Need advice regarding academically advanced kid....

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Anyone had success getting services from public school for a AS child who is academically advanced. My experience is that they use their strong academics to justify not providing therapy (no academic need) and then use their handicaps to justify not teaching them at their level. It is easier for them to have the child quietly disengaged than to challenge them at all and have to manage behaviors. And yes, I know it is wrong to do this. He didn't test gifted because he has enough learning disabilities to lower his composite scores. My understanding is that there is no right to be provided advanced work aside from them not discriminating against such a child in placement.

Where is he currently placed ? Is he in a regular classroom or is he in special ed ? What services are you looking for ?

He has been in regular ed 6th grade (currently he is in Montessori for a year). What I'm looking for is academic work at his level. He certainly needs higher math, but I also want more work on writing multi paragraph papers. Therapeutically, he needs OT to address fine motor (handwriting, shoe tying), sensory integration, etc. He also needs social skills support and behavioral support to address meltdown issues. Yeah, I understand that I should get some therapy privately, BUT all they do is give him busy work and he has been making no academic progress for years in public schools.

I would say put him/her in advanced, and if they are not challenging your child enough, do it yourself. Who says the school needs to provide the advanced work? Take 'em to the library!

Scott- how is he dealing with the open aspect of Montessori? We were considering a Montessori for next year as the school he is currently going to (Charter) is in a bit of a rough neighborhood, and gangs are slowly creeping closer. Right now he is back in 3rd grade curriculum after being in advanced math, reading, science, and spelling for the last 2 years. He was upset at first, but we sort of suspect that while he was advancing through the homework and tests for the advanced programs, he wasn't truly learning the material as much as completing it. So he's comfortable with his current load after we talked about how being in 3rd grade curriculum doesn't mean you're dumb. Last year he was in 4th grade programs, and poking 5th grade math.

The only thing he knows now is that he doesn't have so much homework and so many tests- which he likes.

I was a gifted child and went to a gifted school after 1st grade, and it was ok. But, it was a little too lax for me looking back. It was a creative school, and I did learn eventually, but I think I missed the aspects of growing up around kids I went to school with on a daily basis, since the school was about 20 miles from our house. I think that is true what you said about the using the academic levels and handicaps to justify, I think that was part of my issue. My parents put me into the gifted school, but I think some of the issues I have now may have been compounded by not having the other stuff dealt with now that I think back.

Is your son able to motivate himself in Montessori? We've read that the program by us is a 'work at your pace' kind of place.

I have heard rumors of people having advanced academics written into a child's IEP. When I bring this up at our IEP meetings though, the staff can barely suppress their laughter

We have had many discussions about how to challenge DS academically. One key point to make with the IEP team is that getting an education means that your child is making PROGRESS. If he starts 6th grade with the ability to do 8th grade math curriculum, then by the end of 6th grade he should be ready for the 9th grade curriculum. If he isn't making any progress then the school isn't doing its job.

We were lucky in that our son was in the required percentiles of the gifted testing so they could not use his disabilities against him. It does not mean that they have to serve him at his level, but it does mean they have to provide him with enrichment materials the other gifted children in his grade get. We are also lucky in that the school (if not necessarily the district) can see his strengths and want to work with them.

They have not pulled his special ed credentials because he scored "high" on the autistic scales as well, for communication/social issues, and has a lot of problems with handwriting, and there really is no denying them. He has behavioral issues, too. They are clearly disabling issues. I do not know if he will continue testing as gifted in everything, as the reading comprehension has increasingly required social skills he really doesn't have. But right now he is still in gifted.

If you argue a 2e (twice exceptional designation) it helps if you have testing results that show that your child qualifies for both. They are not required to provide enhanced material if they can prove your child's education is appropriate. They may do so, if they want to, even if your child does not meet the gifted criteria if they feel it is appropriate.

That said, look carefully at your state's criteria you may still be able to access gifted resources if he has special skills in a particular subject or there is something else that makes him eligible. It is much harder if your school is uncooperative but sometimes a sympathetic teacher can help bolster your case.

The thing is that these kids often don't fit the profile school systems have of the "gifted child" nor do they fit in many of those classrooms which focus on abstraction. I've homeschooled in the past, but we moved (due to work) to an area where it isn't practical. The problem with the do it myself approach is that there is so much to do (medical appointments, social skills, OT for sensory and fine motor, academic) that the school needs to do their part.

The Montessori school is a very flexible environment, and is very low stress. If he needs a break, he gets one. It might be too flexible because he isn't learning how to deal with having demands placed on him, but we needed a more relaxed year. It also has a ridiculously low student/teacher ratio. He is getting better working than in public school, but his class is 4-6th gr and the school ends at 6th. I'll work with him on math and writing paragraphs this year, but we'll likely return to public school next year. He seems to enjoy his school as well.

Bombaloo,

Are you saying they are legally required to show academic progress if they are past grade level? I was not aware of that. I am not arguing that they shouldn't, but do they have to?

I agree with Bombaloo, if they are not advancing, they're not doing what they need to for whatever reason. Either the school isn't challenging, or the student may be at a plateau of some sort, or maybe a bit of both as one may lead to the other?

I know in our school they have proficiency testing, which my DS got majorly stressed out over, got lower scores on one, and stayed in the normal class curriculum this year...

The thing I worry about in Montessori is the simple drive thing. I worry that if he isn't driven to work on everything, he may only work on the subjects he likes instead of working on advancing everything. I could see him in HS math by the time he is in middle school, but still in 4th or 5th grade on some others since they simply don't interest him. Can that not happen? I mean they have to have some sort of watermark, no? I also worry about the similar problem of not dealing with demands. I really don't want him to not be challenged sometimes to do things he doesn't want to do, because he will need to deal with those things as he gets older anyhow.

I'm thinking that the normal standardized testing shows what it needs to? (MEAP) I think that's what ours do for the requirement...

ASDMommy's questions got me digging a little for some documentation to back up my statement and to provide more info on this topic. Here's a quote from the Wright's Law Website:
"If the child is making progress on his IEP goals, but is receiving failing grades or is not making adequate progress in academic areas, this may be evidence that the child is not receiving a free appropriate public education.

To meet the threshold requirements for a FAPE, the school must ensure that the child with a disability makes adequate progress in academic achievement and functional performance, and on the IEP goals. If the child’s academic achievement and functional performance are not commensurate with the child’s progress on IEP goals, the child’s IEP needs to be revised. The parents and educators need to determine what adjustments need to be made to the child’s special education program and IEP."

http://www.wrightslaw.com/idea/art/10.tips.steedman.htm#5

Honestly, I'm pretty sure that gifted/advanced academics are not covered by IDEA (see link). Testing/admission for gifted programs must comply with the ADA, but I don't think any federal law requires that advanced students be taught at their academic level. There is a secondary issue that 'giftedness' is almost uniformly defined as asking lots of questions and being very inquisitive while kids like my son sort of absorb the information. Schools tend to have a rigid definition of gifted.

http://www.ericdigests.org/1998-2/legal.htm

As for Montessori, there is plenty of structure in my son's school. They are more flexible, but kids are not allowed to just do what they want, and he brings home more completed work in all subjects than he did last year. Generally, I think a lot depends on the individual Montessori school.

ScottAllen

I saw that article too, and I think it speaks more to gifted ed for non-disabled students. It is true that gifted education by itself is not protected under federal law though some states have made some in-roads. What is covered under the IDEA is that students with disabilities must make academic progress. The link I posted above says that the courts have ruled that if a child with a disability does not make academic progress then he/she is not receiving a free appropriate public education as is mandated by the IDEA. If a child with a disability has mastered grade level curriculum at the beginning of the school year, the school has an obligation to offer something beyond that grade level curriculum. Otherwise how could they possibly show progress?