| Author |
Message |
    
Aruba18
| | Posted on Friday, February 16, 2001 - 6:48 am: |     |
Has anyone had any experience with having a child classified (for whatever reasons, be it learning disabled or health problems) and tried to work with the Special Ed office? I would appreciate any and all comments, good and bad, etc. |
Spw784
| | Posted on Sunday, February 18, 2001 - 8:58 pm: | |
All I've heard is that the process is very long and time consuming. Good Luck. |
Nakaille
| | Posted on Monday, February 19, 2001 - 11:12 am: | |
Make sure you put your request for a child study team eval in writing. State your concerns clearly (e.g. learning problems in specific areas, attention problems, behavioral problems, health problems making it difficult to attend school regularly, etc.) Ask (politely) for the time frame in which it will be done.
Bacata |
Cbbk
| | Posted on Monday, February 19, 2001 - 10:22 pm: | |
Make sure you put your request in writing, dated, and if mailing, certified return receipt. It is a long process. Keep notes if you speak to anyone via telephone and send a letter summarizing telephone conversation, keep all correspondence. Most of all be persistant.
Good Luck. |
Jem
| | Posted on Tuesday, February 20, 2001 - 7:25 am: | |
We've lived in three other school districts (in New York state), and to add just a bit of perspective to this discussion, not one of those districts was any easier to deal with in the matter of testing, classifying, and serving children with special needs. There were always bitter complaints from the parents of these children. It sometimes seemed as if the district psychologist's main function was to ensure that kids not be classified. It was extremely frustrating for parents, many of whom ultimately removed their children from the public schools in favor of specialized schools that could serve their children better, and for which, in many cases, the district still had to bear at least some of the cost.
This all has to do with money. On the one hand, everyone wants all of our children to be well-served, no matter what their needs. On the other hand, districts hear the constant cries for holding down costs (we "hear" them on this board, don't we?), and the costs can be very high for children with special educational needs. I'm not excusing the foot-dragging behavior on the part of any school district, but it really does have a lot more to do with budgetary constraints than with insensitivity to kids and their needs.
Just as a side note, I do know people here with a child who has been classified with special needs, and they have been very pleased with what the district offers their child in the Tuscan school. |
Aruba18
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 7, 2001 - 3:37 am: | |
To all who responded-
Thank you! Our daughter is already classified for health reasons, but the real thrust of my question, which I probably should have phrased differently, was if anyone had any experience with the Dept. of Special Ed. involving a child who must be kept out of school for health reasons and the district must provide teachers who come to the child's home. Any experience, good or bad, will be appreciated. |
Nakaille
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 7, 2001 - 10:56 am: | |
From my 10 years of experience in pediatric medical social work in Essex County I have to say that most districts I've dealt with do a very poor job on this in my opinion. (I don't have that much experience with the SOM district in particular in this regard so I will reserve specific judgement.) Lots of kids are relegated to the one hour a day, 5 days a week minimum requirement. (I've seen kids get a good deal less than that even!) Many of these kids are not getting instruction that parallels the curriculum their classmates are getting. Some do because of very conscientious tutors who consult with the classroom teacher(s) on a very regular basis. I think upper level students suffer more. Parents need to be very involved to help kids stay on top of assignments since so much of the work ends up being independent. Tutors are usually regular classroom teachers taking on part-time additional employment or substitute teachers. (There is probably a specific certification requirement but I'm not sure.)
The Essex County Educational Commission has the capacity to tutor kids while they are inpatient and possibly (I'm not certain about this) if they are home for extended periods as well. Each school district in the county decides whether or not to contract with the Commission for these services. Unless the parent/teacher/child life specialist is on top of it, some kids don't get anything until they're about to be discharged! Length of stay (admission) varies greatly and there are serious and constant pressures to get patients out of the hospital as quickly as possible so it can be hard to predict who will actually qualify for the instruction. (It's supposed to be for kids who are in a week or more.)
The Times had an interesting article recently on home instruction utilizing computer programs which might be useful for kids on extended leave due to illness. Does our district provide access to any of these programs for chronically ill kids?
In my experience the kids who have it the hardest are those whose chronic condition is usually not so bad that they are home all the time but rather are in and out, in and out of school as in 3 days here, 5 days there, 2 days another week. (I have particularly seen this problem for kids with sickle cell disease where the symptoms come and go with no predictability and both the frequency and severity of those symptoms varies greatly.)
Bacata |
Aruba18
| | Posted on Monday, March 12, 2001 - 5:03 pm: | |
Bacata-
You are so right-your experience has revealed the frustrations that run rampant with this problem.
For anyone's information, I would like to make them aware of their children's rights if their children are classified by our school district--
Classified children, whether they be classified for learning disabilities, health reasons, etc., are entitled, under the NJ Dept. of Education, Titles VI and XIII, to a MINIMUM of ten hours of instruction per week. They are also entitled to summer instruction. The parents should be as involved as possible, because, in our experience, we finally had to go to the State Dept. of Education to get the district to honor the law. The district repeatedly sent us letters denying our daughter's right to more than ten hours per week, even though she is in high school and an honors student. She is on home instruction, and has been so, for six years, due to health reasons. The state arranged a mediation between ourselves and the district, with a representative from the state acting as mediator. The state gave us copies of the laws, which give students very specific, and broad, rights. The state mediator also instructed the district to uphold our daughter's rights, which means that she is entitled to a MINIMUM of ten hours of home instruction per week.
The Essex County Education Commission is wonderful,especially Ms. Lola Thomas, the director for Essex Cty. She has bent over backwards to help find instructors for our daughter. Her assistant, Fanya, is also terrific.
Our Special Ed.department, from talking with some other parents, does not like to live up to its responsibilities. Parents need to know this so they can fight for their children's rights. |
Nakaille
| | Posted on Monday, March 12, 2001 - 5:41 pm: | |
In addition to the advocacy that SPAN (the Statewide Parent Advocacy Network) does there is also, in each county, the Special Child Health Service group. In Essex County I think they're still out in Cedar Grove but they serve the whole county. Be sure to utilize these groups if/when you have a less than satisfactory experience in this area.
Bacata |
Aruba18
| | Posted on Thursday, March 15, 2001 - 11:53 pm: | |
Bacata-
I'm familiar with SPAN, but I'm not sure about the Special Child Health Service group. Do you have any more information about it? Thank you! |
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