An Apology to the Parents of Special Needs Children from Your Child's Former Teacher

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http://flappinessis.com/2011/12/01/an-apology-from-your-childs-former-t… I didn’t know. Not even a clue. I thought, mistakenly, that having two special-needs children in my family made me more sensitive to your needs as a parent. It didn’t. And I’m so sorry for operating under the assumption that I did. … I knew a lot about autism and some about other special-needs conditions. I did care about your child. And I did want to do right by him. But, like a lot of teachers who Just Don’t Get It, I thought doing right by him meant giving him extra time on assignments and not allowing him to fail my class. I thought being extra nice and seating her at the front of the room was what you needed from me.

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My eyes are watering. My heart is swelling. My daughter is sitting in the kitchen doing her homework. She graduated high school last May. With Honors. Oh, did I mention my girl has Down syndrome? She has been, and will continue be, such a blessing.

Nothing like walking in the shoes to give someone an epiphany. That blog post should be read by every teacher in the country.