[speaker002:] well we've talked a little bit about the Plano school system um I I really have been pleased with Plano I have a child who uh my son is learning disabled
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] and uh I thank God every day that I have the resources that we have tapped into
[speaker001:] now is he the elementary school
[speaker002:] he's in elementary school and he's not severely learning disabled I mean you know he just
[speaker001:] uh-huh uh-huh but he is being helped
[speaker002:] he's being helped he he was in resource from second grade till fourth grade in math and they recently released him from resource which I'm I was thrilled I really was I I just
[speaker001:] uh-huh oh great
[speaker002:] thought that was so neat that they got him over that hump and um he's in the Herman Method of Reading I don't know if you're familiar with that it is something new and basically what they do is they start right from the beginning relearning the sounds of letters
[speaker001:] no that's something new to me I'm oh
[speaker002:] um
[speaker001:] I think I read about that in the paper doctor Haggard is
[speaker002:] it's wonderful
[speaker001:] is heading that up
[speaker002:] yes and it's wonderful he didn't have a problem with reading as a matter of fact he's reading on level the problem was his spelling
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] and you know in in watching the way he has struggled it's interesting because I'm convinced I have the same learning disability or had that was ignored and
[speaker001:] oh right so you worked you learned how to solve your problems on your own
[speaker002:] that's right and and so it's you know it's not an intelligence problem it's just a problem with learning
[speaker001:] has has he had this since kindergarten or is this something that maybe learning phonetics and then he just didn't learn the right way
[speaker002:] well you know it's funny when um when he was in first grade he had trouble with with spelling and I would say to the teacher
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] you know it's amazing he will be able to you'll say to him spell cat and you know he'll say C A T and then he would go to write it and he would write C O T
[speaker001:] okay
[speaker002:] and I kept saying to the teacher something is wrong here something is wrong here and the teacher kept saying oh he has a May birthday he's just immature
[speaker001:] you're right right right
[speaker002:] well second grade it was I will these teachers as far as I'm concerned are absolute saints because in second grade it was about the second week of school I went up there and I I requested a conference
[speaker001:] good good that's great for parents to be involved
[speaker002:] and because all year long they kept telling me I was crazy well I was and I and I went up there the second week of school and I said you know something is wrong and thank God the leader the head teacher the team leader was a special education major
[speaker001:] oh how great
[speaker002:] it was it was and
[speaker001:] so she she was able to zero in oh
[speaker002:] she had picked it up yep she had already picked it up and she said you know we we were going to call you if you hadn't called us we think there's a learning disability and we think he needs to be tested immediately because you know once the first report card comes in they have all these people being tested and she said I think we can get him real fast
[speaker001:] huh uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker002:] and sure enough they tested him and you know he qualified for for the help and it's been great and I and I thank God I'm here because I I know I have a sister who has the other extreme she has a a child in Connecticut who is extremely gifted and because of the cutbacks in the economy they have nothing for her
[speaker001:] right oh no
[speaker002:] and and to me that's the same thing it's it's like having a child who has a learning disability that's being ignored this poor gifted child is being ignored
[speaker001:] uh-huh uh-huh right but that's something that parents I think are able to help the gifted child in the home more than they could help the learning disabled child
[speaker002:] that's true
[speaker001:] so because that's something you can do by just enrichment types of things in the home
[speaker002:] that's true uh-huh
[speaker001:] but learning disability unless you are schooled in the types of things and ways to help a child like that then it makes it real difficult and this is this to me is the benefit I see in public schools is that that uh you do have government money to fund the kinds of programs
[speaker002:] uh-huh yes right right
[speaker001:] that these students need and I'm not sure that the private schools or parochial schools address that problem they test kids before they take them
[speaker002:] exactly and
[speaker001:] and if they're a behavior problem they're out that and and uh
[speaker002:] they don't take them that's right right
[speaker001:] this is kind of a rejection type of thing and and we get it even at our level in in I work a nine ten school
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] and we get students that come in that have been kicked out of the uh parochial and public and uh private schools
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] and uh they come in and their attitude is I'm a bad boy and proceed to prove it
[speaker002:] really really
[speaker001:] so I I really hate that for them I I would rather they not have that attitude but
[speaker002:] yeah well when comparing test scores I know recently I was in a discussion and they were comparing test scores between private schools and public schools and that was one of the points that I made is that you're not comparing apples to apples
[speaker001:] that's right that's right
[speaker002:] you know you can't say um you know I know Steven probably would not be accepted because he has a learning disability and into a private school
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] into a private school and um which is which is too bad but on the other hand I I can't necessarily blame them you know they they are a private school and they can do whatever they want
[speaker001:] no that's right they can be selective right
[speaker002:] and they can they that's right they have the ability to be selective but you can't say then well public schools are are not as good
[speaker001:] right
[speaker002:] perhaps they are because they're they're
[speaker001:] if you choose the select top group out of the public schools and tested them and then compared them to the private to the private school group then I think you would have a more equitable
[speaker002:] you're right
[speaker001:] way and I have a problem when they compare the kids in Japan or Germany to the kids here in in in uh honesty honesty the kids in Japan are they have to try out to even get into to which kindergarten they're going to get into
[speaker002:] oh really
[speaker001:] and then after uh and if if you only the in fact they've had cases in the past where parents have committed suicide because their child has not gotten into the top kindergarten which means they probably won't get into the top elementary and and high school and if they don't then after when they reach a certain age they just that's the end of their schooling
[speaker002:] uh-huh uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker001:] and and uh they don't ever really go on it's only their top ones that go on like ours do
[speaker002:] uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker001:] and and uh so that that creates a problem and and you can't compare because they go so many more hours
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] the other thing is that the priority in the family is that child's education and is that child
[speaker002:] right well you see that with the foreigners that come here
[speaker001:] that's right
[speaker002:] um I I was talking to somebody recently or read somewhere where they where they said that you know these children they they had to be the best and they put off all social life all everything you know well is that good yes the child is very bright
[speaker001:] that's right that's right
[speaker002:] bright but on the other hand I feel like my children who are kind of middle of the road have are more rounded you know sure sure I think it's real important to have friends I think it's real important to play sports I think it's real important to be part of a team
[speaker001:] better coping skills yes right
[speaker002:] and so that's why I said their childhood is extremely different from mine we didn't do all that you know we certainly didn't carpool and run the way I do um
[speaker001:] right well and you don't you don't see the parents uh encouraging those students to get on athletic teams or drill teams or band
[speaker002:] no right right
[speaker001:] it's strictly stick to the educational and it's interesting to see them as they get older uh then that is the type of adult they are
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] um