Are you a SpEd?

Rich on : Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

This term has come to mean a lot over the years to many people, since the start of the special education movement. There are many classifications of special education, and special needs classes today. Most notable are the two main classifications of Learning Support or Learning Disabled and Emotional Support… However, all are classed under the term of Special Education or as some seem to like the term “SpEd“.

I do not like the term SpEd… I find it very derogatory… I should know, I was one! I know what it means and the hurtful remarks that follow it… I know how I was treated because I was in the “Special” class and I know how other in my class where treated because of it.

From the Urban Dictionary:

One who attends special education classes.
The special education program.
An insult used when someone does something stupid.
A derogatory term meaning retard.
May also be used as sped sled, meaning the short little school buses all the special ed kids ride on.
“Sped” is a second form of retard. It’s commonly used but it is also really offensive toward “special” people.
Often used in conjunction with retard.
A retard.

A nice term don’t you think? It can mean many things to many different people. I take offense when children use the term even in “play“, and I REALLY take offense when adults use the term to describe a child or the program.

I was in the Special Education Program: Learning Support class, only because of my eyesight, not because I could not learn. I was an honors student thorough out school, earning Honors and High Honors, and even perfect attendance in 3rd grade.

I was “Main Stream” (That means I attended a “Normal” classroom.) for all core subjects except Math and English, in my case. I took computer programming in high school, and was a student computer technician to the Junior and Senior High Schools. I even studied for my Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer certification.

Am I still a sped?

One of the greatest minds this world has ever known failed math, and could have been diagnosed as ADHD, if that term was around in his day… Do you know who it was? Albert Einstein.

So please… Don’t use the term SpEd. If you must, a term such as Special Education or Learning Support sounds much more professional. And teach your children it’s not all right to use such terms in a derogatory way.

Of note, I’d like to mention the blogs Ally in Wonderland. Ally is studying to become a Special Education teacher… And I’d also like to mention the blog Till the Short Bus, with her own play on words, who talks about her own struggles of raising a special needs child, and the trials of the special education program.

Leave your comments please… I do respond to all comments; and remember e-mail address are not visible to the public when you comment.

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Filed under: Personal

7 Responses for "Are you a SpEd?"

MeghatronsMom January 27th, 2009 at 2:18 PM 1
Thank you so much for this post! It is great! ITA about the “sped” word. Maybe that is also how I need to approach MM’s school stuff. She really does need more learning support & not necessarily special education, just as you did. To know that you made it through “to the other side” and survived special education gives me hope.

I will need to check out the urban dictionary. I don’t believe I have ever heard of it.

Thanks for the encouraging comments & Thanks for the mention as well!
Rich January 27th, 2009 at 2:57 PM 2
Thanks Mom…
Ally In Wonderland January 27th, 2009 at 4:51 PM 3
Wow, you know, I work really hard to be as non-offensive as possible and I honestly never thought about this. I apologize for all the s-words on my blog.
Ellen January 31st, 2009 at 11:25 AM 4
Funny, I hadn’t heard this word till now. Max has been in a private school since he aged out of Early Intervention at 3, so he’s never been in a special ed program. I don’t like SpEd, either. Sounds deragatory. I once did a post that got a lot of comments on my blog about what people call their kids, here it is, in case you never saw it. http://lovethatmax.blogspot.com/2008/12/labels-special-needs-vs-disabled-vs.html
Anonymous March 14th, 2009 at 6:11 PM 5
I have a son who has a speech impediment. I took him to speech Therapy for 3 years, and then when he got to elementary school, they put him a special “speech” class. There were kids who made fun of him. I don’t think they understand that there are many reasons to be in a “special” class, it’s not right to make fun of anyone period, but myabe the school should educate the other classes as to what the “special” class is for, and make each kid attend one session – They need to stop making fun!
Anonymous April 4th, 2009 at 10:22 AM 6
I agree with Anonymous; I think it would make a big difference if all the children attend this class atleast once. I really feel that after one visit they would want to go more =)

I was in “Resource Class” (That’s what we call it in Utah), for English, just had a hard time staying up with my class and now both of my boys are in the same class for the same thing.

I would just like to say that it is much different now then when I was a child. There is a new program for education called, “Leave no one behind” (Something like that), so there is a very large amount of kids that attend the resource class in every grade and no more teasing. When I was a child; if you had to leave the class for special help, then you were special.

I really enjoyed your blog and agree that SpEd is very disrespectful. Thank you for the post!
Anonymous May 13th, 2009 at 11:55 AM 7
I hate this. I remember when I was a kid. The other kids had to go to resource, and they were called the resource kids. It left a bad mark on them for the rest of us kids. Let’s change this!