In Inclusion Era, Self-Contained Classrooms Retain a Role

(10/10/05) New York State has long been criticized by disability advocates and parents for pulling too many disabled students out of regular classrooms and putting them into self-contained "special ed." classrooms. There students learn in a closed and controlled setting with other students with disabilities. Recently the number of self-contained classrooms has dropped dramatically. State mandates have led a lot of districts to cut their self-contained classrooms and bring students into regular educational settings. But there is still a role for self-contained classrooms, and they're still the way many students with disabilities experience the school year. Gregory Warner visited a self-contained classroom in the Potsdam middle school. The class is taught and staffed by workers from BOCES. The students come from as far away as Madrid and Parishville.