I am just looking for a little perspective. My son has epilesy. It also turned out he has some auditory issues. He didn't do great in Pre-K last year, but they waited until March to tell us, and at that point they said he shouldn't go to kindergarten. We worked really hard since April to get him diagnosed, treated, and tutored so he could go to kindergarten. We also worked with the public schools on an IEP, and with out local parish school to see if they would give him another try (that is where he did Pre-K).
Earlier this week I talked t the state department of education about a problem I had with our IEP, and basically I was told my county is doing it correctly. Get this -- To have my son's auditory issue recognized he has to do poorly on a standardized test; however it is the state's recommendation that the county not give, nor accept, the standardized test scores because his epilepsy makes him different from the reference pool used to develop the test. In short, in order to get his problem recognized, I need a test, they won't give him, or accept if we have someone else give him.
I wasn't worried about that craziness too much because a few weeks ago our parish school changed their mind and said our son could come back. However, friday I had a meeting with the teachers and found out that when they said he could come parttime, they meant 1.5 hours per day! We were thinking half day, which isn't that strange for kindergarten.
The cathlic school starts Monday and the public school starts the following week, and I have no idea what I am doing? Any advice, suggestions? I would love to hear them.
ijust want to cry!
Thanks everyone. My husband is a lawyer and works for a disability group. We have already consulted an attorney (other than my husband, who doesn't litigate). We know what we need to do to fix the problem, but we cannot fix it before next Monday.
More importantly, the cathlic school has treated us really badly. We think. Solving the problem, isn't the issue. The issue is my son is five and wants to go to kindergarten like everyone else, and he isn't able. When I told him he would have to leave school at 9:30 and all the other kids would stay, he said :"No, I want to go to kindergarten. I want to be wiht my friends. I'll be good I promise. Please."
Kindergarten.... I have previously learned on my own... is NOT "mandatory" in some States, nor is it a "Prerequisite" for 1st Grade.
Here is a link for each State's requirements:
http://mb2.ecs.org/reports/Report.aspx?id=32
If you're feeling as if the Catholic school isn't treating you well, it's likely that the setting isn't capable of supporting your son's needs. You might benefit from researching other schools that have better supports in place to meet his needs. In the meantime, reassure your son that his not being able to stay the whole day is not because of an issue of misbehavior, but concerns related to the teachers being worried they cannot do the right thing for him, including ensuring his safety. It might be helpful to establish some special activities for him after his half school day is completed.
Read up on ACT 504.... Rehabilitation Act... Mainly is a law that protects people with disabilities. With your son not being tested yet try finding a family counselor or psychiatrist that does testing to back you up (that is what my parents did when I barely made it through grade school and the school system was refusing to get me tested, instead the schools called me lazy, as soon as a professional said that YES there is this issue DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT NOW the school system changed it tune). I used Act 504 A LOT fighting my way through highschool and college, I am ADD & Dyslexic, and there were laws/rules to follow to "even" out the "playing field" like allowed longer time to take a test or the test questions had to be read for me (it is amazing with that I could get an A or B but taking it in a smaller amount of time I would get a D or F). Any way, they can not deny your child from the classroom, keep asking for testing from the school and do not let up. In some school systems it is a FIGHT do what you think is best for your child! Ask the school what you need to do, meet all those requirements and do not let them give you the run around, I had to threaten bring in laywers because my college was giving me the run around and was not going to let me graduate even though I did EVERYTHING they asked me to do, and I was getting decent grades (C or above).
I know in MA you can fight the school if your child has a medical diagnosis. I suggest looking into a child advocate. I have heard they can be costly but in Ma there are some that will do a sliding scale or no fee if your income is low. That is horrible that they won't test him and if he is tested they won't accept it. I have never heard such a crazy thing. I had issues w/ my son's school not following an IEP and the second I told them I was done dealing w/ them and getting an advocate they all bent over and kissed my @$$ I even got a call from the superintendent and my son's teacher later that day apologizing to me.
Edit: I do want to say that unfortunately some schools like to make it hard. When my son was in first grade the school he went to didn't even suggest that he should be screened until mid April and they knew we were moving and would be in a different district for second grade so they kept putting it off first thing I did at his new school's open house was speak to the special ed department and they were great about testing him, getting an iep, etc our only issue was getting his teacher to follow it last year. That's when I said fine I'm getting an advocate and you can speak directly to her from now on....next day his iep was followed to a T. Sometimes you have to be a big b*&%# to get what your child needs. I also think that if the Catholic school won't give you what you need that your best bet might be to go to a public school because I am not sure that a private school has to follow the same laws as public ones.
So they want him to skip Kinder, but go to school starting in 1st?
I'm not sure that I understand why they think this is best.
or is it that they want to just delay Kinder for another year?
Special Ed is a strange world...I have worked in it (public schools) and also have a child in it (now in middle school).
Make sure you know your rights, and I would double check the "state recommendation" if you have not spoken with someone from the State about it.
Our school staff lied to us about policies and stalled us for 5 months when we tried to have our son tested (which they are required to do, and there is a specific time frame). We threatened to sue, and suddenly it wasn't so hard afterall...
Look for a parent support group/special ed family support in your area.
And go ahead and cry...it's hard to deal with all of this, it's worth a cry.
I can't help you with the issue specifically, but know that in some places there are charitable organizations that help parents get through the special ed/IEP system. Sometimes, they can help you find or pay for a lawyer, if necessary. You may want to google to see if there are any such organizations in Virginia; if you can't find them, then I would recommend asking national organizations advocating for epilepsy and/or auditory issues whether they can recommend local organizations who may be able to help.
Best of luck -
Both schools are in the wrong! There is a very important law that you need to become familiar with. Americans With Disabilities Act or ADA.
In this law, there is a specific section, 504, that deals with the Education opportunities of students with disabilities. Schools MUST offer children with disabilities the same opportunities to learn and grow that they offer the mainstream student body.
Here is a good summary of the law.
http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/section504.ada.peer.htm
That means that the Chatholic school cannot limit your son to just 1.5 hours a day unless that is all their program runs. That also means that the public school cannot deny your son a hearing test that would be offered to other students, just because he has a known condition.
Good luck and stay strong.
M.
I'm so sorry you're having to deal with this. You sound like a staunch advocate for your son. However, many mothers of special needs children choose to homeschool because of the exact type of issues you're having now. Maybe it's something to think about?
Did you ever (sorry to put in even earlier, that was not what I meant to write!) find an advocate to help you M.?
You are describing a typical catch 22 kind of quagmire, but when you become outraged about it, you stall and they get the desired effect...you appear to be just another angry parent (angry, not because of what the school does, but because you have a disabled child- something that school lawyers like to pin on you if you so that they can explain why you are "overracting" so- It would totally surprise me if this were not the first thing the schools lawyer says to the Hearing officer, so be ready!)
I still think that an advocate can help you smooth things over with the school, and while the school may be within the DOE's deffiniton of correctness, they always have the descretion to take another route, if you have the relationship and the advocacy skills to make them willing to work with you!
Since you are in Virgina, have you tried to contact Pete and Pam Wright? They are right in your back yard, and if you are hiring lawyers, you may as well get the best! They really do know when to push, when to negotiate, and how to build relationships with schools so that children benefit.
M.
A primer on the laws related to special education (because there seems a to be a bit of confusion out there!)
IDEA- Indviduals with Disabilities Act. The primary federal statute that grants chidren with disablities the right to a free and appropriate public education (FAPE). A procedure based statute that is codified by the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and further defined by each state into state education codes. Serves as the funding mechanism for states and their public schools to pay for special education services (funded at a 40% level currently.) Parents of and children with disablitlies have specific (limited) rights under this statute.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (enacted prior to IDEA) Grants civil rights to persons with disablities to access public education. Grants some children who do not meet the standard for IDEA access to education through less codified standard of "access" via accomodation. Administered by the Office of Civil Rights (OCR)
ADA Americans with Disablies Act (early 90's) Federal statute that governs access to all public services and buildings, which includes schools. Grants more civil rights than section 504. Also administered by OCR.
NCLB: No Child Left Behind Holds public schools to critical standards that roughly translate into the requirement that children make yearly progress. No indivdual rights are granted through this act, but savvy parents can use the scores from any additional testing promulgated to show progress through NCLB to access services through either IDEA or section 504 of the rehabiltation act.
sounds like a classic case of catch twenty two.alot of state run agencies are doing things like that now , so that the parents will get tired of waiting for offical approval, and will simply pay for something out of their own pockets.what to do about it, simple. the next time they give you the run around, tell thats ok, the next time i have to come in here, i am bringing a news crew. they will suddenly decide to play nice. especially if you call the american civil liberties union and ask that they get in touch with these agencies
K. h.
you are a mother, nobody said you had to play nice.
Are his auditory issues one of not hearing or of not processing? It does make a difference in how the issue is addressed. If it's a not processing issue it is covered by a different law than that Americans with Disabilities Act. I don't remember the legal title or the common name for it but there is a law related to "no child left behind" focus.
There are professionals who deal with this act and the IEP. I learned of organizations and professional and support groups by looking up learning disabilities, IEP on the Internet.
My grandson is now 7 and was evaluated and been in treatment thru the school system since he was 2 1/2. His mother just learned about developmental pediatricians the first of this year. My grandson is being evaluated for various issues thru referrals from the developmental pediatrician. It is my understanding that the school district will accept his outside diagnosis because they do not have the means to evaluate him further. I wonder if there is someone who can test him and provide the necessary documentation that would get him into Kindergarten.
My grandson is in a special education classroom because of speech and behavior difficulties. The school district has diagnosed his behavior difficulties as oppositional defiance disorder but the preliminary diagnosis made by the developmental pediatrician is ADHD and some form of autism. He has begun medication is managing his behavior better. This causes us to have hope that he will be able to receive more help.
Perhaps you're wanting to get him into a regular classroom and that may make a difference. Perhaps he has difficulty hearing rather than processing what he hears and that would make a difference. If his epilepsy is under control I don't understand why it would be an issue.
I sympathize with you and your son. This is a big disappointment. It will take time to work this situation out. Perhaps he could attend a private preschool and thus feel that he is at least in school. Obviously not the Catholic one. My granddaughter attended a small and flexible preschool at a protestant church.
Sounds like you've done and are doing all that you can do. Find a way to relax, realizing that this is a disappointment but you will get past it. If you can accept the delay, your son will also be able to take it in stride.
Is it possible to enroll him in both? Does the public school do half day kindergarten? Morning at the private school and afternoon at the public, for instance. Or maybe offer to stay with him in the private setting until he adjusts.
Generally, to receive spec ed services for a problem such as hearing, it has to be having an impact on his learning. If it's affecting his learning (according to his teachers), regardless of standardized testing he should be getting some help. There are also ways to get services for other medical issues that is not necessary through an IEP but something similar. I imagine this varies a bit by state.
I'm sorry you're going through this! It's hard when we want the best for our children and it's so confusing.
There has to be some sort of advocate for parents that works in your district. Keep diggin and DO NOT give up. BE LIKE A PIT BULL - TENACIOUS. That means you don't stop focusing on what's best for your son till you get what you know he needs and sometimes that's butting heads with people but remember this always - NO ONE will fight for your child like you will. I had to do this with my son and it was hard - it was really hard but in the end we got the services we needed for him. Ask them exactly just what is it you can do to get him what he needs and make them put EVERYTHING In writing no matter how much they hem and haw. Good luck.
Most private schools are not equipped to properly test for or teach to children with learning disabilities. They typically receive no governmental funding and so tuition would be exorbitant to pay for special ed teachers, etc. That is why you don't often see this option available. Physical disabilities are a different issue, for example proper access to facilities, computers with accessibility modes, assistance for blind, deaf students, etc. Public schools are mandated and funded to teach all children with learning difficulties regardless. If the private school treated you badly, that is wrong, but if they simply cannot accommodate, that is a very common situation. I too cannot understand why controlled epilepsy is a problem in regards to testing parameters, etc. It is not typically associated with learning difficulties, but is more of a physical care and safety issue. Shouldn't have any effect whatsoever on his education, learning etc. from the school's standpoint. Keep fighting, I know it's hard but you are your son's best advocate. Please let us know how this turns out, and God bless you all!
