Across North America, families of disabled children are watching the same pattern unfold: schools promise inclusion, but the supports that make inclusion a reality are disappearing. The result is a growing crisis in which disabled students are being pushed out of classrooms not because they cannot learn, but because the systems around them are collapsing.
Reporting from CBC in Quebec and NPR in the United States, combined with the lived experiences of millions of families, reveals a shared story of kids who want to learn and parents fighting to keep them in school.
In Quebec, nine-year-old Ellie wants nothing more than to be in her classroom. She is autistic, and dyslexic. She misses her friends and the routine associated with attending school. But the specialized staff who once helped her regulate her behavior, take breaks, and build literacy skills are no longer available. Without these supports, going to school was difficult and dangerous. It was not a decision to keep her home because it was better for her, but because the school system offered them no option.
The scale of the problem, in Quebec, is staggering: the number of disabled students experiencing a lapse in services has more than doubled in four years, rising from about 1,500 in 2021 to more than 3,400 in 2025. These lapses include students being sent home, placed on part-time schedules, or left without the specialized staff needed to attend school at all. Advocates say the true number is likely even higher because many children in unstable homes are not counted. Families describe exhaustion, fear, and heartbreak. They know their children can learn and thrive with the right supports. They also know those supports are disappearing.
The NPR investigation shows that this is not just a Canadian problem. It is an international one. Across the United States, districts are facing a severe shortage of special education teachers. NPR describes classrooms where a single teacher is responsible for dozens of students with complex needs, and where schools rely on long-term substitutes who have little or no training in special education. Some districts have vacancy rates so high that they cannot legally meet the requirements of students’ individualized education programs.
Families report that their children are sent home early, placed in general education classrooms without support, or left in classrooms where staff rotate constantly. Many special education teachers leave the field because of burnout, low pay, and overwhelming caseloads. The shortage becomes a cycle. Fewer teachers means more stress for those who remain, which pushes even more educators out of the profession.
The story of twelve-year-old Dante Fowler who lives in Wakefield Massachusetts shows how devastating these failures can be. Dante has severe autism and significant support needs. His district could not provide the services required for him to attend school safely, so he spent more than a year at home. During that time, he experienced regression and self-injurious behaviors that had previously been under control. His mother became a full-time caretaker, losing income and struggling to provide the therapies and structure he needed.
After seventeen months, Dante finally received a placement in a specialized school that could meet his needs. His family describes the relief of finally having support. However, they also know that many other families remain stuck in the same impossible situation, waiting for help that may never come.
Taken together, these stories reveal an unmet reality. Inclusive education requires three key building blocks: trained staff, stable funding, and a commitment to meeting disabled students’ needs. When a school is faced with budget cuts and staffing shortages or relies on outdated structures that do not reflect the needs of today’s classrooms, the first children who miss out on their education are disabled children.
The burden falls exclusively on families. Parents quit their jobs, file legal complaints, and watch their children regress. The law that guarantees a public education for every child is often quietly ignored.
Disabled students have the right to attend school, to learn alongside peers, to receive individualized support, and to be part of their communities. These are not luxuries. They are rights.
When a school system cannot meet the needs of its most vulnerable students, it is the system that is failing. The stories from Quebec, and the United States, are a warning. A society that excludes disabled people is a society that is failing all of us. The crisis is here, and it is growing. The question now is whether we will listen.
Sources:
Henriquez, Gloria, and Isaac Olson. “Thousands of Quebec Children with Disabilities Kept out of School Due to Lack of Resources | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 8 Jan. 2026, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-schooling-students-disabilities-9.7037145.
McLaren, Mandy. “Autistic Children Denied Schooling amid Lack of Federal Funding.” The Boston Globe, Boston Globe Media, 19 June 2025, apps.bostonglobe.com/2025/06/metro/special-education-funding/.
Turner, Cory. “Why Children with Disabilities Are Missing School and Losing Skills.” NPR, NPR, 15 May 2024, http://www.npr.org/2024/05/15/1247795768/children-disabilities-special-education-teacher-shortage.