it, after being in the classroom for almost two years now. One of my students last year asked: “Mr. Fan, is this special ed?”
I distinctly remember sugercoating the answer. I knew he saw a significant stigma in being in a special ed class and did benefit from a smaller setting…
