Guest guest Posted December 28, 2007 Report Share Posted December 28, 2007 Our family is new to Nordonia Hills School District. We moved from Maple Heights in March, 2007 and my daughter attends Lee Eaton Elementary, Summit County, and has been having trouble adjusting to the new school, curriculum, friends, etc. Firstly, she had been having trouble keeping her grades up to par in Math and was receving an " F " grade. I communicated with her teachers, hired a tutor and helped my daughter at home at much as I could but to no avail, her grades are not getting better and on top of that stress, my daughter grades are slipping in her other classes so the IAT team at the school had a meeting regarding my daughter and decided that my daughter should be tested for a learning disability because they can not accommodate or provide her with other alternatives to help her succeed, such as another class which will teach her based on the pace she is currently at. I do not believe my daughter has a learning disabiity, I believe it is an easy " cop out " for the school to just try and label her with a learning disablity. My question to those reading, is there an Ohio law that requires schools to be responsible for students they cannot accommodate academically or is it just up to the parent? What are my rights? What other alternatives do I have in a situation like this? Anyone with any information, advice or resource on this subject, it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for listening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 29, 2007 Report Share Posted December 29, 2007 I would go ahead and have the school do a complete MFE (Multi factor Evaluation) this is done at the school's expense and it cannot hurt to have it done. I'm not sure I quite understand " they cannot accomodate or provide other alternatives " statement. I can if they are saying that because she has not been tested and " labeled " they cannot accomodate and provide, but to say in general they cannot provide would be incorrect. All children are subject to state and federal laws regarding a free and public education. Once the MFE is done and if there is an indication of a disability, it will be up to the team to develop and IEP (Individualized Education Plan) for your child. I don't know your child, nor how old she is. Has she participated in any grade level proficiency testing to date? If so what were the results? I have been involved with my children with special education services in our school system and county for over 13 yrs. In the beginning I found myself at the library researching my child's rights and information on learing disabilities. It was quite the opposite for me, I felt my child had a disability and was being told, not to worry about it. The early you recognize the problems and deal with them the easier it can be in the long run. Go with the testing and see what the results are. Please do not let a " label " get in the way, the " label " is the way to get the school system to accomodate. The problem is when the child tests out and falls " between the cracks " doesnt quite qualify for services. Then you are kind of stuck and on your own. Been there done that. I've been fortunate to have caring teachers that went above and beyond to help and a system that understood and did help regardless of testing. As a parent, you are your child's best advocate, educate yourself. There are alot of resources out there. I am speaking from personal experience with my own children. I don't know everything, but after 13 yrs of advocating for my own children I have been successful, but I continue to learn and I continue to see other parents struggle to obtain services I get without a problem. > > Our family is new to Nordonia Hills School District. We moved from > Maple Heights in March, 2007 and my daughter attends Lee Eaton > Elementary, Summit County, and has been having trouble adjusting to > the new school, curriculum, friends, etc. Firstly, she had been > having trouble keeping her grades up to par in Math and was receving > an " F " grade. I communicated with her teachers, hired a tutor and > helped my daughter at home at much as I could but to no avail, her > grades are not getting better and on top of that stress, my daughter > grades are slipping in her other classes so the IAT team at the > school had a meeting regarding my daughter and decided that my > daughter should be tested for a learning disability because they can > not accommodate or provide her with other alternatives to help her > succeed, such as another class which will teach her based on the pace > she is currently at. I do not believe my daughter has a learning > disabiity, I believe it is an easy " cop out " for the school to just > try and label her with a learning disablity. > > My question to those reading, is there an Ohio law that requires > schools to be responsible for students they cannot accommodate > academically or is it just up to the parent? What are my rights? > What other alternatives do I have in a situation like this? Anyone > with any information, advice or resource on this subject, it would be > greatly appreciated. Thanks for listening. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2007 Report Share Posted December 30, 2007 I could be wrong, because it's been a while since I've dusted off my IDEA law books, but I believe, if the school requests an evaluation and the parent refuses, you then you don't have much recourse against the school district should your child continue to fail. If your child continues to fail, they can say they wanted to help and tried to do an eval to find out what help -- if any -- was needed, but you refused. Therefore, if it were me, I would let them do the evaluation. Doing an MFE is not a promise of services...it is a process to find out if there is a need for services/accommodations. Actually, if you let them do the eval, and they find your child qualifies for services, then you actually have MORE rights than otherwise. Yeah, it's seems a little backwards, but it makes sense once you're in it. If they do the eval and find your child does not qualify for services, well, then I would ask them what they plan to do to help your child succeed. I honestly don't know the rights of children who are non-disabled, but No Child Left Behind says all children must be working up to grade level by either 2012 or 2014. So.....there is bound to be something they should do, even if your child is found to not have a disability. Looking up No Child Left Behind on the internet would be another step to take. I have some experience with this district, although only with the elementary schools. I felt that their math curriculum was a bit awkward. That might be part of it. Adjusting to the change in districts might be part of the problem, as could be other students...it is tough to jump in to a new place at that age. However, have you asked your child about school? Does she indicate anything is bothering her? If you'd like, please feel welcome to e-mail me off-list. --Suzanne > > Our family is new to Nordonia Hills School District. We moved from > Maple Heights in March, 2007 and my daughter attends Lee Eaton > Elementary, Summit County, and has been having trouble adjusting to > the new school, curriculum, friends, etc. Firstly, she had been > having trouble keeping her grades up to par in Math and was receving > an " F " grade. I communicated with her teachers, hired a tutor and > helped my daughter at home at much as I could but to no avail, her > grades are not getting better and on top of that stress, my daughter > grades are slipping in her other classes so the IAT team at the > school had a meeting regarding my daughter and decided that my > daughter should be tested for a learning disability because they can > not accommodate or provide her with other alternatives to help her > succeed, such as another class which will teach her based on the pace > she is currently at. I do not believe my daughter has a learning > disabiity, I believe it is an easy " cop out " for the school to just > try and label her with a learning disablity. > > My question to those reading, is there an Ohio law that requires > schools to be responsible for students they cannot accommodate > academically or is it just up to the parent? What are my rights? > What other alternatives do I have in a situation like this? Anyone > with any information, advice or resource on this subject, it would be > greatly appreciated. Thanks for listening. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 6, 2008 Report Share Posted March 6, 2008 My daughter is much younger - only 14 months old - but we are in the process of beginning physical therapy, occupational therapy, developmental therapy, and feeding therapy. She had plagio and brachy and wore her helmet for 5 months. She does not pull up, crawl, or attempt to walk. She hates to put pressure on her legs - however they have found nothing wrong with her medically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 6, 2008 Report Share Posted March 6, 2008 I hope the therapy helps your little one catch up. It must be a little scary for you wondering if something is wrong. I hope that she's just a little stubborn :-) It is really good that she'll be getting all this attention. Let us know how she does. -christine sydney 2yrs starband grad > > My daughter is much younger - only 14 months old - but we are in the > process of beginning physical therapy, occupational therapy, > developmental therapy, and feeding therapy. She had plagio and brachy > and wore her helmet for 5 months. She does not pull up, crawl, or > attempt to walk. She hates to put pressure on her legs - however they > have found nothing wrong with her medically. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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