School/Special Education Misc

Parents talk freely about 504 Plans and seem to be comforted when their child receives one.

What is largely forgotten (or never understood) is the fact that 504 Plans were an outgrowth of ADA (Americans with Disability Act) legislation.  As ADA noted about addressing those with disabilities:

“No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States, as defined in section 705(20) of this title, shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance or under any program or activity.”

With regard to schools, “FAPE” is the guiding principle

“Section 504 requires school districts to provide Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to children with disabilities, who may benefit from public education, within the individual district’s jurisdiction. Regardless of the child’s disability, the school district must identify the child’s educational needs and provide any regular or special education to satisfy the child’s educational needs just as well as it does for the children without disabilities.”

My interpretation of the spirit of the law is the notion of “leveling the playing field,” to the extent that those with a “disability” need some type of external assistance to help the child to function as close as possible to their non-disabled peers.

The assumption is that the disability puts the disabled person at a decided disadvantage in the classroom.  In theory a 504 Plan addresses this disadvantage.

That was the intent.  The reality of 504 Plans is often entirely different.

For schools, the vast majority of the kids given 504 Plans are ones diagnosed (on the outside by a medical practitioner) with ADHD.  (A learning disabled child is given an IEP based on special education testing, not a 504 Plan.)

Twenty or so years ago or so, getting a diagnosis from a neurologist or other medical practitioner was somewhat novel and even a bit on the exotic side.  It didn’t occur all that frequently.

No more.

Now legions of children are diagnosed with ADHD/ADD and schools are overwhelmed by requests for 504 Plans.  Here’s an article that documents studies citing a doubling of the children diagnosed with ADHD (ADHD Doubling in Percentages) over a 20 year period.

Most 504 Plans (at least on paper) offer the child extended time, possible preferential seating and the potential to have material read to the child.  There are other accommodations that sometimes appear in a 504, but these are the common ones.

While parents may be comforted by the 504 Plan, it is my impression that most kids I know don’t want extra time and they reject the idea of preferential seating for fear of being singled out and embarrassed.

Do I think 504 Plans have some value?  Sure. However, 504 Plans are almost impossible to monitor. There is no objective way of showing that the teacher “repeated directions,” for example, to a confused, distracted child.

I maintain the key to its success is in the relationship the parent establishes with the teacher.  If the parent can establish a good working relationship with the child’s teacher, then a 504 Plan can be implemented with some fidelity.

Without the relationship, the 504 becomes a fairly meaningless document that often receives minimal compliance or attention.  In other words, the plan is nice on paper and parents feel they’ve gotten something of value, but they don’t do all that much.

With a good working relationship between parent and teacher, there is usually a more open dialogue that takes place.   In this dialogue, the teacher might say, “Oh, yes, I check in with him through the day.  I know he needs to have directions clarified a lot, so I remind myself to do it.  I also let him go past time limits when he needs it, but I don’t make a big deal of it.”

Bingo.  The playing field is leveled.

Take Away Point

To maximize the odds of a 504 Plan being implemented, establish a good, trusting relationship with the child’s teacher as early in the school year as possible.  Don’t be overly clinical in your conversation with the teacher. Speak in plain language, conveying what you think the child needs to make things a bit easier for him/her in the classroom.

Copyright, 2019 www.shutdownlearner.com
Questions or topics email Dr. Selznick.  Not in the South Jersey area? For a free 15 Minute Consultation, contact Dr. Selznick: email – rselznick615@gmail.com

To purchase a signed copy of  “What To Do About Dyslexia: 25 Essential Concepts” & Dr. Selznick’s other books and to receive blog updates go to https://shutdownlearner.com.

Parents will tell me of their ongoing efforts to get the school to do what they feel their child needs.

There are usually three or so common outcomes.

One outcome is the school will show data that the child is “meeting benchmarks” or meeting standards in spite of  the child’s struggling.

Another possible outcome is the child will get a “504” Plan, meaning that the child will be given  some accommodations such as extended time or repetition of directions, presuming he/she has received some type of “diagnosis” (almost always the “diagnosis” is ADHD generated from a 15 minute or so review of some rating scales like the Connors or the Vanderbilt).

Classifying the child in special education is a third possible outcome with the child theoretically receiving some type of service or “in-class support” as specified in an IEP  (Individual Education Plan).

When parents describe the process they go through to me it sounds like Oliver Twist asking in that plaintive voice, “Please sir, may I have some more,” as he begs for more food.

Like Oliver Twist, the parents are in a lower hierarchical position.  Even if you get “more food,” if your child is struggling you want to try and overcome the pervasive sense of one-down passivity.

I believe the only way to do that is to to not wait around for the few crumbs coming your way.  You need to take the proverbial “bull by the horns” and find the right type of person who can work with your child and do what needs to be done, typically in an individual format targeting the child’s areas of deficiency. Usually this is in the form of tutoring or some other type of therapy.

There are pros and cons to this recommendation.

The pros are you will be taking an action and not waiting for the crumbs to be thrown your way.

The cons are that it (the remediation) is likely to be an out of pocket expense and will  typically be after school, in the afternoon, evening or on the weekend for a couple of sessions a week.  So, it will be time and money.

Takeaway Point

Keep pressure on the school, but understand that that the three outcomes are the ones largely at work and often you will not feel satisfied with any of them.  If you can, take action on your own and step out from the hands-out,Oliver-like posture.

You will sleep better at night.

So often, in the work that I do with parents regarding their kids, there comes that squeamish point, where the parent asks the inevitable dreaded question…

“So, what do we do about it?”

Why it’s dreaded is there is almost never, and I mean never (at least from my point of view),  an easy answer to that question.

The answer depends on so many variables too numerous to list.

As part of the answer, I’ve lately been talking to parents about the “Pyramid of Fantasy.”

The pyramid is my way of breaking parents in to the reality of how it all works and what they can expect in the “real world.”

It goes something like this.

“Well, let’s talk about something I call the Pyramid of Fantasy.  At the top of the pyramid is what would be seen as the ideal, it’s the unicorn portion of the pyramid – basically it doesn’t exist.  Like in my mind’s eye, your child ideally needs intensive individual remediation with a teacher who is highly trained and experienced in the research supported methodologies to address his deficits.  Probably this intensive individual (i.e., one-on-one) instruction would take place five days a week, an hour to an hour and a half a day over the next few years.  The problem is, while this scenario I describe is what I would say is the ideal, it’s a fantasy.  It doesn’t exist anywhere in the world that I know, but his problems are significant and that’s what I would like to do about it”

“Moving down the pyramid, the school may be able to deliver a very small group (no more than three or four equally-matched kids) on a daily basis using the research-supported methods.  It’s not the most ideal (the fantasy), but it’s not bad.”

The problem is that level of the pyramid is also often not easy to receive either.  We’re still mostly in the fantasy zone.  The school may not have sufficiently trained teachers and they generally don’t do much “pull-out” instruction these days.

The next level down in the pyramid is pretty much the zone of possibility and reality – what you are likely to be offered if your child is classified.  If the child is classified as eligible of special education (many are not who are struggling, I might add), he is likely to be offered “In-Class Support.”

As far as I can tell, In-Class Support is the state of the art these days in special education in terms of the pyramid of fantasy.  What it represents is making sure that someone is close by your child in the deep end of the pool, keeping an eye out so he/she doesn’t go under water since he really doesn’t know how to swim.

Within this level of the pyramid, it is likely that you need to take some other action to gain a sense of control, by seeking help on the outside – usually in the form of specialized tutoring.  If you are really working toward the ideal, twice-weekly tutoring would be recommended, but often due to finances and schedule, such a scenario is not possible and you need to consider moving down the pyramid some.

The point of all of this is not to depress you, but to ground you in reality.  It’s possible that somewhere an absolutely ideal answer exists to the, “so what do we do about it, question.”  But giving parents the unicorn fantasy of what to do, is not helpful, so I emphasize the interventions that may not represent the ideal, but are more realistic and attainable.

Takeaway Point

When your child is struggling, strive to get the best, ideal interventions delivered as intensively and individually as possible, but keep the pyramid in mind.

To purchase a signed copy of  “What To Do About Dyslexia: 25 Essential Concepts” & to receive blog updates go, to https://shutdownlearner.com.

Copyright, 2018 www.shutdownlearner.com
Questions or topics email Dr. Selznick.  Not in the South Jersey area? For a free 15 Minute Consultation, contact Dr. Selznick: email – rselznick615@gmail.com

I’m sure you know the old school expression,  that something “sticks in your craw.”

Probably not a day goes by where something is not sticking in my craw.  The only good that comes of it is I usually get inspired by the stuck craw to generate something to write about in the  blog.

This week’s annoyance center’s on the overemphasis (in the schools) of the Full Scale IQ, typically generated by the test of choice, the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (5^th ed.) or WISC-5.

While I am a proponent of the test and feel that it yields a lot of valuable information, too often the test is used as a justification to not help a child.

The notion of learning disabilities as it is generally written in special education code is that the child is eligible to be classified as “eligible” when he demonstrates at least average intellectual functioning (i.e., a good enough FSIQ) that ultimately shows a legitimate statistical discrepancy between the IQ and achievement (usually in reading.)

What happens, though if I’m a kid coming up with an IQ between 80 and 85, which ranges between the 10^th and the 15^th percentile, not a great place to be on the bell-shaped curve.

The reality is if that’s your score, kid, you’re likely out of luck.  While it won’t be said in such stark terms or plain language, the truth is this child would not be viewed as smart enough to get help.

That perspective bothers me on so many levels as the kids who are in the 80’s of IQ typically have serious academic issues and they are in desperate need of attention and support.

In a mixed grouping class (most are mixed grouping) of about 20 children, by pure statistical properties, about four or five will be  above average students.  Roughly ten or so will shake out in an average range.  That leaves about five or six or who are likely showing signs of struggling to a greater or lesser degree.

Within that group they may or may not have IEPs or 504 Plans.

They may have IQ  scores in the 80s and seen as ineligible, meaning they get no support or accommodation.

Whether children in this lower group have been “diagnosed” by outside professionals with ADHD, dyslexia, oppositional defiance disorder, sensory integration disorder, anxiety disorder, or have no official “diagnosis,” the fact is that lower group needs a lot of help

These are struggling kids regardless of their supposed label or whether they are or are not “eligible.”

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To purchase a signed copy of  “What To Do About Dyslexia: 25 Essential Concepts” & to receive blog updates go, to https://shutdownlearner.com.

Copyright, 2018 www.shutdownlearner.com
Questions or topics email Dr. Selznick.  Not in the South Jersey area? For a free 15 Minute Consultation, contact Dr. Selznick: email – rselznick615@gmail.com

This week my “Annoy-O-Meter,” which is usually running pretty high (like at a level of 70 out of 100), was up in the high 90s.

What pushed it into the upper end of the dial was a run of girls that I either evaluated or met with their parents to discuss their girl’s struggles.

I heard consistent stories such as the following:

“We’ve seen our daughter struggling with school practically every day.  It’s not that she isn’t doing her homework, but she breaks down crying in the middle, sobbing that ‘she’s so stupid – she’s so dumb’ and that others are starting to laugh at her in school.  She’s an anxious mess and we think she may be getting depressed.  The school says the same thing they’ve been saying since she was in kindergarten and now in 5^th grade – ‘But, she’s so sweet;  she’s so smart; she’s such a pleasure.’”

“We know she’s sweet – we know she’s smart.  We also know that she’s struggling and that she can’t read, spell or write.”

I know I run the risk of generalizing here and that broad stroke statements don’t account for individual differences, but quite often this is what I find.

The girls are masters at teacher pleasing behaviors (in contrast with the boys).  As a result, they are literally off of anyone’s radar screen of concern.

Interacting with teachers in such positive ways often covers a wealth of flaws that are there, but are rarely commented on because of being “so sweet – so smart.”

Here’s a writing sample from one of the kids, Christine, age 11, a fifth grader, who has not gotten referred for any testing.  She’s not on anyone’s radar screen even though her parents are very worried about her.

Defining the word “barrage,” she spelled it as “brage” and then said it was, “heavey and continuos firing of wea pons during a battle  (no period)

For “pacifist” she spelled the word, “pastifiet.” Saying someone who beleves  that war and volence are wrong.

Writing is always an x-ray that reveals many things including a child’s thought process and understanding of sound-symbol relationships.  The writing should be the bell that sounds the alarm.

In this situation, no alarm was sounded, because Christine could not be more pleasant, engaging and positive.   Yet, every night she was breaking down behind the scenes.

Of course with such breakdowns, someone will be soon diagnosing her with either ADHD and/or an anxiety disorder (with the medication regimen to follow), but that is a subject for another post.

Takeaway Point

It’s really great that your daughter is “so sweet – so smart,” but don’t be lulled if you have concern.  You’ll need to have someone dig a little deeper beyond the sweet and smart.

You may not remember it, but there was a time in American education before IEP’s, 504 Plan’s and “special education.” It was in 1975 that federal legislation was passed, guaranteeing a free appropriate public education to each child with a disability. It was called Public Law-94 142.

Ah, that word “appropriate” has been a real challenge all of these years. How does one define “appropriate?”

To try and meet the spirit of the law and provide “appropriate” education to disabled kids (of which learning disabled makes up the vast majority of those classified) it seems to me that special education has had its various waves, with different concepts and notions coming in and out of favor.

For example, back in the day, (in the early years of PL- 94-142) “self-contained” classes were the norm. As a newly minted teacher, I remember my special education class, a small band of kids in an isolated room that was virtually the boiler room in a middle school on Staten Island.

From self-contained classes, the next wave that was supposed to be the answer for all struggling kids, was the Resource Room, a theoretically friendly academic environment where the child would arrive from his regular class on a set time each day to work on skills in a small group.

I used to hear about kids going to resource rooms all the time when parents would come in to consult with me. The parents would say something like, “He goes to resource room every day for 45 minutes.”

My question to the parent, which usually remained unanswered was, “I know he goes to the resource room, but what happens when he get there?”

Generally, the parents are not clear about what happens in the resource room. The schools always had a pretty consistent response for the parents – “We individualize to meet the child’s needs.” There was rarely talk of specific methodologies or approaches.

Now, I don’t hear much about resource rooms any more, even though they still exist in some school districts. Instead what I get a lot from parents is, “He gets ‘in-class support.”

“In-class support,” (it’s called different things in different states and districts) is the new norm. In-class support seems sweet on the surface. It comes across in very benign ways. Who would argue with “in-class support for kids with IEPs?

I wonder, though. Are they getting what they need based on the spirit of the law? Are they getting an “appropriate” education? I’m not in the classroom, so I really have no idea.
My guess is that on average the kids get pretty good attention from caring teachers who look to support the child in the classroom.

The issue for me is the one of direct instruction for these struggling kids.

That is, if I’m one of those kids who doesn’t read, spell or write very well, just giving me support is not enough. I need to be taught directly, with sensible methods targeting specific skills and practicing them enough over time so that they become internalized.

Otherwise, I’m just treading water, not really making any legitimate progress.

Copyright, 2018 www.shutdownlearner.com
Not in the South Jersey area? For a free 15 Minute Consultation, contact Dr. Selznick: email – contact@shutdownlearner.com.
To receive free newsletter and updates, go to: www.shutdownlearner.com.

Questions or topics that you want covered in future blogs, send email to: contact@shutdownlearner.com

By Wednesday of each week, I find myself in a bit of a self-imposed panic that I haven’t written the post yet for the week and feel the pressure of Friday looming (when the posts come out). What am I going to write about this week?  Have I written this before?  Is it fresh enough?  These and other such questions and concerns are running through my head.   At this point, I can’t believe that I am closing in on nearly 350 posts that have been put on the site.

I guess the self-imposed pressure has worked!

Usually, I write about “current events,” meaning things that I am dealing with currently that trigger an emerging theme.

This week’s theme is triggered by my ongoing frustration with the refrain, “He just can’t pay attention and you should take your child to the doctor.”

On the heels of that, parents are continually given code language from the school, such as,  “We’re not doctors and we can’t diagnose, but…”

This is a subliminal statement that, “Your child really needs to be on medication,” without actually saying it.

There are all kinds of reasons kids don’t pay attention.  Here are just a few of them:

• They may be worried about things and preoccupied to the point of distraction.
• Maybe they are “spatial thinkers” who are much better visually, but struggle with understanding (processing) language, hence not “paying attention” while the teacher is talking.
• Perhaps they are weak, inefficient readers.
• Maybe the worksheets they continually get are really, really boring.
• Perhaps writing is excruciating.
• Perhaps there are things going on in the family.
• Maybe the kid is not getting along too well with the other kids in school or they are being ridiculed.  Boy, that would distract someone.

These are just off the top of my head as the coffee fully kicks in. (Yes, I rely on my version of stimulants).  I could easily list 20 more.

ADHD (some will refer to it as “ADD”) is not something that has an agreed upon objective way of being measured or assessed. It is an impressionistic diagnosis based on a lot opinions..

It is my impression that we are far too quick to “diagnose ADHD” and that many factors need to be considered before jumping to that diagnosis.

Before filling that inevitable prescription you received after a fairly brief assessment using checklists as the primary information source, I would encourage you to check out other possible explanations as to why your child is not paying attention.

Back to my coffee!!!!!!!!!!

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Copyright, 2018 www.shutdownlearner.com

Not in the South Jersey area? For a free 15 Minute Consultation, contact Dr. Selznick: email – contact@shutdownlearner.com.

To receive free newsletter and updates, go to: www.shutdownlearner.com.

(Not sure why I have been in such a nostalgic mood lately.

On YouTube I’ve been watching old horses from bygone eras win the Triple Crown.  Perhaps it was seeing my third Triple Crown victory a couple of weeks ago that has sent me into a reverie of remembrance.   (I was there when Secretariat won the Triple Crown at Belmont and watching it still give me chills.)

Following up on last week’s blog where we mined nuggets from the way back machine (See: Mining the Nuggets) I had promised to dip into the Sociological & Psychological Factors in Reading,” from the 1964 Proceedings of the Annual Reading Institute of Temple University.

Staying in the zone of mining the nuggets, I thought I would share a few  quotes from the conference to bring all of you into my current state of nostalgia.

Renowned psychologist, Dr. Jules Abrams, had a few choice things to say in his article, “Psychological Influences on Reading:”

“Reading must always be evaluated as a total process.  When this is done, it becomes abundantly clear that there are innumerable psychological factors which can influence the child’s ability to read.”

“Reading difficulty may be caused by a multiplicity of factors (educational and sociological, as well as psychological) all of which are highly interrelated.  The individual is a physical organism, functioning in a psychological manner.  Reading, being a complex process of a total individual, may involve any or all of these (psychological) aspects, with cause and effect being closely interwoven.  Learning is a dynamic process.  To understand what happens in this process, the attention must always be focused on its complexity and on the total, whole individual involved in the process.”

“If a youngster has been introduced to reading instruction before he is ready, so that his initial experiences are unfavorable, then his attitude toward reading may be unfavorable.  If he is exposed to constant frustration, such as being taught at a level too difficult for him, his resultant feelings of inadequacy may explode in antisocial attitudes or behavior.”

What novel concepts – looking at the whole child and not placing him/her at a level of frustration!

Also in the 1964 proceedings, County Court Judge for the County Court of Philadelphia, Juanita Kidd Stout (who became the first African-American woman to serve as a judge in Pennsylvania), wrote an article called, “Troubled Children and Reading Achievement.”

While some of the verbiage may sound dated (e.g., “delinquency” and the emphasis on the male), she makes many points that are fully appropriate to the current era.

“There is general agreement that there must be early identification of the non-reader.  Havighurst (1959) suggests he should be identified no later than the first grade and that failure to help the non-reading six year old may result in a delinquent fifteen year old.  By the time the non-reading male  reaches fourteen or fifteen, he has begun to be aggressive and nothing but heroic measures will prevent descent into truancy and delinquency.”

“The evidence is overwhelming that the inability to read is a substantial factor in the production of delinquency, criminality, unemployment and dependency, all of which are costly monetarily and in terms of human suffering.”

The judge is right on the money and that was written in 1964!

The prisons are loaded with people who were school angry, having never developed fundamental reading, spelling and writing skills and felt the embarrassment and shame that accompany.

Takeaway Point

Not sure how long I will be staying in this mode of nostalgia.  Tonight, I can’t wait to watch the great Citation win the 1948 Belmont and Triple Crown!

What an amazing horse!

You’ve been watching your child in the weekly tennis clinics offered at the school and you are not very comfortable with what you are seeing.  In contrast to those kids who look like they play pretty well, your 8 year old stands out.

In short, he isn’t very good.

As his parent, you quietly wonder if he isn’t a bit “tennis disabled,” so you talk to the people in charge of the clinic who make a bunch of recommendations such as:

• When he is serving, allow him to serve half way to the net instead of from the baseline.
• Widen the parameters of the court, so that when he hits to the other side he can hit in the doubles area.
• Lowering the net so he can get the ball over more consistently.

What was most striking to you was the idea that all of the suggestions were accommodations or adjustments that would allow your child to feel like he was more a part of things.

There was no talk about ways to improve his skills.

Accommodations vs. Guided Practice Strategies

I get this type of thing a lot when I read reports on kids.  Often, the reports are very top-heavy on proposed adjustments, but light on how to directly work on the deficient areas.

Some of the common accommodations/adjustments include:

• Give the child extra time (not that he wants it).
• Seat child near front of the room.
• Repeat directions
• Place desk in area with fewer distractions
• Use graphic organizers.
• Use “peer buddies” to assist with comprehension.

While these may be helpful, they do not involve skill improvement involving direct remedial instruction.  Direct instruction means explicitly teaching the child a skill. Then the child practices this skill until it becomes mastered. Sometimes this takes a long time.

Whether a child is “dyslexic,” “learning disabled,” “ADHD,” or “tennis disabled,” there are identifiable skills that are either mastered by the child or they are not.  These skills need to be assessed and identified.

Once identified, the deficient skills need to be targeted and remediated.

Takeaway Point

Accommodations (adjustments) are great, but don’t forget the other side of things (i.e., direct instruction).

Direct instruction with lots of guided practice is essential to move your child along the skills continuum.

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Copyright, 2018 www.shutdownlearner.com

Not in the South Jersey area? For a free 15 Minute Consultation, contact Dr. Selznick: email – contact@shutdownlearner.com.

To receive free newsletter and updates, go to: www.shutdownlearner.com.