Mainstream or special schools?

In my experience of working in education. Send schools are far more inclusive than mainstream. Send kids get isolated and shut away far more in mainstream because they just can't cope with it. What needs to happen in my opinion is more send schools that can meet the appropriate needs. Many send schools don't cater for "the Inbetweeners" those with neurodivergent needs but academically ok so that they are able to get the qualifications they deserve without unnecessary stress. They can throw as much money as they like into mainstream but if you've got kids that can't manage big classes, noisy corridors, busy playgrounds, loud dining rooms etc then they are not going to manage. 

Thats what I thought too, I never got used to the noise and business of school. I wondered if and how things had changed in the last 40 years?

Hard to comment on 40 years as I'm not that old yet but not much has happened to combat that. With the best will in the world I am not sure you can. There are small steps schools can take. Gentler bells, sound proofing, staggered timetables so not everyone moves at once. But for kids that really struggle with noise and crowds, a school with over 1000 pupils in it is just not going to work. There is more chance in a primary school as there are less children but for some kids that's still way too much.

It's also things like uniforms. At the moment in mainstream, many schools are isolating or excluding kids for things like not wearing a tie or proper school shoes. Well a lot of neurodivergent kids just can't do that.

Whilst I applaud people like Bridget Phillipson for boot strapping herself out of poverty through education, she obviously had the support both at home and at school to enable her to do so, not everyones so lucky. If you don't have support at home or at school, then it's going to be really really difficult, with adult education being virtually non existant, how once you've left school do you find your way, especially if you're not seen as academic and can't find an apretniceship, it seem like all you have to look forward to is a life time of flipping burgers. Well that is until you reach 20 and become to expensive to employ.

I get the impression from the Education secretary that she sees it that she came from a poor background and if she could do well in school then everyone can. No understanding at all that it isn't just about money, everybody's brains are different.

I don't know what I think about no uniform, it can go 2 ways for me. Yes you can be more comfortable in your own stuff etc but some kids struggle with choosing what to wear everyday and this can impact them attending school. In the school I work in, we have an optional uniform. This seems to work quite well. It could be a little time consuming dealing with inappropriate wear or unsafe wear in a mainstream school though I guess. 

One of the big things that absolutely has to happen is more education for all children. They should all be educated far more about differences and disabilities etc and how to be accepting.

I agree with you about having simple uniforms, although I still dont' like the idea of uniforms at all, theres just something about them that makes me shudder.

I think kids know who has money and who dosen't, it will show in many differnt ways, from who has what sort of shoes, or haircut, or bag. I'm not sure what they way around any of this is, maybe challenging the thinking behind it would help? Telling people not to be nasty isnt going to work, or telling those who are bullied to ignore the bullies, thats just compounding it me. 

I think special schools are seen as exclusive rather than inclusive and that everybody needs to learn to get along with eachother. I can see the thinking behind this view, but I disagree with it, I wonder who it is that thinks every child should be in a mainstream school? I bet it's NT's with little or no toleration of any differences, the sort of peope who use words like "should" and "ought", like "you should be able to block out noise going on around you", or "you ought to be able to do this is you do it slowly and carefully", never realising that some of us really can not do somethings because of our disabilities.

I just hope this isn't going to end up as yet another measuring stick to beat us with

I agree with you about having simple uniforms, although I still dont' like the idea of uniforms at all, theres just something about them that makes me shudder.

I think kids know who has money and who dosen't, it will show in many differnt ways, from who has what sort of shoes, or haircut, or bag. I'm not sure what they way around any of this is, maybe challenging the thinking behind it would help? Telling people not to be nasty isnt going to work, or telling those who are bullied to ignore the bullies, thats just compounding it me. 

I think special schools are seen as exclusive rather than inclusive and that everybody needs to learn to get along with eachother. I can see the thinking behind this view, but I disagree with it, I wonder who it is that thinks every child should be in a mainstream school? I bet it's NT's with little or no toleration of any differences, the sort of peope who use words like "should" and "ought", like "you should be able to block out noise going on around you", or "you ought to be able to do this is you do it slowly and carefully", never realising that some of us really can not do somethings because of our disabilities.

I just hope this isn't going to end up as yet another measuring stick to beat us with

Whilst I applaud people like Bridget Phillipson for boot strapping herself out of poverty through education, she obviously had the support both at home and at school to enable her to do so, not everyones so lucky. If you don't have support at home or at school, then it's going to be really really difficult, with adult education being virtually non existant, how once you've left school do you find your way, especially if you're not seen as academic and can't find an apretniceship, it seem like all you have to look forward to is a life time of flipping burgers. Well that is until you reach 20 and become to expensive to employ.

I get the impression from the Education secretary that she sees it that she came from a poor background and if she could do well in school then everyone can. No understanding at all that it isn't just about money, everybody's brains are different.

I don't know what I think about no uniform, it can go 2 ways for me. Yes you can be more comfortable in your own stuff etc but some kids struggle with choosing what to wear everyday and this can impact them attending school. In the school I work in, we have an optional uniform. This seems to work quite well. It could be a little time consuming dealing with inappropriate wear or unsafe wear in a mainstream school though I guess. 

One of the big things that absolutely has to happen is more education for all children. They should all be educated far more about differences and disabilities etc and how to be accepting.