Special Education Law Blog

When Your Child Has Dyslexia

Parents frequently tell me that their school districts refuse to recognize their child’s diagnosis of dyslexia.  One school psychologist defines dyslexia as “simply a fancy word for a disorder that involves reading.”  Other parents are told by their districts that dyslexia is merely an umbrella term for a reading difficulty or a medical diagnosis that is not relevant to specific planning for the child in his or her IEP.   These parents are often frustrated and confused when schools won’t even insert the term “dyslexia” anywhere within the IEP.  But guidance from the Department of Education makes it explicitly clear that dyslexia is recognized by the IDEA. An October 2015 “Dear Colleague” letter from the Department of Education states: “there is nothing in the IDEA that would prohibit the use of the terms dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia in IDEA evaluation, eligibility determinations, or IEP documents.”  Why is this letter so important for students with dyslexia, dyscalculia, or dysgraphia?  Because calling a duck a duck may be needed not only to ensure that students with dyslexia are deemed eligible for special education services but also that they receive appropriate remediation for their dyslexia.

When Does an Assessment Test Become Obsolete?

The IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) pretty carefully lays out the ground rules for a special education assessment.  Among the various regulations related to administering a case study evaluation are that assessments “are used for the purposes for which the assessments or measures are valid and reliable; are administered by trained and knowledgeable personnel; and are administered in accordance with any instructions provided by the producer of the assessments.”  We bring this up because the fifth edition of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC), one of the mainstays of cognitive testing for children, was released this past fall.  So does the existence of a newer edition of such a standard battery render the previous edition of the WISC no longer valid?  It’s a good question, because not even professional psychological organizations appear to agree on at what point a previous edition of an exam becomes obsolete. Moreover, as a practice point, we have won cases based on the fact the district knowingly or carelessly made decisions based on outmoded test instruments.

Changes to the DSM V- A Personal Perspective by: Marilyn Green-Rebnord

Like many parents with a child diagnosed on the autistic spectrum, I’ve been following the controversy over the proposed revisions for the new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) 5.  Under the proposed new revisions, the categories of autism, PDD-NOS, and Asperger’s syndrome would all be collapsed into the label “Autism Spectrum Disorder.” Criteria for this new diagnosis, which are much more stringent than those used in the previous DSM IV, are causing the autism world to buzz with concern that many higher functioning individuals could “lose” their diagnoses.   Dr. Fred Volkmar of the Yale Child Study Center, who had been a member of the panel involved in the rewriting of the DSM before his resignation, recently reported his results of a study in which he claimed that up to 45% of individuals on the higher ends of the spectrum would no longer be diagnosed with a spectrum disorder. Somewhat speciously, Dr. Volkmar in a New York Times article heralded the “end of the autism epidemic.”

Specifically, Dr. Volkmar and colleagues examined the case records of 1000 children diagnosed with autism in 1993, identified 372 of the highest functioning children, and then applied the proposed DSM 5 criteria to them.  Of these children, about a quarter of those who had been diagnosed with autism, about three quarters who had been diagnosed with Asperger’s, and 85% of those diagnosed with PDD-NOS would not be diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder under the proposed new criteria.  But members of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) who are involved in the DSM diagnostic changes are crying, “Not so fast” to Dr. Volkmar’s report, which is scheduled to be published this spring.  Dr. Volkmar’s critics, including Dr. Catherine Lord who serves on the DSM panel, are saying that the data are inadequate to re-diagnose the 1993 cohort using the new criteria.  The study is simply not valid.

Standardized Testing Accommodations: The Fundamental Tension

It is that time of year that many high school students dread--ACT/SAT test taking time. These standardized tests are used to gain admission to colleges and graduate programs and to obtain certain professional licenses.  These exams, which are designed to predict either the test taker’s future academic success or to test his or her knowledge of certain areas, are designed to be administered under uniform conditions and with time limits.  However, these constraints may make taking the tests difficult for persons with disabilities.  Without accommodations, the tests may instead reflect the individual’s disability, and not his or her aptitude. 

Neurofeedback may Benefit Kids with ADHD

Children who have ADHD often have difficulty regulating brain activity. A new study, conducted by German and Swiss researchers, demonstrates that neurofeedback training may help. Neurofeedback is a method of training the brain, or shaping brain wave activity which for some children results in improved behavior and reduction of hyperactivity and impulsivity. The technique doesn't work for everyone and is not a replacement for drug treatment, but may be used as a companion, as MSNBC reports.

Children in the study worked on a game like computer program that had them activate or deactivate portions of the brain and they were rewarded with points. After two weeks of the computer program they used red and blue cards to practice the brain activation and deactivation. The other group of children took part in group therapy sessions. Results indicated that parents and teachers, although to a lesser extent, reported great improvement in the children who took part in neurofeedback. It was also noted that kids did better when parents encouraged, rewarded, and reminded them to practice with the red and blue cards. In all eight children learned to successfully regulate brain activity while nine did not.

Comprehensive Accomodations Manual is a Good Reference for Your Next IEP and for High Stakes Testing

At too many meetings issues related to accomodations and modifications get short time and little attention. If it is not on the computer IEP drop down menu or check list chances are good that there will be little to no discussions of the individual needs that your child/student has for particular accomodations.  This back of the IEP list of supports can be as important and sometimes more important than the goals or even the services. It is important to remember that for purposes of high stakes testing (e.g. SAT and ACT) if there has not been a history of the IEP containing accomodations that have been in fact accessed the student will likely not get support from ETS. It is important to document the need and use of accomodations years prior to taking high stakes testing.  The following is a very comprehensive and well organized manual of accomodations and modifications that is a useful reference as you get ready for your next meeting. Download AccommodationsManual.pdf.  See ETS research report on testing accomodations for writing . 

With the ACT and SAT testing coming up, many students have applied for testing accomodations. Some will be denied. You may want to consider using these resources from ETS to fashion an appeal. but it can be hard to get them to change their position.

 

Guidelines for Effective Educational Testing Part 2

Here is the continuation of the last post to help guide parents and advocates through the testing process:

Guidelines for Effective Educational Testing Part 1

In this age of RtI where testing is claimed to be a "thing of the past," even though that position is hogwash, it is even more important to fully understand the language and process of testing. This posting is part 1 of a two part blog post on testing.

DSM V Proposals Bring Big Changes

The proposed DSM V, the primary psychiatric manual, is about to bring big changes. The proposed changes will add cutting as a recognized disorder not just a symptom of another diagnosis, and bing eating will  be recognized as its own separate disorder.  Bi-polar disorder for children, which is a diagnosis that has increased over the last 15 years at geometric rate, will be reclassified under a new heading such as "temper dsyregulation disorder."  Perhaps one of the most controversial changes will be that Aspergers and PDD-NOS will officially fall within the heading autism spectrum disorder.  The most welcome change will be that the term mental retardation will be retired and the new term will be intellectual disability.  The criteria to meet this new diagnosis will also be refined for more accurate diagnosis.  Overall the DSM V will downplay the checklist means of diagnosis and will instead emphasize qualitative considerations that are more specific to the individual. The public and professionals will be able to comment on the proposals until April 20, 2010. 

 I will be posting my own commentary on the blog and at the DSM website, but I wanted to get this up and publicized with the immediacy it deserves.

What's in Label? by Brian R. King LCSW

Brian R. King is a well-respected social worker who has Aspergers, writes extensively on topics related to Aspergers, and counsels and works with many individuals with a variety of social and emotional needs. He has graciously permitted me to reprint in full his commentary on the prospect that the upcoming DSM-V will no longer include Aspergers as a diagnosis. Apparently the draft new criteria is due to come out on February 10, 2010 and the new edition is due out some time in 2013.