Field trips helped students thrive
The Sept. 23 article about changes in the school system’s Exceptional Children’s program appalled me when I realized some of my friends will not be getting the services that they need to thrive in school. I am a college student, but most of my time in college has been spent outside the classroom and in the community, volunteering with numerous organizations and in these children’s classrooms.
One of the places I frequently volunteer at is Saving Grace Farms. For two years I went out to the farm. When I saw how much effort the ladies working there put into making sure that there was educational curriculum meeting IEP (Individualized Education Program) goals, backing up the students’ personal goals, I was amazed. They used classroom skills in another setting to reinforce learning. Yet people on the school board feel that this organization had “no curriculum related component” to offer. In addition to the educational goals the farm offered, students could meet life skills goals here and other places.
“Studies show our kids learn this (the skills) best in a natural setting,” according to a local teacher. I realize that there are standards that need to be met and the economy is in bad shape, but these kids need help. I love these kids so much, and as a college student, I do what I can and pray for them daily. As for that school board meeting that no parents showed up for Monday night, maybe you should try to take care of a child with a disability and see how easy it is to go to a school board meeting. I know that this letter cannot change anything, but I just wanted to inform people a little more about the facts involving these kids that I am more than pleased to call my friends!
ó Megan Fulsom
Salisbury
Find the truth
Some things have caught my attention on the opinion page lately. First was a letter to the editor spelling out a list of dire things that will happen if we vote for Barack Obama. It repeated scurrilous accusations that have been debunked repeatedly by fact-checkers, or are not really possible, and yet they seem to have become urban legend. Find the truth first.
The second was a letter complaining that Sarah Palin was being unfairly scrutinized by the “liberal” press. Sorry, but that is the press’ job: to find the truth. Obama had to be investigated the same way, and for good reason. If all we had to go on is the garbage produced by the 1,700 ultra-right radio stations, we would have no idea about this candidate. It is only fair that all candidates are treated equally. No free rides. The jury is still out on Palin, but we need as much truth as possible.
Third was the Sept. 13 column by Cal Thomas. As usual, he seems to feel that the world’s problems can all be dropped on Bill Clinton. While Clinton has his faults, it is unreasonable to blame him for the current financial mess when he had a Republican Congress pass the laws that are supposedly the core of all our problems. It’s stupid to quote the Bible and other sources to cover up the fact that Bush has had eight years, with six years of a Republican Congress, to fix anything Bill may have messed up. The real problem no one seems to want to address is that we have trillions of dollars in debts, rising even as I type. All reports are that about 95 percent of that debt is from Reagan, Bush I and mostly Bush II. Maybe business should bail out the government, not the other way around.
ó Donald C. Tracy
Salisbury