Child is at private school. Quite bright but it takes her longer than normal time to complete tasks and some tests, hard to stay focused, etc.
School has an Executive Functioning Coach. Before I call, what is the normal role of this position…and does it vary in a private school setting.
And do private schools accept IEPs?
Executive Functioning Coach??! When my kids were in elementary school, a couple of kids in their classes had “shadows,” but those kids were much more disruptive than it sounds like your kid is. Executive Functioning Coach sounds…it just sounds like a therapist couched in new-agey terms so that kids don’t feel bad about the stigma of going to a psychologist.
What I am hoping is that it is someone in the school that child could meet with on a set schedule who would also help or guide her through the many multitasking responsibilities HSers have. She is at the top for standardized testing for the school but not as capable with the mass juggling and timeframes. Bigger problem as courses become more in-depth etc.
A friend of mine used one for her child for awhile. The coach would meet with the child, go over their classes and upcoming projects, essays, tests, help them devise a plan of attack and act as a liaison between the teachers and the school and the child. My friend said that she did this to try to preserve a relationship with her child because she felt like they had developed a warden-inmate dynamic where she was constantly trying to help with management skills and her child was resisting… Their relationship improved a bit. I am not sure what happened overall but her tension level diminished somewhat.
Thank you. If a service like that is included in our tuition, that would be wonderful. One can hope!
We are in public school so my friend paid privately.
In most boarding schools a child is assigned an academic advisor. In my son’s case they meet at least weekly to go over how he is doing. I would imagine that the time could be used to help child to organize herself, but it isn’t anything formal.
@JenJenJenJen think of the executive functioning coach as advisor/tutor not a therapist. Think of the role of a learning specialist. The EF specialist works with the child to show tools like organizational tools.
Look at a few schools that have academic support - Berkshire, Chapel Hill Chauncey Hall and Proctor come to mind and see what they say about this. IEP are not accepted at private schools but some help may be available (esp. time extensions on standardized tests, allowing typing notes in classes, extra homework support).
If you’re child has a Neuropsch evaluation and it recommends accommodations, the school should accept it. That hasn’t been our experience
Executive Functioning support helps strengthen ability to organize materials, break big assignments down into smaller chunks, meet deadlines and make homework load manageable - I imagine very similar to your counselor or point person for an IEP. It has nothing to do with emotional support (although I think it can be a huge help with confidence etc) Kids with ADD or NVLD often benefit from support like this. The coach may be a point person for other teachers and trouble shoot issues that come up and give teachers guidance re how to best work with an individual’s learning style or they may just offer a more general check-in or study skills group. Hard to know but based on title, it sounds more like the former. I don’t think the title is common but the job would complement or equal academic support typically offered. Our experience with IEPs is that many schools will ask to see an IEP and/or neuropsych eval when you enroll or apply to judge fit and arrange proper support but won’t rely in it afterwards.
A lot of schools have a “learning center” of some sort and offer differing levels and types of support, including for executive function, which may range from tutoring on an as-needed basis to a structured schedule with a learning specialist, depending on need. The cost can vary from an hourly rate to a per-semester charge or other flat charge, depending on the school. This is different from the kid’s advisor and also a step up from just seeking help from an individual teacher from time to time. We sought out schools that offer structured academic support; it is typically listed under the “Academics” or “Special Programs” tab on school web sites. In the range of schools we were looking at, it is commonplace.