What does David Brooks’ column, “Politics in the Age of Distrust,” have to do with special education? Everything. I am struck by how much it relates to the issues we have in special education.

(Politics in the age of distrust).

So, let’s ask, why do schools and parents have to go through endless meetings, procedures, paperwork, written plans, lawsuits, threats of lawsuits, legal and bureaucratic requirements, due process, documentation ad infinitum in special education? Because, at bottom, the law creates lack of trust between parents and schools. Parents have to fight schools to get services. Etc. Etc. Etc. Most of us know the system is broken–distrust abounds.

But, saddest of all, what do any of these processes and procedures and requirements have to do with improving teaching and learning? Not much, if anything.

The age of distrust of government, including schools, takes us down the wrong path. It is dysfunctional for students, teachers, and parents.

See my book Fixing Special Education–12 Steps to Transform a Broken System. My hope is that it will help get us back on the right path–the mission of educating all children.

About Miriam

Miriam Kurtzig Freedman, JD, MA—an expert in public education, focused on special education law— is a lawyer, author, speaker, consultant, and reformer. For more than 35 years, Miriam worked with educators, parents, policy makers, and citizens to translate complex legalese into plain English and focus on good practices for children. Now, she focuses her passion on reforming special education, with her new book, Special Education 2.0—Breaking Taboos to Build a NEW Education Law. Presentations include those at the AASA Conference, Orange County (CA), Boston College (MA), CADRE (OR), and the Fordham Institute (DC). Her writings have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Education Week, Education Next, Hoover Digest, The University of Chicago Law Review on line, DianeRavitch.net, and The Atlantic Monthly on line.

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