April 27, 2017, WPSU (Penn State): Quirk In Pa. Charter Law Cripples Traditional Districts While Giving Charters 'Cash Cow' http://radio.wpsu.org/post/quirk-pa-charter-law-cripples-traditional-districts-while-giving-charters-cash-cow In the tangled world of Pennsylvania public school financing, special education payments to charters are a particularly thorny problem. … William Penn actually spends about $15,700 per special ed student, representing 19 percent of its total student enrollment. But calculations assuming that it provides services to only 16 percent of its students generate a charter payment of $18,500. Woodland Hills actually spends $13,500 per special ed student, representing 25 percent of enrollment. Calculations assuming 16 percent generate a charter payment of $20,800. Columbia Borough actually spends $12,500 per special ed student, representing 25 percent of enrollment; calculations assuming 16 percent generate charter payments of $19,900.
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.