Jessica LaheyOur son’s teacher recently asked that we have him tested. I am hazy on the details of this, and would like to know what “testing” for behavioral or cognitive issues entails. Could you explain the process?
T.L.
Dear T.L.,
This is a huge topic to cover in a single response, but here goes. Note that I’ve embedded more links than usual to provide a wide array of resources, including the United States Department of Education’s Center for Parent Information and Resources that contains a wealth of resources and access to your state’s Parent Center, which can help with the details of education law that vary from state to state. I will also list some of my favorite books on a couple of relevant topics at the end of this post.
First, try not to be freaked out by the word “testing.” More often than not, the school wants to figure out how best to help your child learn, and wants to make sure it is not missing a diagnosis that can help guide instruction.
Now, let’s get down to brass tacks. Testing, whether for behavioralor cognitive differences, falls under the same federal legislation, so let’s start with the laws governing education and the language and acronyms you will be hearing about as your child’s testing and potential educational accommodations unfold.
There are two pieces of federal law that govern your rights and dictate the process of testing: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“504”) and the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act of 1975 (IDEA). Section 504 requires public schools to provide a “free appropriate public education” to each qualified person (the student) with a disability who is in the school district’s jurisdiction, regardless of the nature or severity of the person’s disability. That sentence includes a few important, yet legally and practically vague, words: appropriate, qualified and disability.
As far as the school is concerned, “appropriate” is a big issue because it determines what kind and how many services it will have to budget for in the years ahead. Because the school may interpret “appropriate” differently from a parent, this word will come up a lot as you advocate for your child.
The IDEA requires schools to have a process for evaluating disability, and it also governs how states and public agencies provide services. This can either mean early intervention services for babies and toddlers or special education services to childrenages 3 to 21. The word at issue here is “disability.” The definitions ofwhat is or is not a disability, and whether those disabilities qualify vary wildly. “Qualified” simply means that your child has been determined to have a disability that is covered under the law.
You mentioned that the school approached you about testing your child, but that, too, can mean a couple of different things depending on how you choose to proceed. You can elect to have the school district do the testing at its expense (which is your district’s taxpayer expense) or you can elect to have the testing done privately, with a professional of your choosing, at your expense (otherwise known as an Independent Educational Evaluation, or IEE). If your child is in private school, the state still has responsibilities regarding your child, but they are slightly different, and again, vary by state.
It is important to know what, precisely, the school is concerned about to narrow the focus of your child’s testing so that it has the best potential to result in helpful and useful information. If the school is concerned about intelligence or academic ability, that will necessitate one form of testing, but if the school is concerned with behavioral issues, that can mean entirely different sorts of tests. Narrow the focus and remember that the goal is to obtain relevant information that may direct instruction and help your child learn, not to subject your child to the widest battery of testing available. If, for example, the teacher is worried about executive function issues, but your child’s ability is not at issue, discuss the advisability and purpose of intelligence testing.
If testing reveals that your child has a disability, he is entitled to anIndividualized Education Plan (IEP). You have the right to be a part of forming that plan, and you should be. These early discussions will lay the foundation for the services outlined in your child’s IEP, and once the IEP is set, and you have signed it, it’s a legal contract.
Above all else, be your child’s advocate. While schools, and particularly your child’s teachers, want to help your child get the best education possible, understand that parents and schools may have conflicting priorities or differences of opinion. Aim for long-term change rather than the application of Band-Aids and quick fixes. Keep accurate records of conversations with teachers and school administrators, Finally, make sure the services your child needs are manifested in ways that help your child succeed.
I wish you the best of luck in the road ahead.
Mrs. Lahey
Books:
Intelligence:
For a readable and fascinating account of what the label of “special education” can mean on a personal level and the research on neuroscience as it relates to “intelligence,” read Scott Barry Kaufman’s “Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined. The Truth About Talent, Practice, Creativity, and the Many Paths to Greatness.”
Executive Function:
My two favorite books on helping children deal with executive function issues, even for children who don’t have a diagnosable deficit but need help with organization, time management and self-control (read: most young adolescents) are “Late, Lost, and Unprepared: A Parents’ Guide to Helping Children With Executive Functioning,” by Joyce Cooper-Kahn, Ph.D., and Laurie Dietzel, Ph.D., and “That Crumpled Paper Was Due Last Week,” by Ana Homayoun.
Dyslexia:
“The Dyslexic Advantage,” by Brock L. Eide, M.D., M.A., and Fernette F. Eide, M.D. I was fascinated by this book about dyslexia and the little-understood differences between the dyslexic brain and the neurotypical brain. I can’t recommend this book highly enough.
Learning Differences and advocacy:
“Wrightslaw: From Emotions to Advocacy: The Special Education Survival Guide,” by Peter W.D. Wright and Pamela Darr Wright, is an invaluable resource on just about every aspect of special education law to advocacy and the realities of planning, persuading and negotiating for special education services.
ADD/ADHD:
There are hundreds of ADD/ADHD books out there, from as many different perspectives, but “Driven to Distraction: Recognizing and Coping With Attention Deficit Disorder From Childhood Through Adulthood,” by Edward M. Hallowell and John J. Ratey is a great place to start.
Jessica Lahey is an educator, writer and speaker. She writes about parenting and education for The New York Times, The Atlantic,Vermont Public Radio and her own blog, Coming of Age in the Middle. Her book, “The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed,” will be published by HarperCollins in 2015.
