DON'T move to Shirley Massachusetts IF YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN (how much, school districts)

[SheckyINShirley]

Their school system is the absolute WORST I have ever seen! Children with obvious learning disabilities are IGNORED and not helped. How can a 12 year old not know how to read in this school? They complain that there's not enough money in their budget to handle the children's needs, but they DON'T even bring it to the attention of the parents of these poor kids.

The bullying in this school is catastrophic! They don't care about how this is harming the kids, and they deny that it is happening or tell parents that their child (the one being harassed) is the aggressor!

They are AWFUL!

[lrfox]

I'm sorry about your experience, it sounds terrible. I'm sure it's tough for you. However, do you think your experience is reflective of everyone who goes to school there? Is there any chance that this post might be the rant of an angry parent (which is totally understandable) and not necessarily reflective of the bigger picture?

I hope you find a system that fits your child's needs and I certainly hate to hear of bullying, but I don't know if it's fair to condemn an entire community in three different threads (and counting) because your child had a bad experience. Should you inform people of what happened in your personal experience so that they can make an educated decision for themselves? Absolutely... but condemn the entire town and school system? I think that's going a bit over the top.

Best of luck to you and your child.

[AandD]

You should check out SPEDWatch. It's a great resource for learning how to advocate for your child's rights.

Sorry your situation is so untenable. If only more communities recognized how much cheaper it is to help children when they are young as opposed to paying for the adult sized supports from age 21 on.

[litlux]

Here are the policies and promises made by the Shirley School Department and published on line, and if they are deficient, I am sure you can file a formal complaint with the appropriate regulatory agencies.

http://www.shirley-ma.gov/images/Dis...on%20flyer.pdf

[AandD]

Originally Posted by litlux

Here are the policies and promises made by the Shirley School Department and published on line, and if they are deficient, I am sure you can file a formal complaint with the appropriate regulatory agencies.

http://www.shirley-ma.gov/images/Dis...on%20flyer.pdf

Oh dear... you don't have children with special needs in the public school systems, do you? It's VERY DIFFICULT to get the appropriate supports for the majority of SPED kids without legal representation in most school districts, "policies and promises" notwithstanding.

SPED kids require many more resources than "neurotypical" kids, and most (if not almost all) school administrators work to limit necessary supports for SPED kids. It's not necessarily the administrations "fault". They are between a rock and a hard place - left swinging in the wind by NCLB which mandates a lot, but provides little in the way of financial resources.