Has anyone regretted getting an IEP?
Our principal disagreed with our psychiatrist who recommended an IEP before middle school. Our principal believes that the 504 will serve us best.
Here is what he said:
Being on a 504 gives you much of the
same rights as an IEP and, in your son's case, the 504 gives you more choices
as far as accommodations in the regular education classes (something
you'll want to make sure is in place for middle school).
If your son were to qualify for special education, you'd be looking at having
him receive Resource Specialist services where they work on remedial
skills. This would probably not be in your son's best interest as he would be
with students performing 2 years below grade level and some who model some
unwanted behaviors.
So is this true? I don't know a lot about IEPs, so I thought I would ask all of you.
My son is performing well for the most part. Recently he is showing a D in math, everything else is As and Bs. But the math is a problem because he doesn't want to work through the problems, he just wants to guess and get the test over with. I read in "The Bipolar Child" that this is sometibng that happens with bipolar kids. I don't know if there is a brain function problem at the root of this, also bringing on homework problems. He also gets overwhelmed with ABC order of spelling words, again is this a processing problem? Would testing help us? What are your thoughts?
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Mom of 3 boys, the oldest (10 years) suffering with a "Mood Disorder". Our current psychiatrist believes he suffers from Bipolar 1 Disorder, but he’s too young to make the official diagnosis. He’s currently taking Tenex, Trileptal, Lithium and Melatonin to help.
Check out my blog at http://mysonhas2brains.blogspot.com/
I have absolutely never regretted having an IEP for my son and I think the principal is wrong.
The Bipolar Child has a good chapter on educational issues, but a lot of the info is also summarized here: http://jbrf.org/edu_forums/issues.html
I would also say that neuropsychological testing is essential, and that although the school must provide that at your request (at no expense to you), their testing is not likely to be adequate. The article details the private testing that is recommended and how to find someone qualified to test your child. We had to go out of network and ended up with insurance covering 80% of the fees after our deductible, and the total cost was around $3000. I felt it was important enough to do this in order to identify specific deficits, because not doing so would be like asking a child with poor eyesight to just try harder to see more clearly.
Just an example, but I would not assume that your son is rushing through his math just because he doesn't feel like doing it. It's very common for bipolar kids to have working memory deficits which make it hard to multi-step math problems which start to come into play during the latter years of elementary school. This may make it so frustrating for him that he doesn't feel he could complete the work and just guesses answers instead.
Chris Stanley- DS 11, ADHD ( ?) ODD, Bipolar NOS
currently taking Lithium, RisSperidone,, Melatonin
Oh, and on the specific things the principal told you-
First, it is NOT true that more accommodations are available to you under 504 than with an IEP. Any accommodation in the regular classroom can be done under either plan, but with an IEP there is more accountability for the school to follow through with it. The only part of 504 which gives your child MORE rights has to do with after graduation or on leaving the school system, because it covers civil rights in general and not just in school.
Second, if the school does not currently have any way of providing resource services to kids who are not more than two grade levels behind, then there is something wrong. There should be one or more classrooms that are regular Ed classrooms, but with special Ed teachers providing extra help to students who need it regardless of whether they are that far behind in academics, because there are many reasons that a child may need the extra help and it should be provided in the classroom setting which is the least restricted environment.
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Chris Stanley- DS 11, ADHD ( ?) ODD, Bipolar NOS
currently taking Lithium, Risperidone, Melatonin
I am fighting for an IEP for my older daughter who has ADHD and Asperger's. She's struggling in 6th grade because she can't organize her thoughts so she cannot write papers. However, her IQ is very high and she knows every subject. The school doesn't want to change from a 504. My mom used to teach children with mental disabilities. She believes that because she scores well on tests they don't want her on an IEP becuase her scores wouldn't be included in the overall scores with the school. I don't have anything to back that up.
I finally had to site scources and send a written letter in with the documented research on my daughter's struggles to prove it was a learning disability. We're in the middle of testing now. Make sure to do as much as you can in writing or they will continue to ask you not to do it.