IEP Advice

[bubbalicious]

Another IEP meeting is coming up. I am reviewing docs. Thinking goals....metacognition is on my brain. Wish I understood it better...but that is another post.

I just reviewed the schools team report and found a significant error. We can have up to two sub labels (Multiple disabilities). They choose ADHD and Speech. Then they checked off that she doesn't' meet SLD criteria. Their data has shown sld.

Any words of wisdom?

[mrsbuttinski]

Is this an IEP document or a 1950's Chinese restaurant menu- one from column A and one from column B.

A few random thoughts-

1. DS was classified under Autism, Specific LD and Speech and Language Impaired in middle school, so I'm not certain IDEA allows a LEA to limit classifications. FWIW, I don't think ADHD is a classification in any state. Most put it under OHI, a few will treat it like SLD.

2. If they can force 2, do you feel strongly about which two?

3. My concern would be around how each of these labels impacts her IEP goals and services. It might not matter. Or it might matter a great deal.

Back to middle school, DS biggest deficits in this era were the ones that were primarily ADHD-driven. And yet he was not classified under OHI for it. There was a lot of overlap between the executive function accommodations and interventions typically needed by a kid with ADHD and a kid with Aspergers so it wasn't a hill upon which to die.

That said, when he transferred to high school his classification drove the choice of his IEP custodian. In 4th-8th, his IEP custodian was a teacher who had majr ownership of DS either as a resource teacher part of the day or as a dually certified SpEd/secondary subject teacher. His 7th grade IEP custodian had him for 3 classes each day, his 8th had him for 4. These people knew DS and had real ownership.

In high school, DS switched to mainstream and mainstream inclusion classes and his IEP custodians were teachers who, at best, barely knew him. He had an IEP custodian who was a random math teacher from learning support as a freshman and sophomore- she didn't bring much to the party. The suggestions she made were all the usual LD and ADHD accommodations like preferential seating, extra time for tests, etc.

He got changed to the ASD program's coordinator for 11th and 12th. He was never in her program, but she did make it a point to offer him her help if needed and gave him a pass to visit her at ant time for any reason. Her suggestions at the IEP meeting we had going into his senior year were the sorts you'd expect for ASD.

TL;DR the classification of ADHD may have a lot of the same accommodations but not necessarily the differentiated reading instruction you want. The classification also provides context and lens through which they parse your child's behavior and performance.

[bubbalicious]

I appreciate your words. IEP today.

I think she needs all three. SLD, Speech/Language, and Adhd (under OHI or otherwise is fine). She is too complex really to limit at this point.

My impression for the IEP room is Multiple disabilities has 2 concomitant labels. But I think IDEA is 2 or more. I have to go find the language for my parental input.

[jmski]

For my paperwork Multiple Disabilities means that the child would need two different teachers to meet two disability areas so ADHD and SLD would not be multiple since one teacher can work with both issues, but a child who has a visual impairment and SLD would need two specialists working with them. Usually speech does not fall in this category since speech is a related service disability. So Multiple would be VI and SLD, or Mild Mental Disability and Hearing a impairment and such...

As a special education teacher I could meet needs with ADHD(OHI) and SLD and a speech/ language therapist would work with her too.

[bubbalicious]

@auntie you got mail.