Reconciling Ecological Educational Planning with Access to the Common Core: Putting the Cart before the Horse?: A Response to Hunt and McDonnell

Hunt, McDonnell, and Crocket (2012) highlight the current curriculum debate occurring in the area of severe disabilities and suggest that that a middle ground exists between these competing views: one emphasizing the general curriculum (e.g., Common Core) for all students and the other one stressing an ecological approach focused on current and future student needs. Their effort at reconciling these vying points is, in part, a way to provide educators with a framework to navigate the demands of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the needs of students not captured by typical educational standards. The field needs an open, in-depth, and scientific discussion on this matter; any less would be unjust. In this brief commentary, the author hopes to draw attention to some of the ideas proposed by Hunt et al., first at the individual level and then at the broader level of the field at large.