$36,000 babysitter…

For seven years I worked as a special education one-on-one aide for a variety of students, but all of whom had profound mental retardation. These students were at a public high school and we “included” in the regular classrooms as much as possible.

Don’t get me wrong – I have a special place in my heart for this population. But to call it “education” is an insult to both them and the teachers. I would sit next to them class after class as they stared off into space or tried their best to disrupt the class for attention. It didn’t do anything for them but make the adults in their life feel good on the inside that they were “including” the special-ed students. It was so the adults to give themselves a big pat on the back.

So let’s call it what it is – babysitting. The parents needed a break during the day, the school is legally required to do SOMETHING for these students until they turn 22. So I was a glorified babysitter.