LEARNING PROBLEMS AT SCHOOL:

Whose FAULT Is It?

I know they think Brian's problems are my fault. When I said that I thought he needed more individual help from the LD teacher, they shook their heads. They only "do collaborative" now. They told me I shouldn't use the word "dyslexia" because it sounds so hopeless. Then they asked how my husband and I were getting along! (Denise, mother of a boy diagnosed with emotional problems, later found to have severe dyslexia.)

They told us that it was Shannon's fault - that she was lazy and unmotivated and we needed to pressure her to work harder. We didn't allow her to watch television. She wasn't allowed to go out with friends. She really got depressed. Homework took hours to complete, even when we helped her. We didn't know what else to do. We didn't want to raise a lazy child. (Emory and Elaine Carter, Shannon's parents, before they learned that their daughter had dyslexia and ADHD. See Florence County School District Four v. Shannon Carter, ___ U. S. ___, 114 S. Ct. 361 (1993)

Parents frequently report that they are intimidated, patronized and made to feel guilty and inadequate by staff at their child's school. After a few negative experiences, these parents feel increasingly helpless, frustrated and defensive.

Not surprisingly, parents behave exactly like other human beings when they are blamed or attacked. Feeling internally threatened and uncomfortable, most respond by trying to explain and justify their position, hoping that they will be understood. A few go on the offense, firing volleys of blame back. Many parents find these experiences exquisitely painful and humiliating. If they withdraw and try to avoid school functions, they may find themselves labeled as "uninvolved parents" - which accounts for their child's learning problems.

Sometimes, emotions get out of control. Feelings of intense anger, bitterness, and betrayal consume parents and school personnel - who are then completely unable to work together in educational planning and decision-making. In these cases, everyone loses - and the child may be the biggest loser if his parents and educators cannot work together effectively.


What is the basis for these negative experiences? Are parents too sensitive? Do they misperceive and misunderstand what happens in their contacts with educators? Or are parents just loyal and over-protective of their children, as many educators claim?

If you are a "special ed" parent, you've learned that it's hard to fight - and it's harder to bail out. If your child is to receive special education services, you need to attend school meetings and you need to cooperate in the development of your child's IEPs. How can you do this?

And - more important - if the school staff does believe that you or your child are to blame for the child's learning problems, how can you work with them so that your child's interests are protected and he still gets a good quality education?

If you are a parent who has run into a "brick wall" of resistance when you tried to obtain changes in your child's educational program, you need to understand how schools really function. You need to understand the "culture" of schools and the beliefs held by educators, school psychologists, administrators, and guidance counselors.

A fascinating study on school psychologists was conducted by Dr. Galen Alessi, Professor of Psychology at Western Michigan University. Dr. Alessi's study illuminates the reasons that many parents experience problems in their dealings with schools. The study is described in Dr. Alessi's 1988 article entitled "Diagnosis Diagnosed: A Systemic Reaction" published in Professional School Psychology, 3(2), 145-151.

The major role of school psychologists is evaluating children to determine the sources of learning and behavioral problems in school. According to Alessi, when a child has difficulty learning or behaving in school, the source of the problem can usually be traced to one or more of five causes.

· First, the child may be misplaced in the curriculum, or the curriculum may include faulty teaching routines. · Second, the teacher may not be implementing effective teaching and/or behavioral management practices. · Third, the principal and/or other school administrators may not be implementing effective school management practices. · Fourth, the parents may not be providing the home-based support necessary for effective learning. · Fifth, the child may have physical and/or psychological problems that contribute to learning problems.
School psychologists from different areas of the country were interviewed and asked to complete an "informal survey." First, each school psychologist was asked if they agreed that the five factors listed above play a "primary role in a given school learning or behavior problem." The school psychologists agreed that these factors, alone or together, played a role in children's learning problems.

The school psychologists were surveyed as to the number of children they had evaluated during the past year to determine the source of learning problems. The average number was about 120 cases (or kids). These numbers were rounded to 100 cases for each of the 50 psychologists for a total of 5,000 cases.

Each psychologist was asked how many psychological reports they had written that concluded that the child's learning problem was primarily due to curriculum factors. "The answer was usually none. All cases out of the 5,000 examined confirmed that their schools somehow had been fortunate enough to have adopted only the most effective basal curricula."

Each psychologist was asked for the number of reports that concluded that the referring problem was due primarily to inappropriate teaching practices. "The answer also was none. All cases out of the 5,000 examined proved that their districts had been fortunate enough to have hired only the most skilled, dedicated, and best prepared teachers in the land."

Then psychologists were asked how many reports concluded that the referred problem was due primarily to faulty school administrative factors. "The answer again was none. All cases out of 5,000 examined demonstrated that their districts had hired and retained only the nation's very best and brightest school administrators."

When asked how many reports concluded that parent and home factors were primarily responsible, the answer ranged from 500 to 1,000 (10% to 20%). These positive findings indicated that we were finally getting close to the source of educational problems in schools. Some children just don't have parents who are smart, competent, or properly motivated to help their children do well in school.

Finally, I asked how many reports concluded that child factors were primarily responsible for the referred problem. The answer was 100%. These 5,000 positive findings uncovered the true weak link in the educational process in these districts: the children themselves. If only these districts had better functioning children with a few more supportive parents, there would be no educational difficulties.

He noted that in IEP situations, "family factors are invoked most often when the parent does not attend the meeting, or if the parent is involved in a way deemed 'inappropriate' by the school staff. Otherwise, child factors alone seem to carry the explanatory burden for school learning and behavior problems."

Based on the results of these 5,000 reports prepared by school psychologists, "the results indicate clearly no need to improve curricula, teaching practices, nor school administrative practices and management. The only needs somehow involve improving the stock of children enrolled in the system, and some of their parents."

Alessi expressed concern that if school psychologists define children's learning problems as problems existing solely within the child, then "it is equally unclear how school psychologists can help resolve this kind of problem. School psychologists seem to define school problems in ways that cannot be resolved."

When Dr. Alessi shared the results of his study with the school psychologists surveyed, many protested that "all five factors are indeed responsible for school problems in the cases they studied, but that informal school policy (or 'school culture') dictates that conclusions be limited to child and family factors. Many feel that they could lose their jobs were they to invoke school-related factors. Certainly, they claim, their professional lives would be made very uncomfortable . . . The fact remains that no school psychologist in the group had determined that any existing problems were due to school-related factors."

Alessi discussed several additional reasons for the prevailing "child-as-the-problem" perspective of school psychologists. Graduate school training programs focus on child problems and exclude school-related factors. Workshop and paper presentations at school psychology conferences share the same "child-as-the-problem" focus. Articles in most school psychology journals focus exclusively on child factors.

School psychology textbooks have a clear "child-as-the-problem" bias. After examining several "mainstream" school psychology texts, Alessi found that when assessing children's reading problems, school factors were mentioned as a factor between 7% and 0% (zero) of the time. "Child factors" were held responsible for reading problems between 90% to 100% of the time. Citing a classic book on reading disability, Alessi noted that it included no chapters about the connection between reading problems and school factors. The entire book focused on "child factors."


The "child-as-the-problem" bias also pervades school psychology research and practice. Alessi referenced one work which presented an extensive review of the research on learning disabilities. "Of the approximately 1,000 studies reviewed, not one examined the relation between school factors and learning disabilities."

In conclusion, Alessi observed that "Parents trust school psychologists not to adopt assessment practices that are inherently biased in ways that could hinder, rather than help, their children." Dr. Alessi then discussed the "ethical burdens" on school psychologists:

As this body of research grows, school psychologists will increasingly face the burden of deciding whether they work for the schools or for the children, in cases where the interests clash.
We end with a discussion of the ethical burdens on school psychologists to be forthright and honest when reporting their findings.
· Are we really helping children by concluding that children alone are responsible for their educational problems?
· Are we helping the school system at the expense of the children?
· How do we balance the rights of those who pay for our services against those who receive our services, when interests clash?
· Is the role of the school psychologist to label children to help schools avoid improving faulty educational practices, or to help schools improve faulty educational practices to avoid labeling children?

What does this study tell you -- the parent of a special education child? If you believe that the staff at your child's school is unwilling to look at what they need to do differently to help your child learn, this study suggests that you are probably right.

If you believe that you and/or your child are being blamed for your child's learning problems, this study suggests that you are correct. And, if you believe that school factors (an inappropriate curriculum, faulty teaching, or ineffective school administration and management practices) are contributing to your child's problems, this is an accurate assessment.

First, what are the implications of this study for you, the parent of a special needs child? Your job is to work with the school system to secure educational services for your child. Second, you must have accurate information from psychological and educational evaluations. Only then can you and the school make decisions and develop an appropriate educational plan. If you cannot rely on the school psychologist to provide this information, how can you obtain it? Should you ask the school to refer you out for an "independent educational evaluation?"

Point #1:
Many people who work in schools share a common belief - that the problems they encounter when teaching children have little or nothing to do with their curriculum, teaching staff or administrators. They believe that the child's learning problems are caused by the child himself. Most people who work in schools - school psychologists, guidance counselors, principals, special education directors - share this belief. They learned this when they received their training. Because most educators associate with other educators, they are not exposed to different perspectives. They reinforce the view of the "child-as-the-problem" in their dealings with one another.
As a parent, can you force educators and school psychologists to change their beliefs? Think about it. This view of the "child-as-the-problem" persists because it serves a purpose. Scenario: Imagine what would happen if the next time you attended an IEP meeting, the school staff announced that your child's problems were really due to an inappropriate curriculum? Inadequately trained teachers? An incompetent principal? This is not going to happen. Point #2:
As the parent of a special ed child, your job is to negotiate with the staff of your child's school to obtain a good quality educational program. As a negotiator, what do you need to know?
The single most important tool of an effective negotiator is to understand and be able to explain the position of the "other side" - as well or better than your own! If you understand the beliefs and perceptions of the school staff, you will be in a position to accomplish your objective. Understanding their position is not the same as agreeing with it! But, once you know how they think and what they believe, you may be able to generate a "win-win solution" that meets your needs and theirs.

To accomplish your objective, you need to obtain accurate information about your child. This information includes the results of different psychological and educational tests. If you do not have good quality diagnostic evaluations, you will not be able to develop an appropriate educational program for your child. Since you have learned that school psychologists may be biased, what other options do you have?

Parents ask us: "Can't I just tell the school that I want an independent educational evaluation done on my child? Money is short. Private testing is expensive. Aren't we are entitled to this?"

Before answering your question, let's change the facts..

If you belong to a "managed care" health plan, you have a primary care doctor. This person has entered into a contractual agreement with your insurance company, agreeing to abide by certain rules. The most important rule is that your doctor has agreed to hold medical costs down by "managing care." How does this work?

In "managed care," your primary care doctor is supposed to act as a "gatekeeper," regulating your access to medical treatment. If you go to a specialist without being properly referred by your primary care doctor, your insurance company does not have to pay for your treatment. If your doctor is successful in holding costs down, the insurance company rewards him or her with financial bonuses. If your doctor is not willing to play by these rules, the insurance company will probably cancel his contract. He will lose you and many other patients - and his livelihood.

Now, let's assume that you have a sick child. You take him to your primary care doctor - who works for the managed care plan. Although the doctor made a diagnosis and prescribed medication, the child is getting sicker. You request a referral to a specialist. After discussion and disagreement, the doctor agrees to refer your child to a specialist - who is also a member of the managed care plan. However, this specialist signed a contract with the managed care entity, forbidding him from fully inform you about treatment options for your child. He is under a gag order and cannot explain certain treatments because they are expensive and the HMO does not want to pay for them.

Do you want your sick child being treated by doctors who are not allowed to inform you about certain (expensive) treatment options? Of course not! Your child's health is at stake.

Let's return to your question about independent evaluations. Earlier in this article, you learned that most school psychologists officially consider only child or family factors when assessing children's learning and behavior problems. Aren't things different with independent evaluators?

The relationship between "independent evaluators" and school districts is similar to the relationship between managed care specialists and insurance companies. In many jurisdictions, people who are on the school's "approved list" of independent evaluators have agreed to abide by certain rules. They have agreed to perform evaluations on children and they are paid by the school district.

As a parent, you need to ask yourself this question: If an evaluator is being paid by the school district, how independent can he or she be?

In our practice, we have seen many cases in which an independent educational evaluator recommends that a child receive more or different special education serves than the district wants to provide. After making "pro-child" recommendations, these diagnosticians were unilaterally removed from the school's "approved list" of evaluators.

You need to get comprehensive evaluations on your child from experts who are truly independent. The evaluations that are used to make educational decisions must contain accurate information about what your child really needs - including changes that should be made in curriculum, teaching methods, and/or school structure. The only people that you can trust to provide you with this information are experts in the private sector.

If parents want to get unbiased information, they must be willing to pay for it. Many parents are financially strapped. Children with special needs are expensive to raise. Please remember that children can "do without" many things they want and not be damaged. But children need an appropriate education.. The most meaningful gift parents can make to their children is the gift of a good education. This gift will pay dividends for the rest of the child's life.

REMEMBER:

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER - ALWAYS!

As the parent of a special ed child, you will be able to function more effectively if you understand how school's work - the school "culture" and belief system. You don't have to accept it. You just need to understand it. Understanding the school culture will help to explain many of the obstacles that you may encounter as you advocate for your child. Your primary job remains the same - to focus your energy onto what you need to learn and do to obtain an appropriate education for your child.