Education
Perspectives on Parenting©
by Nancy Lambert Davenport

Nancy Davenport's Column:
For Richardson News 07-30-00
Copyright Nancy Lambert Davenport 2000

"Parents of kids with disabilities should kick off new year right"

Here we go again. Amazingly the beginning of school is just around the corner.

My teacher friends have already taken possession of their classrooms once more, whether the repair crews are ready for them to or not. To get their work done the teachers have to dodge ladders and step around electrical cords, which snake down halls and around corners like serpents on the prowl. The teachers will not be deterred.

Just as the teachers are getting ready, many parents are preparing for children's Individual Education Plan (IEP) meetings if it is scheduled for early fall.

It is not something that they should take lightly. Parents need to do their homework.

Here is a checklist to see if you are ready:

The time and date should be mutually agreeable to all concerned. Be sure at least a two hour block is set aside and that you are notified well ahead.
Look at all evaluations ahead of time. Don't wait until the meeting to read them. You may need to have a diagnostician explain them to you. Be sure the results are adequate to reflect your child's abilities not his or her disabilities.
Write down all your questions and don't leave the meeting until they are answered to your satisfaction.
Write down all your wishes for your child's education during the next year. Write down a good reason for each one. I emphasize writing things down because these meetings muddle the brain of the most level-headed parent.

Your wish list should be the starting point for developing the goals for the year. If this is not your child's first IEP then you will also utilize the goals of the current IEP to develop this new IEP. They will help you know the next level of development and set new goals.

These goals should not be the same as the year before. They should be measurable. They should be individualized (not ones that could be used for anyone in the school). They should be related to the academics of the child's grade level and individual needs.

Make regular classes with supplementary aids and services the first consideration for placement. The committee should never make the decision of placement solely on what is available.

Any time of removal of your child from the regular education for individual instruction should be listed per minute (not the other way around-number of minutes in the regular classroom.)

Texas is dead last, 51st, in inclusion of our kids with disabilities.

Insist upon maximum inclusion in the regular classroom. It works and it is not an imposition on anyone who understands inclusion and its goals.

Be sure the related services (aids, therapists, etc.) are listed very specifically. You don't want an aid hovering over your child or constantly sitting apart with your child giving individual instruction. That is not inclusion.
Insist that the aide and the regular teacher be trained in inclusion. Otherwise you will have chaos and your child will be in the middle.

Once this is all hammered out, the parents' work has just begun. The biggest job is making sure the goals are implemented.

The best way to do that is to be there. Volunteer at the school. Observe what's going on. Pop in. Have regular meetings with all teachers concerned.

Get to know other kids in his class. They are great sources of information.

Then remember, the school district is not doing us a favor by serving our children. It is the law.

Return to Top of Page
Return to Table of Contents
Return to Home Page

Nancy Lambert Davenport
EMAIL: nancdave@swbell.net
URL: http://www.nancyldavenport.com