What happened?
On November 18th 2024, BCEdAccess Society founder Tracy Humphreys and volunteer Kaori Lau discussed some of the systemic challenges that people living with physical, mental, or learning challenges face within the BC education system, what ableism is, and how BCEdAccess promotes equitable education practices.
BCEdAccess is a volunteer organization which seeks to “ensure equitable access to education for students with disabilities and complex learners in British Columbia.” They achieve this by providing resources to families, hosting webinars, community engagement programs, and more.
How do people living with disabilities receive asssistance?
First, a teacher, guardian, or the learner must recognize that the learner may need extra help due to an ongoing illness, mental health or physical challenge. Many students live with an undiagnosed challenge for years before it is recognized.
Next, the learner needs to apply for a psychoeducational assessment. This process can take years and cost families a significant amount of money. Tracy says that an evaluation for autism currently takes 2-3 years and costs roughly $4,000. Once they are assessed, they are assigned a “designation.”
A designation is a categorization based on the type of special education deemed appropriate for the disability. The Ministry of Education gives each category a set amount of funding to the District, which disperses these funds to schools. Abbotsford School District has posted these categorizations along with their funding amount.
What Now?
Tracy mentioned that her child didn’t receive a designation until after grade 12. She and her child decided it would be best to homeschool instead of attend school because they didn’t understand what worked for them in a learning environment. The school system therefore excluded the learner based on their disability, which was not detected/recognized until after their schooling had ended. This is very difficult for me to think about. I have member of my family who went through their schooling with a disability, but because we knew that they would have difficulties before entering school, they were able to receive a designation early on, and enjoyed their time in school because of it. The fact that this is not the case for most learners really breaks my heart.
This means that, as teachers, we need to be aware that learners may be deserving of extra help or a designation, but may not have access to it due to wait times or financial challenges. We must ensure that we promote an equitable and inclusive practice that utilizes classroom and pedagogical design that works for people with many challenges.