Making sense of all the numerical and statistical data when a child is being tested for a learning disability seems as if it needs its own advanced degree just to navigate!
The first thing that should happen on the road to diagnosing a learning disability is for the school to request your permission to test your child. Generally there will be two different tests given, each measuring a specific thing.
The first test will be an ability test, a cognitive assessment of what your child should be able to do. Alfred Binet created the first test that he believed would reliably assess the intelligence of a person back in 1904. Over 100 years later, the tests have gone through numerous updates, and the tests go through tests themselves to ensure they measure what they are intended to measure. There are several out there, but the most common seems to be the WISC, the Stanford-Binet (still being used today!!!) and the DAS, or Differential Ability Scale. Most of these tests are verbal tests, meaning the student needs to be able to understand language and directions. For children for whom this is not possible (think ELL students or students so young as to not have the adaptive language for such tasks) there are also tests which are non-verbal in nature but that accurately measure the same things as, say, the WISC.
So, what are they measuring? Generally tests break up tasks into two areas: verbal and performance. Students are asked questions like "why would a firefighter wear a uniform" or asked to complete a maze or replicate a design with blocks. Processing speed and memory are also measured. From these tests, a Full Scale Performance IQ is determined. It is rare to see this number change much over the years, although a variation a few points is to be expected when the tests are given 3 years apart.
So, what numbers do we want to see, and what REALLY are we measuring? Well, if you are so inclined to think of it this way, the IQ is your God-given ability - it is what you were born with. It is not the result of schooling (think Einstein and Edison) but rather your innate talents and gifts. The scale ranges from 10 to 250+, but generally you see 100 as an average, and that is the number used by educators as we look to the MEAN of the scale. We consider the "average range" to be from 85 - 115, or 1 standard deviation away from the norm, with a standard deviation being equal to 15 points on the scale. From here, we know what we should be able to expect from your child in school. Ideally, a child with 100 as an IQ would also ACHIEVE around a 100.
The achievement tests measure what the child has absorbed, retained and garnered from his school life. Specific academic skills are measures such as spelling, writing, math reasoning (where you have to manipulate numbers in your head.. word problems), math calculations, reading decoding, reading comprehension and listening/speaking skills. These tests work off the same 100-being-the-mean score, so the numbers do match apples for apples.
When the scores from achievement are significantly lower than the scores for ability, we presume that is due to a learning disability. Other causes are possible such as academic deprivation which is generally not as abusive as it sounds - a child who was ill, for example, and missed 10 weeks of school would be considered to have lower achievement scores simply because she was not in school for all those days.
Depending on the areas, a diagnosis of SLD would be given wherever there is a score greater than a standard deviation below the IQ, although it becomes more of a sliding scale depending on the IQ.. the higher the IQ, the greater the discrepancy needs to be and conversely, the lower the IQ, the smaller the discrepancy needs to be.
It is common to see a child with scores that are close to their IQ in all areas but one, and it is just as common to see a disability in many, or all, areas. These are highly unique, and there is no one-size-fits-all explanation. If you have a question about your child's test scores, call his special education teacher or request a sit down or phone conference with the school psychologist or other professional who can interpret those results for you. You have the right to have all of your questions answered, and I hope I have clarified some things here today.
Educationally yours,
The SpEd Guru
Showing posts with label Least Restrictive Environment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Least Restrictive Environment. Show all posts
Monday, September 19, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
What's the difference between a 504 plan and an IEP?
Both of these documents protect children with disabilities in their school environments, but are different in the needs they address. And while it is possible for a child to have BOTH a 504 plan AND and IEP, it is generally rare.
Let's begin with the least restrictive of the two - the 504 plan. Like the IEP, a 504 is a federally mandated and binding agreement between the school and the family that certain conditions exist for a student and that certain accommodations will be made for that student so that he or she can be successful and healthy in school.
Generally, you see a 504 plan for a child with a medical issue which prevents that child either from participating fully in the curriculum or whose health may be affected without specific considerations. These issues range from a child with asthma or diabetes, to a child with food allergies, or even a child with ADD. In most cases, there are certain considerations that the school needs to make, but for the most part that child can be fully surrounded by her peers and be in class. Considerations may include a nut-free table in the lunch room, or even specific rooms or even whole campuses being nut free. It could be allowing an asthmatic child to keep his inhaler with him, though the school has a strict policy that all medicines be with the nurse. It could be allowing a child with diabetes to eat whenever he needs to.. all things that should be written down for the protection of the child, but that generally can be managed without removing the child from the regular school environment.
An IEP, then, is one step further away from that unrestrictive environment. A child whose learning is becoming affected because of his or her medical condition may then qualify as a child with an Other Health Impairment and is awarded the protection and more significant accommodations to help him be successful.
Generally, under Other Health Impairment, we don't see children with diabetes or asthma; we see more students who have other emotional or behavioral concerns which impede their ability to function fully in the regular class environment.
This is not to say that co-morbidity does not exist, and you won't see a child with both a learning disability for which he has an IEP and something like asthma, for which he has a 504 plan. However, when the 504 was originally written for either a behavior or emotional reason, such as ADD or a mood disorder, then once the child needs an IEP, the 504 is no longer recognized as the guiding document, and since the rules governing IEPs are even more strict that those of a 504. Once an IEP is written, the team generally considers that 504 plan to be null and void.
Educationally yours,
The SpEd Guru
Let's begin with the least restrictive of the two - the 504 plan. Like the IEP, a 504 is a federally mandated and binding agreement between the school and the family that certain conditions exist for a student and that certain accommodations will be made for that student so that he or she can be successful and healthy in school.
Generally, you see a 504 plan for a child with a medical issue which prevents that child either from participating fully in the curriculum or whose health may be affected without specific considerations. These issues range from a child with asthma or diabetes, to a child with food allergies, or even a child with ADD. In most cases, there are certain considerations that the school needs to make, but for the most part that child can be fully surrounded by her peers and be in class. Considerations may include a nut-free table in the lunch room, or even specific rooms or even whole campuses being nut free. It could be allowing an asthmatic child to keep his inhaler with him, though the school has a strict policy that all medicines be with the nurse. It could be allowing a child with diabetes to eat whenever he needs to.. all things that should be written down for the protection of the child, but that generally can be managed without removing the child from the regular school environment.
An IEP, then, is one step further away from that unrestrictive environment. A child whose learning is becoming affected because of his or her medical condition may then qualify as a child with an Other Health Impairment and is awarded the protection and more significant accommodations to help him be successful.
Generally, under Other Health Impairment, we don't see children with diabetes or asthma; we see more students who have other emotional or behavioral concerns which impede their ability to function fully in the regular class environment.
This is not to say that co-morbidity does not exist, and you won't see a child with both a learning disability for which he has an IEP and something like asthma, for which he has a 504 plan. However, when the 504 was originally written for either a behavior or emotional reason, such as ADD or a mood disorder, then once the child needs an IEP, the 504 is no longer recognized as the guiding document, and since the rules governing IEPs are even more strict that those of a 504. Once an IEP is written, the team generally considers that 504 plan to be null and void.
Educationally yours,
The SpEd Guru
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Least Restrictive Environment
Many times, educators throw around not only acronyms, but whole word phrases such as this one above, without going into much detail as to what it means.
In accordance with IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2006, it is the goal to provide support to students with disabilities in an environment that takes them away from their peers as little as possible
There is an entire spectrum of "environments" from the very least restrictive to the most restrictive. Generally speaking, a student with a disability who is in the regular education setting for 100% of his or her day, without the support of additional professionals, would be considered in the very least restrictive environment. Adding the support of a paraprofessional would be the next step down, followed by the addition of a special education teacher and so forth. A full list of environments can be found at the end of this article.
Again, the goal of Special Education is to help a student remediate the skills he or she may be lacking, but to do so in a way that will not negatively impact that child, either socially or academically. Looking at Least Restrictive Environment and ensuring this very fine balancing act is in place is paramount to both working within the confines of the law, as well as working in the best interest of the child.
Environments, from least to most restrictive, in the eyes of the law..
The SpEd Guru
In accordance with IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2006, it is the goal to provide support to students with disabilities in an environment that takes them away from their peers as little as possible
There is an entire spectrum of "environments" from the very least restrictive to the most restrictive. Generally speaking, a student with a disability who is in the regular education setting for 100% of his or her day, without the support of additional professionals, would be considered in the very least restrictive environment. Adding the support of a paraprofessional would be the next step down, followed by the addition of a special education teacher and so forth. A full list of environments can be found at the end of this article.
Again, the goal of Special Education is to help a student remediate the skills he or she may be lacking, but to do so in a way that will not negatively impact that child, either socially or academically. Looking at Least Restrictive Environment and ensuring this very fine balancing act is in place is paramount to both working within the confines of the law, as well as working in the best interest of the child.
Environments, from least to most restrictive, in the eyes of the law..
- general education classroom setting with no supports
- general education with in-class resources (push in services with either a paraprofessional or special education teacher)
- resource specialist program (pull out services - this is your typical LRC pull out class)
- special day class - may be a self-contained program within your school or district
- non-public school
- day treatment center
- residential treatment center
- home hospital
The SpEd Guru
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