Special Education Law Blog

Schools Also Deserve Credit

I spend a lot of time on this blog debunking the  myth that schools are simply golden places that never do anything bad because that is just not the truth. Nevertheless, I also feel the need to spend some time officially recognizing many individuals and school personnel that have worked with my son and whom I have worked with as an attorney.

Charlie-isms to Help You Advocate

I am known for my Charlie-isms; little bits of accumulated experience that serve a variety of situations. I have decided to share some of ones that most people have found useful:

• "We do not need better kids we need better tools in the toolbox to support and teach them".
• "Assistive technology is not the icing on the cake, it is the cake."
• When faced with a stubborn school district, look at them squarely and ask "what is your authority for that ?"
• Too often schools lack the ability to adjust to change "they act like plow horses who only know how to plow north and south."
• "Inappropriate behavior does not make it unreasonable" especially when the child has little if any means of communicating his or her needs and has inadequate behavioral supports. Any one of us given the same circumstances would likely act out.
• The golden rule for relationships with parents is "when I talk you listen, and when you talk I listen" with an emphasis on mutual respect.
• When faced with a district that wants the parents, their advocate or attorney to just shut up and sign the IEP my response is "I am not here as a potted plant." [this one is borrowed from Oliver North's attorney during his Congressional testimony].
• "School districts that call all behaviors 'task avoidant' are being task avoidant."
• "A FBA that finds the antecedents for the behavior to be 'internal causes' is really saying we did not collect enough data."
• "If you treat my son like furniture he will respond by doing a very nice likeness of a chair."
• "If we are simply saying that which we all agree about, then just put it in writing."
• "Time is the friend of schools and the enemy of parents."
• "When it comes to due process be like a Doberman pincher,  do not bark at all,  just file."
• When a school district wants to reduce a child to a simple label my response is "I am sorry but I have never met autistics, or CP kids, or sweet Downs children.  I have met individuals with autism.  I have met individuals with cerebral palsy.  I have met individuals who have Downs. These individuals, whatever their ages, are not the labels you give them."
• "I am sitting here at the table as a right, not a privilege."

Maybe some of these Charlie-isms will come in handy when the situation presents itself, or if nothing else are good for a good chuckle.

Guidelines for Strategic Planning for Your Next IEP

Parents need to approach their child's IEP with certain strategies in mind. In this context "strategy" is developing an overall plan that will serve as a guide for all advocacy activities. The following are the essential elements of strategic planning for IEP meetings.

Winkelman Case Set for Oral Argument

The Winkelman case has been set for argument on February 27, 2007 before the U.S. Supreme Court over the issue of whether parents can represent their children's IDEA rights. For an excellent and readable summary of the arguments click here.

It's a Jungle Out There by Lori Miller Fox

As many of you know, it can be a constant struggle getting some school people to understand that children with disabilities are not always “acting a certain way” by choice. For example my son has been having difficulty staying awake throughout the school day.  Recently, I had a teacher ask me if he should be consequenced for this “behavior”.  Shocked by her ignorance, I felt like saying, “not only should he be reprimanded for falling asleep, but also for daring to cough, sneeze or breath too loudly.  And most certainly, when we uncover the medical reason for his passing out, you can be certain, we will see to it that he is severly punished.”

I’ll never understand why some school people blame things they can not control on a child’s behavior. So I started thinking about creatures in the animal kingdom and why they do what they do. What if scientists blamed everything that animals did instinctually, on behavior.  Here are just a few of the conclusions they might come up with.

CDC New Autism Prevalance Study

The CDC has issued an extensive study [ADDMN study]  on the prevalence of autism.  Download Autism Community Report.pdf .  The findings are far from encouraging. This study more clearly than ever demonstrates the epidemic nature of autism among children. A study based on 10% of 8-year old children in the U.S. determined an overall rate of 1 out of 150 children had autism, a much higher rate than previous studies had shown. That finding is simply astounding,  and yet every day too many school personnel have incredibly limited expertise of how to educate and support children with autism. ( I will be posting later on this topic regarding other studies that bear out this point).

The study also reviews data and demographics across a number of states with some startling conclusions. In New Jersey nearly all 8 year children on the autism spectrum are receiving special education services, but in Maryland a large number are not being serviced, and the percentages of students receiving special education dropped over a 2 year period. Lots of other data that needs to be unpacked and analyzed.

Serious Games, Have Serious Possibilities

Social impact/serious gaming apparently is a new movement in the area of "gaming" that should have some very interesting and useful applications for students with special needs. The purpose of the game is to convey some socially important message in the context of a game. One of the "games" that was particularly interesting is called "Job Training Entertech" which is described as follows:

" An online, simulated high-tech company, where students learn job skills as part of a training course. Students move through the virtual Entertech company, encountering virtual co-workers and supervisors, and making decisions involving workplace ethics, teaming and company policies.”

I have many students who I represent that would benefit from such a program and it certainly could be incorporated into the achievement of job-related transition goals; certainly more palatable than flipping through books on vocational training. Moreover, the interactive features at least on a simulated level allows for mistakes to be made and problems solved without real life consequences.

COPAA Advocacy Training March 1-4, 2007

COPAA, the Conference of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, is presenting a conference from March 1-4, 2007, in Baltimore, Maryland  which is focused on developments in the law, advocacy training, and strategic approaches to planning under IDEA 2004, among other topics.[Download 2007-copaa-conf.pdf ] Many of the best attorneys and advocates from around the country will be present and presenting at this conference. 

I will be attending and many of my collegues who care deeply about special education advocacy will be there. This is the perfect opportunity to take a crash course in advocacy for those who are new to this field (attorneys, advocates and parents), to network, and to learn new skills to be a more effective advocate.