Joanne (see blogroll at left) has a fascinating story about a parent who is suing the State of California to pay for her 14-year-old son's pre-med studies at UCLA. Her argument is that he's required to be in school until age 16, and that the state constitution guarantees a free and appropriate education to everyone up to age 16. The state says that he could go to a public high school if he wants a free education, seemingly ignoring the "special needs" of a boy who left school at age 7 to start junior college.
Incidentally, the UCLA tuition costs less than his school district would receive from the state if he attended K-12 public schools. I hope mom wins.
The state absolutely should pay. If they cannot offer him an approriate education at a K-12 school than what other option is there?
ReplyDeleteOne of my pet peeves is how we so often have to cater to the lowest common denominator in the classroom. We leave the "cream of the crop" kids behind all too often in that we don't challenge them to their full potential. I hope mom wins, too.
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