May 5, 2017, Binghamton (NY) Press & Sun Bulletin: SCHOOL BUDGETS: What's at stake this year? http://www.pressconnects.com/story/news/connections/in-our-schools/2017/05/05/school-budgets-whats-stake-year/100898508/
For most schools, spending is up even in the face of enrollment declines. …
There has been an increased need for special education locally, Buyck said, explaining the contrasting trend lines between spending and enrollment.
“While raw numbers of populations of students may be going down, poverty continues to increase, special education increases and the additional support that schools are trying to put in place to support children so that they can have a fighting chance of learning something in school," Buyck said. "(Which) is why I think you don’t see the decline in the aid or decline in the funding that you may expect to see.”
Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.