Berkeley Unified School District Denies Rights of Autistic Boy

emediawire.com/releases ^

[Bonaparte]

Neither do I. All Arnold "for-the-children" Schwarzenegger is doing about the debt is putting it on the shoulders of the next generation, along with all the interest due. He's looking pretty weak on reform of workmans comp, too.

[RepubMommy]

Does anyone try to figure out where his disability came from in the first place? I volunteer at my childs school, when I was in school their were not any children with autism or ADD, now each class has around three each child needing their own helper. I hate to say it but it drags down the learning process for every other child in the class just because we all need to be politically correct.

Hoping you don't volunteer anywhere within any NJ school districts. There is a very active autism ping list here in FR and I believe I can speak for at least a few of the members saying we aren't placing our kids in the most typical setting they can tolerate "in the name of being PC". Be happy that you are on the other side of this and will never have to hear scathing comments coming from someone such as yourself.

[Dianna]

If the teacher is a certified elementary school teacher, no special training is required by federal law.

I hope you can answer a question for me. My understanding is that IF something can be written into an IEP it becomes as good as law. Perhaps the law does not require special training, but if it was written into the IEP that the teacher get special training, wouldn't failing on that be not following the IEP and thus, against the law?

[RepubMommy]

autism ping, don't have the list, sorry.

[merry10]

Dianna
Please go to http://www.listen-up.org. This is a link for parents of kids who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing, but it has a multitude of sites for questions such as yours. You can try to get teacher training into the IEP, but if you do, it might take till the next summer for the teacher to be trained in whatever it is. If the school is not following the IEP and you can document this, you can go to due process and get the Office of Special Ed policy involved but often this is long and drawn out. I also recommend you do a google on "Wright's Law". Remember all they have to show is compliance and FAPE but what if they actually found on line training and used that as a justification?

[merry10]

I was going to go yes on two of the more popular propositons but the hour before voted NO on all four of them. Extending the debt helps nothing. Quit paying for removing tattoos from former gang members.

[merry10]

Can you add me? thanks.

[merry10]

ping

[arjay]

I have to say that there have been some very cruel and heartless comments on this thread. I am amazed that some people take the opportunity of the anonymity of the Internet to say things they would never say in person.

The children cannot help being the way they are and I would absolutely hate to be in the position of some of the parents having to raise children who will never leave home, nor will he parents ever have relief. It is a very difficult position in which to be.

Some parents, because of their lifestyles have precipitated the problems. Other parents have done nothing to cause the problems.

The parents and children deserve our sympathy and help, not our derision.

Think about what you are saying and the effect it can have on others.

I apologize for the soap box, but my wife dearly loves the children in her special ed class. My heart goes out to the parents who suffer with trying to help their children get through this life.

I am also amazed at the cruelty of other children. I know of one sweet little multiple handicapped girl who is in a wheelchair. The junior high kids push her into walls and abuse her. Where do they learn that kind of behavior?

Certainly, the schools are often lousy in the way they deal with the children. Often children who should not be, are mainstreamed. Other children who need to be mainstreamed are not.

Maybe we need to stop griping and start helping.

Now I am off my soapbox.

[Rabid Dog]

I guess I'm not that sympathetic to the mother's complaints - she made a lot of choices that probably weren't the best for the kid - especially changes to the routine. That is the LAST thing you want to do to a kid with Autism or Aspergers.

But I certainly don't want to defend the Berkeley school system - they have tons of money just for this kind of situation. Maybe they can divert some of the funds for Kwanzaa studies or self-esteem courses or sexual diversity courses over the the special needs kids.

[Libertina]

Public schools cannot, nor should they be expected, to provide for every birth/developmental/physical/mental problem of challenged kids. I do NOT agree with this mass mainstreaming (and sometimes disruption of the other students.) Special schools may be needed. At what point are the parents of these kids responsible for some of the care and learning and cost?

[Thoeting]

I hope you can answer a question for me. My understanding is that IF something can be written into an IEP it becomes as good as law. Perhaps the law does not require special training, but if it was written into the IEP that the teacher get special training, wouldn't failing on that be not following the IEP and thus, against the law?

That's a really good question. Here's the answer as I know it.

Items written into an IEP fall under very precise categories. First there is a present level of performance. Here is where the teacher describes the child as specifically as possible. Next, come goals--these SHOULD be quantitative and definable by any observer, ie. Johnny will multiply 2 digits by 2 digits with 90% accuracy on 3 of 5 tries. Goals should ONLY be written for access points, such as reading, writing, math, and for some kids, social/behavior/organizational. Then the team discusses accommodations. This is how the environment should be manipulated so that the student can access the curriculum. Common accommodations are seating near instruction, tests read, calculators, word processors, etc. If the child has a math disability, there is no need for word processing and vice versa. However, teachers who are clueless will present the parent with a "shopping list" of aaaaaaaall possible accommodations and then the IEP ends up with ridiculous stuff. Best practice says to start with the disability and work out. Then, if the kid is 14, there is a transition section. That's pretty much it in an IEP.

I guess it is possible that something could be written into the accommodation section, but only an incompetent administrator would let something like that through since that is not the purpose of that page. But, I'm talking taking the Peter Principle to its greatest limit.

However, all that being said. IF a parent browbeat a committee into requiring training it would be required, but only for the life of the IEP, which can be no more than one year.

[verity]

The article's subtitle: "Life's a Bitch in CA."

[RepubMommy]

I only have a partial list, but will add you to what I have:)

[RepubMommy]

autism ping

[Tijeras_Slim]

Where do they learn that kind of behavior?

Children are natural savages, it is the job of parents and society (in the form of its members adhering to a moral code and perpetuating it) to civilize them. In many cases the parents don't and the society can't.

[cerberus]

Children are natural savages...

That is an interesting point that could be argued (as it was in Golding's Lord of the Flies). My fairly recent experience as a parent has led me to be more inclined to believe that we turn children into "savages" by treating them as though they are. Of course it isn't all one or the other.

I have not treated my own children as "little savages" and I am (so far) very pleased with how they are coming along.

[RepubMommy]

have to say that there have been some very cruel and heartless comments on this thread. I am amazed that some people take the opportunity of the anonymity of the Internet to say things they would never say in person. The children cannot help being the way they are and I would absolutely hate to be in the position of some of the parents having to raise children who will never leave home, nor will he parents ever have relief. It is a very difficult position in which to be.

Thank you for your post and thank your wife as well. There is a photo of my special little girl in my profile and at 2.5 years old and after 10 months of therapy, she is nearly "indistinguishable from her peers" as her doctors now have stated. I have no doubt in my mind that she will eventually thrive in a normal school setting, possibly as early as kindergarten and become a functional and productive adult with perhaps some "quirks". However, along the way I have met some profoundly autistic children and it's a sad situation. To make such comments without having walked a day in these parents's shoes is plain cruel, as you said. FReepers have autistic children too and none of us asked to be here. Many of us pursue outside private therapy and are not solely relying on the government alone, just to clear THAT up. It's times like these where I think the Demilibs may be onto something when they spout that we conservatives "only care about children when they are inside the wound".

[cerberus]

The state is required to provide an APPROPRIATE education--they must provide the "Ford" not required to provide the "Cadillac" Free and Appropriate.

I can think of at least one situation where a student has his own separate classroom, his own teacher, and three or more paraprofessional staff who work only with him. Counting paraprofessional staff this is at least a four to one teacher-student ratio.

I guess my point is that the product of laws and litigation over the last 30 years has created a situation that is more complicated, expensive and fraught with legal land mines than most people can begin to realize.

[alexandria]

Bull, the Ratio is 9-1 or 12-1 with an aide.

Really, I thought that it was 6-1 or 12-1 with an aide. I worked with medically fragile infants/children for 15 + years and under state licensing regs we were required a 6-1 / 12-2 ratio during all hours of instruction. Frankly if the state wanted to HELP some of these children they wouldn't be "mainstreaming" them at all. They'd be using that education money that they are giving for these schools having these kids enrolled for specialized day schools with the proper setups.