Special Needs Children and Public Schools

By: Edward Valentine - [family/parenting]
Parents of special needs children know that the school environment can be tricky for their youngsters.
It's a place full of rules and regulations to follow, stressful work that has to get done, other children to learn to socialize with and more. School is outside the comfort zone mom and dad can establish at home for a physically or emotionally challenged child, and each day presents numerous situations a special needs child may have a hard time coping with.
Parents of special needs children want them to be as comfortable as possible in the school environment, to have their needs understood - and met -- and for them to come home every day feeling good about themselves.
Often, these are not easy objectives to accomplish.
The public school's Special Education process is a complex one to navigate. The process will go by different names depending upon where you are located, but it includes meetings between parents, counselors, teachers, school administrators, Special Education staff and others to formulate an Individual Education Plan (IEP) for a special needs child. It may also include testing, loads of paperwork to fill out, voluminous reports to read and understand and legal issues to comprehend.
The process can be too much to handle for an unprepared parent, can lead to misunderstandings and have an adverse effect on a child's school experience. It can also be complicated if the child is not identified as having special needs until he or she has already entered the school system. That raises the issue of how to go about requesting - and getting - testing to determine whether or not your child should be identified as having special needs.
The keys to making the process work for your child?
Education officials, Special Education service providers, advocacy groups and parents agree that there are two primary factors - parental education and consistent, constructive communication between a parent and school.
''Parents have to learn how to navigate the process,'' said Connie Curtin, Director of the Vermont Parent Information Center. ''How does the process work, what can you contribute, what rights do you have, who are the people you are going to be interacting with, and where do you get support if you need it?''
''The system is in crisis and you have to be there,'' said Jane Floethe-Ford, Director of Education for Parents Helping Parents in California (www.php.com). ''When you know what your rights are you can be a better participant.''
Cindy Conway's 10-year-old son, Christopher, has Cerebral Palsy. Christopher attends George Washington School in Brunswick, New York and, when he entered, was the school's only wheelchair-bound student.
''The most important thing is an open door of communication between educators and parents,'' said Conway. ''It works best when everybody has the same goal.
''What you all want is what's best for the child.''
Conway says parents must speak out.
''You have to advocate on behalf of your child. No one is going to do that for you,'' she said. ''I feel very comfortable reminding them (school staff members) you have him five 51/2-hour sessions each week. I have him 24 hours, 7 days.''
Sharman Davis Barrett is co-director of the Parent Advocacy Center for Education Rights (PACER). She says parents need to seek assistance from the parenting groups and training centers in their areas.
''This is so complicated,'' said Barrett. ''It's important that people find the organizations and agencies that are able to help them.''
PACER is one of those groups. Visit their Web site at www.pacer.org.
Another great place to begin looking for support is through the Parent Training and Information Center in your state. You can find regional lists of PTI centers at http://www.taalliance.org/centers/index.htm.
Parent to Parent organizations, which operate in most states, are also good resources. To find out how to contact the Parent to Parent group closest to you, visit the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities Web site at www.nichcy.org/index.html.
For a downloadable copy of the U.S. Department of Education's Guide to the IEP (In PDF or Word format), visit http://www.ed.gov/parents/landing.jhtml and click on 'Disabilities.'
If you are overwhelmed, confused or feel you are not effectively advocating for your child, remember that you can bring representation to meetings with you - whether that be a parent advocate or a lawyer well-versed in special education law.
Asking questions when meeting with team members is also important.
''If you don't understand, ask for an explanation,'' said Jim DiLorenzo, Supervisor of the State Education Department's Eastern Regional Special Education office. ''Don't leave with a lack of understanding. Leave with next steps.''
School systems, says Curtin, will strive to give students an appropriate level of services while parents, of course, seek the best of everything for their child. That means the process often becomes a ''contentious'' one. Maintaining a positive parent-to-school relationship is essential, however.
''Keep the focus on the child and try not to let your differences get in the way,'' said Curtin. ''Develop a relationship with the team. Be open and honest, that will go a long way toward preventing disagreements.''
Some states, said PACER's Barrett, have begun using a 'Facilitated IEP' process, using a non-biased mediator to ''keep the peace'' during IEP meetings.
''The ultimate goal is to give the child the best education they can get,'' said Barrett. ''At times personalities, control issues, all of that comes into play.''
Floethe-Ford agreed, saying parents can often feel like they are in an ''in-law relationship'' with other team members.
''You can be right,'' said. ''But the bottom line is to help this child.''
Formalizing some form of communication between home and school, via a journal, notebook or regularly scheduled progress report, can help.
Conway uses a daily journal.
''I find that very helpful,'' she says. ''Even if I don't have anything to write, I write something.''
In the end, says Curtin, parents who ask questions, keep in constant, positive communication with school officials, and who understand what their child is entitled to and how to facilitate it, will have a better chance at a positive outcome.
''Parents have a perspective on a child that is very critical to developing an education plan,'' she said. ''The school sees a slice of the child, not the whole child.''

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Other useful Web sites:
http://specialed.about.com/
www.wrightslaw.com/
www.pacer.org
www.eparent.com
www.fape.org
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Books:
'The Complete IEP Guide: How to Advocate for Your Special Ed Child,' by Lawrence M. Siegel.
'Negotiating the Special Ed Maze. A Guide for Parents and Teachers,' by Winifred Anderson, Stephen Chitwood and Diedre Hayden.
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The following are excerpts from a tip sheet from the Technical Assistance Alliance for Parent Centers (www.taalliance.org):

Before the IEP team meeting:

- Request a written copy of your child's evaluation results or a meeting with school staff to discuss the evaluation before the IEP meeting. This gives you an opportunity to understand the evaluation before the IEP team meeting for your child.
- Consider the evaluation results. Do these results fit with what you know about your child? Is the evaluation complete and accurate? If you disagree with the school's evaluation, you may request, in writing, an independent educational
evaluation (IEE) at no cost to you. The school must pay for the evaluation or show the due process hearing officer that its evaluation is appropriate. The results of an IEE must be considered by the IEP team in planning your child's IEP.
- If needed, plan to bring someone with you to the meeting with knowledge or special expertise regarding the child, such as a spouse, relative, friend, related service personnel or representative from a local disability organization.

At the IEP team meeting:

The IEP meeting is very important. You, the school personnel, and other IEP team members attending the meeting will review and discuss information about your child to develop the IEP. It provides an excellent opportunity to ask
questions and share important insights about your child, whom you know better than anyone else does. The school needs to know what your child is like at home and in the community, as well as what your child's interests and activities
are.

- Be a good listener. Ask questions.
- Make sure you understand. If you don't understand something, ask to have it explained in a way that you can understand.
- You may not want to agree to a proposed IEP at the end of the meeting. Review the proposed IEP document at home. If you disagree with what is being proposed in the IEP document, you must notify the school as soon as possible to resolve the disagreement.
After the IEP team meeting:

- Your child's IEP must be reviewed at least once a year to determine whether the annual goals have been achieved and to revise the IEP if necessary.
- You may request an IEP meeting at any time during the year if you believe it is important to consider changes in your child's IEP.

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