“This pattern raises questions about whether these students actually had disabilities, or whether SIFE are routinely misclassified due to their low literacy levels and the apparent lack of alternatives for intensive literacy support” (Advocates for Children,2010,p. 27).

This study on SIFE students was very striking. I couldn’t believe the fate of many of these students and the lack of services and attention they received, despite the common knowledge of their background and hardships in and out of school. In my opinion, SIFE is yet another example of good intentions gone wrong in public education. The idea that SIFE students are “misclassified” in special education either based on their low English proficiency and/or as the only means for individualized services, highlights a flaw in public education.

The fact that we have such a diverse population in New York City and that we have the SIFE classification is good in intent. The DOE and organizations like Flanbwayan Haitian Literacy Project and The New York Education Coalition aim to provide services to aid immigrant students in achieving academic success. However, we saw with the many case studies, that the SIFE program is ultimately ineffective and insufficient.For instance, Xavier “never actually received speech and language services and did not always receive counseling services” and ultimately “Xavier has no aged out of the public school system and is experiencing drug abuse problems” (p. 23). SIFE is not helping immigrant students in being successful in public schools so it is imperative that we as a city, DOE and nation, attempt to use research like this study to reform education in order to truly help all students from all backgrounds. I wonder how this can be done starting with teachers and schools working as advocates for students.