Tasmanian teachers and parents have made a unified cry for help when it comes to funding for students with disabilities.
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On Monday, the Tasmanian Disability Education Reform lobby released the results of its second Teachers View Survey.
It took in the thoughts and opinions of 530 of the state’s teachers, and found that 10 (and one-sixth) of those teachers believed the state’s disability education system was adequate.
Outside of the classroom, the lobby says 61 per cent of parents of students with disabilities have reported that they do not feel their child was adequately supported at school.
Lobby founder Kristen Desmond said the results showed that Tasmanian schools were were not resourced for inclusion.
Teachers’ responses to the survey show a call for more time, more resources, more support, and more funding.
The Department of Education lists, enrolled for 2016, 763 Tasmanian students with severe disabilities.
The pitfall comes with the testing to see if students fit the “disability scale” for funding from the state government.
Funding is allocated on an IQ-based platform.
They and their schools are allocated assistance funding if their IQ falls below 55.
Parents, teachers, and advocates have long worried about the students whose IQs and disabilities fall outside this spectrum.
Lobbyists like Ms Desmond say a needs-based platform is what’s needed to deliver the educational outcomes and opportunities that all Tasmanian students deserve.
It is not a new call. Last year, the Commissioner for Children submitted a support as part of an inquiry into levels of access and attainment for students with disability into the school system in Tasmania: “While it is clear that students who fall into the ‘intellectual disability’ category based on IQ will need some extra support … Many students who have higher IQ but are affected in other ways (e.g. social functioned, behavioural issues or sensory issues), may need equal or greater levels of support than students with lower IQ.”
The state government has allocated an extra $12 million to help Tasmanian schools respond to the needs of students with disabilities.
But it is imperative the money is being spent in the right way, and in the right places.
