Real World Lessons Help New Jersey Special Education Students Find Their Place

Adam Troyer using a stationary
bike at Volt Fitness in Glen Rock.

Confronting a tidal wave of autism and other mental disorders, educators have turned to “community-based instruction,” a program that extends learning with experiences outside the classroom.
For students at the Phoenix Center in Nutley, that means phys ed includes hitting the treadmill and weights at a fitness center.
Students at the Sinai Shalem High School in Teaneck study math in class, then practice addition and subtraction by depositing coins at a bank.
And those at the Forum School in Waldwick learn patience — that absolute necessity of society — by waiting in line at a grocery store.