Mother fears special needs children are falling through the cracks due to virtual learning

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - Virtual learning has been a big transition for all students, parents, and teachers but one DeKalb County School District mom said it's been especially hard on her daughter. 

Nine-year-old Jasmine is in the third grade. She spends hours a day in front of her computer in her virtual classroom, listening, and taking notes. 

While she may look like the other students in her class, her mother said that's not the case. 

Monica Williams said her daughter has Turner syndrome. It's a condition that causes medical and developmental issues. 

She also said Jasmine has learning disabilities. 

"They're talking third-grade stuff but she can't comprehend the third-grade stuff as well as they can," Williams said. 

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In a normal school setting, Jasmine would have someone helping her learn with the extra attention and modifications she needs. 

Teachers and staff in the DeKalb County School District have gotten to know her since kindergarten, but with virtual learning, it's up to Williams to do her best to guide her daughter along. 

"It's frustrating. It's very frustrating. I have to sit there with her from 8:30 to almost 2 o'clock and I'm trying to figure out how am I going to do this when I'm trying to work," Williams said. 

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She returns to work next week. 

Williams said the teacher does take time to modify the lesson for Jasmine, but it's just not enough for her to follow along. 

She's also worried the time the teacher takes to modify the lesson for Jasmine will cause disruptions for the other students. 

 "I think it's kind of frustrating for kids that are learning this way because they don't have a disability. They have to wait for one teacher to teach one person in the class," Williams said. 

She said it's a helpless feeling to watch her child fall through the cracks. 

"It's not fun to watch for eight hours a day that your child just sitting there in front of a computer and not knowing what is going on. It's scary, actually," Williams said. 

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