 Your child has a diagnosis- maybe from your family doctor. Maybe you've sought out expertise, had them evaluated, and got answers. Then, you bring your report to the school, or even the expert- and have been told your child doesn't qualify for special education services. What?? When you request the school take a look at your child and evaluate them, they need to either agree, or tell you why they don't think an evaluation is warranted. Often, they will point to test scores as 'evidence' that the student is fine, and that their diagnosis or disability isn't linked to any 'negative educational impact.' Here's what I think about that... The most common test I've seen used in districts throughout Chicago and the burbs is the MAP/NWEA. This is given three times a year, in the fall, winter, and spring. I actually like this test- as a teacher, I was lucky to have gotten really decent professional development in how to use the sub-scores to make effective groupings, reteach academic vocabulary, and to watch for strengths and weaknesses class wide, so it was a great tool for me. Years and years ago, we gave the ISAT- and scores came back much too late for us to adjust instruction for a particular class. I also like it because we're using the same format and norms to report on kids' progress over time. It's presented in a really nice way, as well- each item is presented on a computer screen one question at a time. It can be paused. It has accommodations built in like text to speech and screen magnification options. (After losing weeks of instructional time reading tests aloud to individual students, this text to speech thing makes me want to cry!) And it reports out with visuals that are easy to interpret. Here's the reason MAP can be so misleading- frequently students have great vocabulary, learn in class, and can use their strategies in math and reading, but have difficulty compared to peers because they need to expend extra effort or take more time. This isn't as apparent when the child is given one question, clicks once, and moves on to another task. It's much more likely to appear when the child has to get materials from point a to point b, to carry out a series of steps (especially if given in narrative form) or to carry out a project that requires sustained effort and repetition or revision. Further, report cards are really subjective, and grading varies from teacher to teacher! So while some students might be identified as struggling because they are terrible at turning in homework, others might look like they're not experiencing issues because their teachers aren't assigning grades to tasks that require the time management, planning, and organization skills I described above. If you've asked for an IEP and the school refused, especially after a diagnosis from an outside evaluator, you are undoubtedly feeling frustrated. Students who don't qualify for an IEP should be given a 504 plan with accommodations, but I worry a bit about 'accommodating' a student who has a long-term skill gap, since an accommodation is a workaround, not direct, extra instruction to help them become more independent long term. I'm going to highlight some key points from the letter released in July 2016 by the U.S. Department of Education, in an effort to clarify what schools are supposed to do to help students with ADHD. This one's a keeper- and thankfully was not rescinded with other documents in fall 2017. Here's a summary of some of the statements in the letter that may be of interest to you! The district should evaluate, as part of the 'child find' process, and student who: has an ADHD diagnosis, especially if the following signs are present: considerable restlessness or inattention inappropriate for their age and grade level, trouble organizing tasks and activities, communication or social skill deficits. (That's most of them!) GPA should not be used to exclude a child from consideration for specialized services, rather, school districts should ask how difficult it is or how much time it takes for a student with ADHD, in comparison to a student without ADHD, to plan, begin, complete, and turn in an essay, term paper, homework assignment, or exam. (Boom!) School districts run afoul of the Section 504 obligation to evaluate for disability and need for special education or related services when they: 1) rigidly insist on first implementing interventions before conducting an evaluation, or that each tier of a multi-tiered model of intervention must be implemented first, regardless of whether or not a disability is suspected and there are needs based on the disability; or 2) categorically require that data from an intervention strategy must be collected and incorporated as a necessary element of an evaluation. (If the parent has notified the school of the disability, they cannot deny or delay the evaluation so they can 'try interventions' first.) The team must consider the student, in an unmitigated state, both in and out of school. A student might not exhibit serious academic or behavioral challenges at school – perhaps due to self-management skills, or medication of which the school district may or may not be aware, or the nature of the impairment – but, in other settings, or later in the day, the limitations become more apparent and substantial. (Extra supports like therapy and medicine might help, but the school should consider their performance without them, and provide a 504 even if they are successful with the supports.) If the school district is noticing issues with a student and suspects ADHD, they need to provide a medical exam as part of the evaluation. Parents can volunteer to obtain one from their own doctor, but the school needs to make it clear that this is voluntary, and not wait on the parent's ability to access a doctor. (If I had a nickel for every time...) Finally, a gifted student may still need specific and explicit instruction on how to reliably record homework assignments, organize information into class notes, start a multi-stage project, write more efficiently, or respond to challenges to his or her attention or concentration in day-to-day activities. These could all require more support than is available in general education, and qualify as special education. The link to the letter is here. I hope that information is helpful! If you have questions, post comments here, or contact me for a free consultation. Leave a Reply. |