Mentally handicapped accommodations

Parents Forum
41

<p>Naturally, Yes, Mr. S. is definitely the most negative teacher I’ve ever met. </p>

<p>Hope4freeride and Kelsmom, I’ve also heard that about Albert Einstein somewhere. I am checking into moving to another district. I called the Board of Education; and unfortunately, if I live in one district and want to have J attend school in another district, the tuition would be $11,000 a year. I’m considering moving to another district. The city I’m in is very small. I’m thinking if we moved to a larger district, they would have more to offer. I’m going to see about setting up a meeting with one of the schools he would potentially go to first, though, if we go that route rather than online schooling. Thanks for the information about intermediate school districts/county districts. I’ll check into that. I also like the idea about his possibly going to the community college here while still under the IEP. </p>

<p>Compmom, thanks for all your valuable ideas. I’m hoping our community college has the Pathways program. I think that would be ideal for Jonathan.</p>

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<p>Icedragon, That’s exactly what I was looking for. Jonathan just needs extra time to take the tests. He used to have someone read him the questions, but he doesn’t require that anymore. I also think a taperecorder would be useful. I checked out our community college, and they also have a disabilities office. Thanks for the information.</p>

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Couldn’t you also just rent someplace in the other district to be allowed to attend school there?</p>

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<p>Yes. I’m a single mom, though, so I wouldn’t be able to afford renting both places. It would be worth it to me to move if he could get a better education, as I am renting the house I am living in now.</p>

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<p>Not a problem. :slight_smile: Glad I could help.</p>

<p>A thought, it would be a good idea to look into a larger school district area. Though don’t rule out online schooling yet. I went through one for my last three years of high school, and it was great :)</p>

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<p>If the student just needs extra time for tests, but is otherwise studying more or less the same things other college-prep kids are studying (Algebra II, Geometry or Trig; the third year of a foreign language; English; History; Chemistry, Physics or Biology) then on what basis is he deemed mentally ■■■■■■■■? Who did this diagnosis? What tests did they give him? How recent was this test?</p>

<p>I’d march into the office Monday morning and ask to see all his records. Something is very, very fishy here. It does not sound to me like the school is following the law.</p>

<p>I’d also consider, if it was at all financially possible, taking him to a private psychologist who could give him a testing workup. You need to understand exactly what his issues are, and so does he. </p>

<p>All of us with kids with disabilities wish we’d done some things differently. But you need to start where you are. Find out what the right diagnosis is for your son, and demand that your school give him an appropriate education.</p>

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<p>Icedragon, that’s great to know. I definitely haven’t given up on it. If it would work out for him, I’d prefer that to moving since we’ve lived in this city for 18 years. </p>

<p>Cardinal Fang, the diagnosis was done by the school psychologist in kindergarten. This was after some type of test was done–I’m not sure what it was. The only other major tests he’s had have been the SAT and recently the OGT. I’m going to see if possibly my insurance would cover his seeing a private psychologist. As far as going in the office Monday, I do plan on doing that. And, you’re right, I guess we all wish we’d done some things differently. I’m just glad I happened upon this site while he’s still in high school. Thanks for your information.</p>

48

<p>As much as this is based on anecdotal evidence, I feel like I should say it in case it helps in the least:</p>

<p>I live in southern Ohio, took the OGT a few years ago in a public high school, and have taken two or three “average” or “college prep” classes probably comparable to what your son has taken. That being said, I cannot imagine a person being able to get As in a regular class, even a lower-level class, and then failing portions of the OGT. Of my classmates who did fail a portion or two, nearly all also routinely failed classes. I think it is rather strange that your son is able to get high grades in regular classes but is not able to pass the OGT. I am also very surprised that your son in is both the special ed program and regular classes, as that was never done, to my knowledge, at my high school, where we have a sizable special ed program that draws students from an adjoining district. All in all, I think your situation, and your son’s situation, is very odd, and I must agree with most of the other posters in urging you to ensure that the school is doing what it ought to help your son pursue whatever it is he wishes to pursue.</p>

49

<p>My questions are the same as Thumpers. Not understanding the IEP process after 10 years is a BIG problem. You should have signed and been given a copy of it every year! . If he is mild MR, he might be eligible for transitional services via regional center as well. He may get educational support until he is 21 years old, regardless of the type of diploma he gets. While forum advice is well intended, I do NOT think you should give up those benefits in exchange for access to regular classes. You shouldn’t have to. Here in California, an IEP and special ed is very expensive, and nobody gets it without serious documentation of eligibility, with a big re-evaluation every three years. It can get a little sloppy in high school. FWIW, a physician is NOT qualified to do it. Only a psychologist. I do know kids who have some special ed, and some mainstream classes.</p>

<p>Oh, and the “loser” comment seems way over the top.</p>

50

<p>db – </p>

<p>It seems important to keep in mind that there are two issues for the school to deal with. First, getting your son retested and then using the results of the tests and the recommendations of the testing psychologist to come up with a new and better plan to educate him. Second, dealing with the teacher who has been behaving so unprofessionally.</p>

<p>When you go into the school on Monday, make sure you let them know that you want your son retested immediately. As in, get it on the schedule next week. Although private testing would probably be helpful and give you a lot of insight, if the school district employs or contracts with a licensed clinical psychologist who does a lot of educational testing, this will save you a ton of money and be an excellent first step. Testing that was done in kindergarten, 11 years ago, doesn’t cut it, and violates the law six ways to Sunday if your son has been in a special education program. You need to find a correct diagnosis for you son in order to be able to help him best and make plans for his further education.</p>

<p>Please take a look at the posts above that lay out what a child with intellectual challenges or learning disabilities is entitled to. Special ed teachers and advocates have posted here, with extensive, accurate information for you. Please make notes and ask your school why things have been happening differently for your son. I would agree that it makes no sense that your son is doing so well in regular classes if there is an intellectual deficit serious enough to keep him in special ed for all these years.</p>

<p>If there is a way you can connect with an outside advocate, perhaps through one of the organizations that earlier posters have suggested, I think it would be a good idea. The situation you describe is very confusing, and it might take an outside person with only your son’s best interests (and not the interests of the school district) at heart to get to the bottom of it and help you negotiate with the school.</p>

<p>Also, before you go in, please write a very well organized list of all the different things the teacher has said to your son. If you have approximate dates (such as “in early November, just after my son asked to sign up for xyz”), that would be helpful. The teacher’s comments are unacceptable, and the principal needs all of the facts in order to investigate. </p>

<p>Finally, and I’m really hoping this is an off the wall question that doesn’t apply to you at all, but in my part of the country not all that long ago, several districts were found to have made a habit of dumping mostly minority boys into special ed and then leaving them there. Many of these students did not belong in special ed, and they were deprived of an appropriate education. If you are a racial minority with a child who has been in special ed based on a test he took 11 years ago, was never retested, and who gets A’s and B’s in some regular academic classes, it might be good to find yourself a lawyer in case the scenario from my region is being played out in your district.</p>

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Students in the Cleveland public schools and many other large school systems throughout Ohio routinely get many A’s in high school classes and then fail parts of the OGT.</p>

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<p>Muskingum College has outstanding support for kids with learning disabilities of any kind. The Guidance Counselors at our h.s. highly recommend this school for kids who need a bit of extra help in college. It is in New Concord, pretty much right in the middle of Ohio.
[Muskingum</a> College: Center for Advancement of Learning](<a href=“http://www.muskingum.edu/home/cal/index.html]Muskingum”>http://www.muskingum.edu/home/cal/index.html)</p>

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<p>These schools offer High School diplomas through correspondence or on-line.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.americanschoolofcorr.com%5B/url%5D”>http://www.americanschoolofcorr.com</a>
[Wisconsin</a> Virtual Academy](<a href=“http://www.k12.com/wiva/]Wisconsin”>Meet the Teachers - K12)</p>

54

<p>Sadly, in our state, they have changed the policy about re-evaluations. The parent can request one at any time, but (and I am paraphrasing) if the school system determines that the nature of the disability is unlikely to change significantly, they are no longer trquiring the re-eval every 3 years. That said, with the shift to a RTI model ( thats Response to Intervention) they do haveto identify what they are remediating and they do measures to monitor the response to the intervention. This differs, though from a full psych, psychoed, or neuropsych eval.</p>

55

<p>Federal requirements include re-evaluation of students in special education every three years. Districts cannot waive this. Jym…what state are you in?</p>

<p>I would like to help this mother but, as sad as I am for her situation, I am starting to wonder if it’s real given the inconsistencies in her story. (She also mentioned that she has two kids in community college, but later mentioned that one of her kids is an engineering graduate and also <em>in</em> an engineering program, presumably at a university? Not to mention the problems with the main story…) I also work as an special education advocate and can certainly recommend fine ones in her state, as well as a listserv she can join dedicated to parents, attorneys and advocates called COPAA. As far as extra time on tests, if her child is classified as she says, then extra time is usually the first thing districts will offer since it costs them nothing. The district will also have to have submitted paperwork in order to give the child extra time on the SATs/ACTs, and for that they would need testing that is dated within the last three years.</p>

<p>I really hope the OP is not playing with us, as there are so many kids that really need help and need the focus of all of the attention and good advice that has been posted here.</p>

56

<p>Readytoroll:
From the Federal register/state guidelines: <a href=“2”>quote</a> Must occur at least once every 3
years, unless the parent and the public
agency agree that a reevaluation is
unnecessary.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1414(a)(2))
§ 300.304 Evaluation procedures.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I’ve heard folks mention that sometimes they choose not to reevaluate if there is concern that a child may no longer meet criteria for eligibility for services</p>

57

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<p>You would need to check but in MOST STATES, the school of attendance is where the child RESIDES. If a family rents in Town A, but lives in a place in Town B…the child goes to school in Town B where he lives. </p>

<p>In fact, folks who OWN properties in two places can only have residency for school purposes in ONE place…the place where they live.</p>

<p>I’m also going to voice an alternate opinion here…moving in 11th grade is tough on most kids. They have to make new friends, get used to a new school and teachers and curriculum, and EC activities. It’s not an easy thing for many students. In fact, given the choice, I know parents who deferred a move because they didn’t want to move their kid so close to the end of the high school time.</p>

<p>There just seems to be a missing piece to this story. The OP shoud absolutely contact the administration of the school and express their concerns. BUT I do have to ask…has this PARENT spoken to the teacher about this situation? Moving may solve this issue, and it may not. If the student has learning needs, a new district will (hopefully) identify those as well. Some of the same concerns could come up again.</p>

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<p>This is not true. The special education team is STILL required to determine continuing eligibility and disability every three years. What has changed is that the team can make this detemination based on information they have already. For example, if a child has had several reevals (three year evals) and has a dx of intellectual disability, the team could agree that an IQ test does not need to be done again. BUT if the team (including the parents) believes that the IQ is not reflective of an intellectual disability, they would HAVE TO do another IQ test to verify this.</p>

<p>If a child, for example, has a diagnosis of autism, and was evaluated more than once in those reeval and that was the dx, the team could determine that an evaluation was not necessary to reestablish the disability.</p>

<p>In all the above cases, the team would still be REQUIRED to determine present levels of educational performance for that child at the three year evaluation mark. There is no way to develop the goals/objectives for an IEP without this information.</p>

<p>There is a VERY missing link in the OPs story. NO CHILD can be evaluated in kindergarten and NEVER be evaluated again until 10th grade and remain in special education. At some point, the school would have been required to provide updated assessment data information in the 10 years since kindergarten.</p>

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<p>thumper-
I happen to be meeting with a school psychologist tomorrow. The information I posted above was from her. I’ll reconfirm it, but I am relaying what she has stated. They are not required redo a psych eval if the school and parents do not think it is necessary (see post #56).</p>

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<p>jym…the school psych part might not be redone IF the team agrees. In the case of this OP, SHE (the parent) would have had to AGREE that this component of the reeval was not necessary. Regardless…current levels of educational performance are still required at the reeval. There is NO WAY to continue an IEP without them.</p>