The Atlantic (4/18, Hill) reported that the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting school closures have been “especially scary” for “students with special needs – roughly 7 million in the U.S.
ages 3 to 21.” The average parent cannot be turned “into a special-education teacher overnight,” and they cannot “practice occupational, speech, or physical therapy – services that are provided in many schools, but aren’t always covered by insurance and can therefore be otherwise out of reach.” Northwest Evaluation Association accessibility researcher Elizabeth Barker said, “A lot of students have had one-on-one professionals with them in the classroom, along with general-education and special-education teachers supporting them. ...