The Mom Chronicles: Part 2 of A Flawed System
Hi, Moms! I hope you are all staying cool in this heat wave we are having! Our home does not have air conditioning so as you are cranking up yours, think of us as we fight the heat in the Peterson household! With two little kids, that's been an interesting task!
Well, as promised I write today with a follow up to my column a few weeks ago about the flawed system we have in addressing the needs of kids with special needs. For those of you who missed it, I wrote about the concerns I have about kids, my own in particular, not being able to receive special ed services in our community as they did not fall below the cut off the state and school district has for offering services. I have been forced to take my children to the cities for care, as they do not fall below two standards of deviation below others in certain areas which would allow them to be helped through the district.
This past week my son was evaluated through Gillette Children's in St. Paul and the experience was eye opening. Part of why he did not qualify for language assistence in our district was because he was hitting some of his later sounds a child learns in their language building. In fact, however, while he has a couple later sounds, he is missing almost all of the early sounds which give him the basis for which he needs to be able to construct his words. While his cognition of language is good, his ability to articulate it and process it verbally is substantially lacking. Instead of sounding like a four year old, he sounds like a late two year old when he talks as his fundamentals are lacking in his language. The appointment offered direction and hope I have been lacking. Now before I go further, the district has offered to reevaluate my son after school starts up again, and I will be taking them up on that offer. However, I remain frustrated with the system in place, and the visit to Gillette offered other insight as well. According to the provider we saw, they see far too many children who are requiring services and are just short of the school district cut offs. And while the school district screenings are supposed to be standardized, her own experience with her child was one where subs were brought in the day of preschool screenings and given a quick training session that morning. She had to remove herself from the room during the screenings as she was able to observe as a professional herself, the lack of skill and knowledge these folks had in screening the kids and was short of outraged. Now, while that was not in our district, it shows how unreliable this screening can be, and of all screenings, one that is so important.
You see, in denying children programs based on a screening which is in many cases subjective and not always performed by specialists in the area, we are doing them a huge diservice. How many kids are walking around who may actually qualfiy and aren't because of a flawed screening process?
The primary problem with this is if these kids are not identified as having issues until later in life or their school careers, we have missed the perfect window of opportunity to actually help them. In fact, child research information has established, according to Kidsource online, that the "rate of human development is most rapid in the preschool years," and "timeing of intervention becomes particularly important when a child runs the risk of missing an opportunity to learn during a state of maximun readiness. If the most teachable moments or stages of greatest readiness are not taken advantage of, a child may have difficult learning a particular skill at a later time", which means a child won't be able to develop to their full potential.
In addition to for the children themselves in which intervening earlier at a lower rate of deviation from the norm can lessen the effects of a condition, it can also lessen the effects of conditions on their families as well. I myself have experienced the feelings of disappointment, isolation, stess and frustration that this website talked about and can see how families can experience divorce, suicide, and abuse if they are not supported in their childrens special needs because of these feelings. By helping kids earlier, we are also helping their families as well in their attitudes, which in fact will impact the child themselves and provide them with the supportive and nourishing environment they need.
This all said, it seems to obvious to me why early interventions for kids are necessary and how much our system needs to be reviewed in terms of early screening in kids. Remember, as parents you can always request second opinions or evals. And remember that if the school district says no, you have other options. Unfortunately they may not be local or may be costly to you, however, it is so necessary to get your kids the help and support they need. Gillette has been a godsend for my family. Truly. And I hope you will step up and be the best support for your family you can. You are your child's best advocates. Remember that. And don't let anyone say no in terms of offering services. Where one door closes, others will open.
Indeed our system is still flawed, and as parents we must do what is necessary to fix it, be it at a local or state level. I am not sure where to start but as I continue on this journey, I will keep you updated and I hope and pray that others may support me on it.
No comments:
Post a Comment