School/Special Education Misc

“A Pediatrician’s Perspective”

by | Jun 27, 2025 | ,

The following quote is from the Foreword of The Shut-Down Learner: Helping Your Academically Discouraged Child. I have always loved this quote and feel that it timelessly captures the impact that school struggling has upon the child and the family.

“I have been a practicing general pediatrician for more than thirty years and in the course of that time have gained some understanding of children.  Every child is different.  Every child has their own personality, temperament, strength, and cultural background.  I know that children love to learn and look forward to different learning experiences.  When things are going well, they love to go to school.  If a child in kindergarten or first grade is not enjoying school, this is a problem that needs further investigation immediately.

The work of childhood is navigating the waters of school.  For many reasons, not all children do well in school.  When children struggle in school, their whole family system is affected.  From my perspective as a pediatrician, the child’s health is affected by their negative school experiences.  Increased incidents of depression, anxiety, and family turmoil are the common side effects of school struggling.  By the time the child is in their teens, it is often too late to break the downward spiral.”

(William Sharrar, Professor of Pediatrics, UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School)

 

Does Your Child Have W.B.D. (aka “Worksheet Burnout Disorder”)?

by | Feb 20, 2025 |

This week’s post was prompted by parents who brought me reading material their child had to manage in school and with homework.  They were concerned that their child, young Brody, a seven-year-old second grader was starting to hate reading.

“We don’t understand,” said the mom. “Brody always loved books.  He couldn’t wait for us to read to him, and  he loved getting books as presents.  He would sit and look at them for a long time.”

As I perused the packet of seemingly endless worksheets, many of which were called “stories,” I started to conjecture why Brody was becoming reading resistant.   It was clear these worksheets had little redeeming value that authentic stories or literature would intrinsically have.

Worse than the stories’ lack of interest, was what Brody had to do after reading the story.  Following a “story”  there were 20 multiple choice questions for the poor kid to slog through to answer.  20!!! (Please keep in mind that Brody is only seven.  He’s not preparing for the SATs.)

Here’s one of the  20 questions after Brody’s “story:”

“If stir means, “mix by moving around with a spoon,” then stirred means:

  1.  Not mixing by moving around.
  2.  Mix by moving around with a spoon
  3.  Mixed by moving around with a spoon
  4.  Mixing by moving around with a spoon.

Mind numbed yet?  Imagine 20 of these to sort out?

I’m not exactly sure when we collectively decided to drain the joy out of reading in early childhood, but it happened some time ago perhaps when we weren’t looking.  Worksheets became the rule of the educational landscape.

The expression about the frog being boiled by degrees so he won’t jump out of the pot applies. When it comes to reading we’ve been boiled by degrees,  and we weren’t aware of it.

Even if Brody turns out to be an adequate reader upon later evaluation, the story and the 20 questions would have been stultifying to the best of students.

Twenty multiple choice questions following a faux story leads to turned-off kids, shutting them down.

Real literature ignites the imagination and gets good conversation going.   Great stories motivate kids to read more great stories.

Worksheets such as Brody’s result in what kids usually tell me – “I hate reading – it’s so boring.”

IEPs & 504s: A Brief Primer

by | Dec 5, 2024 |

Parents frequently ask about 504 Plans and IEP’s.

Before getting too far into the weeds, I will respectfully ask the parents if they know the difference between them and what they even are.

A majority of the time, I get a half shrug, coupled with a “not really.”

They’ve been told by their pediatrician or someone in their circle that they should get one, even though it’s not clear to the parent  what’s the difference between them and how they are obtained.

In brief, here’s a handy, dandy primer.

504 Plans

  • These do not provide services, only accommodations. The provision of extra time is the classic accommodation given. There are about five other typical ones.
  • To get a 504, the child needs a diagnosis of a disability stated on letterhead by a medical practitioner.
  • The vast majority of children who receive 504 Plans are those who have been diagnosed with ADHD.
  • Once you have the diagnosis on letterhead, 504’s are not all that difficult to obtain.
  • 504s are reviewed annually.

IEP  (aka Individualized Education Plan)

  • To obtain an IEP the child is deemed to be classifiable under special education categories governed by federal law. There are 13 special education categories based on Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or IDEA.  The categories are interpreted somewhat differently depending on the state you reside.
  • IEP’s are generated by the determination of the district’s special education team. An outside evaluation may offer a diagnosis, but the school’s team needs to come to their own conclusions based on their assessments.
  • The vast majority of children with IEP’s are in the category of Specific Learning Disability (SLD).
  • Compared to the relative ease of obtaining a 504, the IEP process can be lengthy and complex.
  • Frustrating to many parents, quite often a child may clearly be struggling, yet not found to be eligible for services. (See many of my blog posts under the category of “Special Education.”)
  • Different than a 504, with an IEP the child receives some level of service or intervention, along with accommodations.

Takeaway Point

Of course, there’s a lot more to it than what is indicated above, but these points will get you started.

504 Plans: Avoid Templated Accommodations

by | Oct 10, 2024 | ,

In 504 Land, one of the classic (almost knee jerk) accommodations recommended is to give an ADHD child extra time.

Let me ask you this: How many impulsive, “hurry-let’s-get-it done-style” kids do you know who want extra time?

The answer is none.

The last thing that the ADHD kids want is more time. In fact, they are looking to be the absolute first one done, regardless of the work quality.

Gavin, age 9, typifies this process on a daily basis. Rushing through his school work and homework, Gavin can’t wait to be finished.  In school he’s usually the first one done.

Gavin’s mother explains to him that the school is developing a 504 plan for him so he could have extra time on tests and school work. Gavin is stunned, in disbelief.

“Extra time???” he exclaims. “What do you mean extra time? I hate those worksheets. Why would I want to spend more time on them. I want less time!!!!”

“Oh,” his mother continues. “They are also going to offer you preferential seating so you can follow directions better. You will sit right up there next to Mrs. Smith.”

“What????,” thinks Gavin. “Am I hearing this correctly? Whose preference is this? Not mine! I prefer to be as far away from Mrs. Smith as possible. Maybe my mother prefers that spot in the classroom. Not me. That’s not preferential seating.”

504 plans may sound great on paper with a lot of wonderful accommodations. Just like a football coach who has all of his game plan mapped out before going into the game, the 504 plan documents the various and sundry ways the child will be “accommodated.”

Accommodations like extra time and preferential seating may sound good on paper, but the reality may be something very different.

The most important question to ask yourself (and the special education team) is “What specific accommodations does the child need?”

Takeaway Point

504 Plans can be very helpful for a child with a disability, but they need to be personalized to the child’s needs, not pre-templated.

“Ongoing Themes: #Dyslexia #ADHD #LD Discrepancy #504 #Parenting”

by | Mar 22, 2024 | , , , ,

Those of you following this blog for some time know there are some recurring themes in these posts (that mostly irritate me).

For others  newer to these posts, I will help to bring you up to speed with some of the predominant ones.

  1. The LD-Discrepancy Model: Easily the number one issue that gets under my skin is the LD-Discrepancy model used in many states (New Jersey being one) to classify children in special education as learning disabled.  I discussed it in my recent blog post  (https://shutdownlearner.com/ineffective-inefficient-irrational-immoral-and-indefensible/), but if If you need a primer on the LD-Discrepancy model, this is a great overview: (https://www.understood.org/en/articles/the-discrepancy-model-what-you-need-to-know). 
  2. Pathologizing Childhood: Not all child problems are neurobiological (i.e., “brain-based”) disabilities.   Some issues are just kids being kids. (Please see my blog on boy executive function deficits: https://shutdownlearner.com/?s=hypothetical ).  Also, sometimes the material being given to them is inappropriate to their level of reading ability.  That is not an “in the head” problem.  It’s a curriculum issue.
  3. “Diagnosing” ADHD Based on Small Data: Checking a few items (e.g., “Easily distractible….Inattentive, etc.”) on a rating scale like the Vanderbilt given in the pediatrician’s office is not enough.   There are a multitude of factors that could be producing the distractibility.  Many of these factors should be understood before putting a child on medication for ADHD.
  1. “We can’t diagnose dyslexia – you need to see a neurologist.” Parents are reflexively told this by the school when they raise concerns of dyslexia.   Seriously, how many neurologists or pediatricians that you know give a battery of reading, spelling and writing tests that are necessary to assess dyslexia?  At its core, dyslexia is a reading disability.  How can this be determined without a battery of reading measures?  Stop telling parents it is a medical condition.
  2. “This or That Thinking:” “I just want to get to the bottom of it,” parents will say.  “I just don’t know if it’s ADD or laziness.”   The problem as I see it is that there rarely is a bottom.  The truth is it’s almost never,  “this or that.”  With most kids it’s almost always, “this and that and that.”
  3. Overplaying 504 Plans: Listen up, gang. The reality of 504 Plans is that they do not do that much.  504s do not offer services, but basic accommodations (e.g., extended time).
  4. “Hey, Bud” Parenting: I hate to break the news to parents out there, but they are your children.  You don’t set limits with your buddies.  You set limits with children.
  5. Screen Addicts: I get it.  Times change.  I don’t get the newspaper delivered any more.  I have my phone with me most of the time and am in a froth when I can’t locate it.  With that said, kids care about little else than their screen time.   They are becoming addicted.   We’re not facing it.

 Takeaway Point:  I understand that some may think that I am just saying these things because I am at the “get off my lawn” stage of life.  Maybe it’s compounded by that fact, but I have been repeating these theme to parents for many years.

Perhaps getting it off my chest helps –  it’s still cheaper than real therapy!!!

Feel free to make comment below. 

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email: shutdownlearner1@gmail.com. 

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2023, www.shutdownlearner.com.

 

“Ineffective, Inefficient, Irrational, Immoral and Indefensible”

by | Mar 8, 2024 | ,

Most of you understand the concept of standard error of measurement (SEM).

In a nutshell, SEM tells us that on any given day that you can be within an interval of confidence that an obtained score is accurate.

For example, if the obtained IQ score is 100, you can have about 99% confidence that with repeated administrations the score would fall within a range, say between 95 – 105.

For standardized tests such as the WISC-V (the gold standard cognitive measure used in special education assessments), there is no such thing as a “true score” as there is always the standard error of measurement to consider.

That explains the fury when a parent was told that her clearly struggling child was not eligible to receive services because the child missed eligibility by one point.

This is what occurred with 10-year-old, fourth- grader, Charles,  who has been struggling greatly with his reading, spelling and writing since kindergarten.  Some months before his special education assessment, I  had conducted a dyslexia screening with Charles,  which showed clear indicators of concern.

The school conducted a comprehensive special education evaluation that also identified significant issues with word identification, phonemic awareness, reading fluency, spelling and writing, which are the typical academic indicators for a learning disability, such as dyslexia.

When the school met with the mother to review the findings, stunningly she was told that the child was ineligible for services. That is, he would not be classified as eligible for an IEP.

As told to the mom, Charles fell short by one point, which did not meet the very strict standards of the discrepancy model utilized to determine eligibility.

Along with a few other states in the country,  New Jersey uses and outmoded model that often leaves children like Charles struggling without any support or direct remediation.

This model requires there be a statistically significant difference between the child’s Full-Scale IQ and an overall score in reading.

When a pure quantitative discrepancy model is used, as it is in New Jersey, many kids are left completely in the lurch.

In an article written by Emerson Dickman, a special education attorney and former president of the International Dyslexia Association, he quoted leading experts regarding the use of a discrepancy model.

Here are a few choice ones:

“For 25 years we have used  the IQ-achievement discrepancy model, a wait-to-fail model that is known to be ineffective, inefficient, irrational, immoral and indefensible.”  (Dr. Douglas Carmine presentation during testimony to Congress on reauthorization of IDEA.)

“The formula is a “wait and fail” model and is immoral.”  (Dr. Thomas Hehir, Director of Special Education Programs during Clinton Presidency.)

“IQ-Achievement discrepancy is not a valid means for identifying individuals with learning disabilities Robert Pasternack, Assistant Secretary for Office of Special Education)

Not only is the model unfair and immoral often offering no support to struggling children,  it also leaves everything entirely up to parents to try and find outside services like tutoring that are never covered by insurance.

Basically, the unstated message given to parents  with a struggling ineligible child is something like this, “Sorry, we’re done.  Maybe you should talk to your pediatrician.”

As you can imagine, this is infuriating to parents.

(In next week’s post, we will elaborate on this point.)

Feel free to make comment below. 

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email: shutdownlearner1@gmail.com. 

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2023, www.shutdownlearner.com.

“Homework??? That’s So Yesterday.”

by | Mar 1, 2024 | , ,

More and more, parents tell me that their children never get homework.

When there is homework, it is often a battleground.  Refrains such as, “It’s stupid,”  “I hate it,”  “It’s not fun,” and variations on these themes occur across the country starting in the afternoon, continuing through until about 8:00 at night.

Of course, there are the dutiful soldiers who don’t complain (rarely the boys), getting started on their own, completing the assignment (putting a check next to the completed task in their assignment book) and even putting it  back in their backpack so it can be found the next day in school.

I never have known whether homework has legitimate value as a learning tool for reinforcing or broadening skills. However beyond the potential reinforcement of skills, I do think homework has symbolic value.

Without stating it directly to children, the symbolic value can be summed up quite simply.   It goes something like this:

“In order to be a functioning member of society you need to learn a few things, like getting out of bed and showing up on time.  As adults you will probably have deadlines for different tasks doing this thing we call a ‘job’ and it is in your interest to meet the deadlines.  Just going on YouTube, TikTok or playing video games for hours on end is not going to cut it.”

If kids are given a message like this directly it would likely  be tuned out, with the child staring into the attention-deficit ether, not hearing a word of it.

Homework conveys this message indirectly, starting in first grade continuing through high school and even into college.

With the current trend that homework has no value and is seen as purposeless, how will this message be delivered?

Probably not through TikTok or Fortnite.

Feel free to make comment below. 

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email: shutdownlearner1@gmail.com. 

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2023, www.shutdownlearner.com.

 

Fillin’ the Cracks

by | Sep 21, 2023 | ,

Anxiety over your child’s school-based problems can start very early. A mom recently contacted me after reading The Shut-Down Learner.

“My son is drowning in school. Do you think he could be a shut-down learner?”

After asking a few more questions, I was struck by the fact that the child in question was only five and in kindergarten.

When I wrote the Shut-Down Learner I was largely envisioning a disconnected, shut-down adolescent.

However, as I gave more talks to the parents, so many of the concerns being raised involved young children.

To help explain things to parents I created a formula:

Early Cracks in the Foundation + Time + Lack of Understanding + Widening cracks + Family tensions increasing = Shut Down Learner

So, while the child of concern may only be in kindergarten there are cracks that can be identified.  Time goes by quickly and with a lack of understanding how to address them, they widen with family tensions arising around the school issues.

Takeaway Point

There’s no gain in waiting.  Do what you can to fill the cracks.

Feel free to make comment below.  To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email – rselznick615@gmail.com. 

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2023, www.shutdownlearner.com.

 

Sharks & Minnows – Part II

by | Sep 15, 2023 | ,

Last week we talked about the law of the playground  (and the jungle), that in spite of well meaning attempts to extinguish the phenomenon of “sharks” picking on the “minnows,” the law of the playground persists (Sharks & Minnows (Part I).

Picking up on the smallest drop of blood, the sharks jump in.  It really doesn’t take much to get things going in a not so great direction.

It may not be overt or aggressive, but the minnows feel it.

“She can’t even read – she’s so stupid,” Claire overheard from one of the sharky kids snickering to a few other sharky types in the lunchroom as she walked past them.

Sometimes the minnows unknowingly hand it over to them, by acting too silly or too over the top, like young Nicholas who is always making “knock knock” jokes that no one wants to hear.  (I say these kids can be “too too.”)

So, if it’s an immutable law, what’s to be done (keeping in mind that there are no easy answers to any of it)?

Here are  a few points:

  • Watch overuse of the word “bullying:” As noted on stopbullying.gov.  Bullying represents unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time.  

Others may disagree, but I don’t think Claire’s situation above would qualify as bullying.  If that type of interaction is repeated over time, that’s a different story and the school should be notified to address the issue with their HIB policy.

  • Sensitizing the Minnows: This is much easier said than done.  A young man I work with mentioned above, Nicholas, is a great kid, but he can set himself up unwittingly to be shark chum.  I try (the best I can) to help him to turn his dial down a little in group situations  Not blurting out the first thing that comes to your mind, being mindful of side behaviors like cracking knuckles, making jokes or tapping too much are small examples.  There are many other behaviors like these that get the sharks going.  Having a child like Nicholas get feedback in therapy about their social behavior can be helpful.
  • Sensitizing the Sharks: When I worked in schools, I’d like to believe I could sensitize the sharks to some extent, not by “getting in their grill,” but by talking to them in plain, direct language.  “Listen, man, I saw you giving Nicholas a hard time the other day in the playground.  I know he gets on your nerves, but it’s really starting to bother him.  I’d appreciate it if you backed it down,” is the type of thing I would say to a shark.  Most of the time, talking to the shark directly worked more often than not.

Adult involvement is key with any intervention.

Without adult involvement, neither the sharks nor the minnows will alter their behavior, or to borrow another metaphor – “Leopards don’t change their spots.”

Feel free to make comment below.  To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email – rselznick615@gmail.com. 

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2023, www.shutdownlearner.com.

 

All Aboard the Curriculum Ship

by | Aug 3, 2023 | ,

Is your child falling off the Curriculum Ship?

The Curriculum Ship  leaves dock in early September and starts steering its course until mid to late June, when it arrives at port somewhere on the other side of the ocean.

Not slowing down even when some passengers are falling off the side of the boat, the ship must go full steam ahead.

Marianne, age 9, is barely treading water while she watches the ship leave her behind, having fallen off the ship in early October.

Upset by what is happening in school, Marianna’s mom said, “This week they are reading science stories about photosynthesis. Photosynthesis,” she exclaims, “she can’t read or pronounce the word!!!! She has no idea what’s going on.  Yesterday she got a worksheet packet all  marked wrong. Marianne was beside herself, feeling horrible. How  does a 9-year-old deal with all this failure?”

Looking at the worksheet packet, I could feel my blood pressure rising. Beside “photosynthesis,” there were many other words on the page that Marianne could not read on her own.  Yet, that was what she was being asked to do.

Clearly she was in over her head and quite frustrated.

I tell the mom the work is simply too hard and that it was analogous to asking someone to lift 50 pound weights when they could only lift ten.

“I know,” she responded.  “It took her two hours to complete the worksheets last night and she still got an F along with those frown faces at the top of the sheet.”

I tell her, “It’s the Curriculum Ship. The message is swim harder if you want to keep up with the ship.”

Children face rough waters when they are not in the green zone (See last week’s post:  Green-Yellow-Red Zone)

The Curriculum Ship doesn’t bother to consider which passengers have fallen over board and need to be rescued.

The ship must reach the other side.

That is its mission.

Takeaway Point

The Curriculum Ship is tough to deal with.  Advocate where you can by having an open relationship with the teacher.  Point out where your child is in over their head.  Ask to cut back on the “frowny faces,”  especially when good effort is shown, as in the case with Marianne.

(There’s a lot more that can be said about this, but it’s a start.)

(***Please note:  All blogs represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2023, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

 

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