Special Education Schools on Long Island Adjust to Covid-19
By: Stephanie Banat
Covid-19 has created challenging circumstances for all schools, but it makes things especially difficult for special education programs. Administrators at the special education department of Nassau BOCES in Long Island, New York weighed in on the obstacles they’ve endured this past year.
Amy Goldstein, principal of Nassau BOCES special education school “The Children’s Readiness Center”, described the challenges of facilitating remote learning for disabled students.
“Most of these children are not the type that will get on their laptops for class on their own, so family members have really had to become teachers,” said Goldstein. “They’ve had to develop a huge understanding of what we do at school…We’ve even had times where parents have thrown their hands up and said ‘I can’t do this anymore’, in which of course, we assure them not to worry but to take a break and re-join us later on.”
Goldstein went on to explain that many parents are also not available to supervise their children’s zoom classes due to their work schedules. As a result, these families have made remarkable adjustments in order to manage remote learning.
“We have had students’ younger siblings supervising them, we’ve had grandparents” said Goldstein, “We’ve had babysitters do it…We’ve even had a time when a teacher trained the 9-year-old cousin of a young student with down syndrome how to supervise her cousin’s classes, and she did a great job at guiding her.”
Nassau BOCES special education department, which consists of 11 schools, has now transitioned from remote to hybrid learning, which allows students to choose between in-person classes or staying remote.
“Currently, 80% of special education students have returned to school full-time in person while 20–25% remain remote,” said Susan Mcnulty, Executive Director of Nassau BOCES Special Education Department.
Public Information Officer Angela Marshall explained that having students back in person will enhance their learning tremendously.
“These students cannot be serviced the same way with remote learning,” Marshall explained, “the types of programs we offer…occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech…are best done in person. There’s a lot of modeling that goes into these things.”
Nassau BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services of Nassau County) is a public agency that serves the 300 schools of the 56 local school districts of Nassau County. They provide programs and services that would otherwise be too costly for individual school districts. During the pandemic, they’ve provided free internet access for all students and initiatives to help with technological issues. Some students have also been provided with iPads or laptops, depending on their circumstances.
Kenneth Kroog, executive manager of the special education department, explained that while transitioning to remote learning, the department has tried their hardest to maintain as many learning systems as possible..while also adjusting them based on the emotionally disruptive nature of the pandemic.
“We kept midterms and final exams scheduled” Kroog said, “but we modified them so that there is more flexibility and students can explore topics in a different way.”
He went on to say that some students actually seemed to perform better in certain subjects while learning virtually, but overall, it was difficult for them to miss out on the social component of being around their classmates.
“Some students performed better online for a given task” he explained, “for a number of reasons such as less distractions in their home setting...but the greatest challenges were in the social, emotional realm. Its really hard to make up for that experience you get from in-person classroom instructions and doing activities with your peers in a physical way.”
Kroog stated that one of the most important parts of the school day for remote students is their “morning welcome meeting.” During this time, they are able to get a sense of classroom community.
“CASEL researches this particular area and one of their signature practices that we emphasize, especially this year, is the morning welcome to the school day.,” he said, “Students come in, eat breakfast, and the whole team comes together as a unit. Teachers check in with their students, see how they’re doing, talk about highs and lows..sometimes there are writing prompts for journaling…and then they set the day up for success.”
When asked if it was difficult for returning students to re-adjust to learning in person, Director Mcnulty said that the staff was pleasantly surprised at how well special education students adapted to the new COVID-safety guidelines.
“We were floored to see students coming back to school wearing masks without being told,” she said, “We thought many more students, especially those with sensory issues, were going to struggle with wearing masks and social distancing. Students were able to jump right in to the new environments, where desks now all have shields on them and they’re required to keep masks on 5 days a week.”
Kroog also commented on how well the students have adjusted to the changes.
“It’s remarkable to see how well they’ve risen to the occasion,” he noted. “There are still times, of course, when students struggle with keeping their masks on or staying 6 feet apart, but no one gets penalized for this. Instead, we work with them to help them understand.”
Source List:
Angela Marshall, Public Information Officer of Nassau BOCES.
Susan Mcnulty, Executive Director of Nassau BOCES’ Special Education Department.
Amy Goldstein, principal of BOCES’ special education school, The Children’s Readiness Center.
Kenneth Kroog, Executive Manager of Special Education Department.
