Top Special Educational Advocacy Tips for Parents

March 23rd, 2012 by admin No comments »

Most parents who have a child with special needs want to home school their child. They choose to do so in order to keep their child safe from peer pressure and close to themselves, for their child’s safety. This can be a daunting process, if you choose to educate your child yourself. However, it is not insurmountable. Check out the following steps that can make the process easier:

1. Know what suits your child best
You as a parent know the best for your child. If you feel that your child has a certain disability, you can help them cope with it. You understand your child best so you decide better what can help them learn. You can use different visuals, cues and other fun learning ways to educate your child.

2. Use letters to communicate important matters
Communication through email or telephone doesn’t work really well. Letters help you keep track of the entire history of communication. You may need to look back at your child’s documents later in case you fall into a disagreement with the educational advocate. You may create “minutes of the meeting” and send a copy to the personnel later, in case you have a face-to-face conversation.

3. Ask the educational advocate if you feel something is wrong
Your child’s advocate may suggest something that you may disagree with. You have all the right to ask for the details about the policy regarding that matter. It is important that all parents know about the policies for children with special needs. If need be, you can also ask for proof of the policy that your child’s advocate may suggest, for the benefit of your child.

4. Know the special education and disability laws in your state
It is important that you know all the laws related to special education and disabilities. This is important for your child’s education and future. You can avoid going misinformed by the special education personnel. The personnel may not communicate important matters that can affect your child’s education process.

5. Know the rights that your child has under special educational services
It is essential to know what sort of special care and service your child is entitled to. You can talk to your child’s advocate; do some self-research too, in order to provide the best education for your child. Educational advocacy services are of great help, as they make sure your child’s needs are fulfilled and your child receives proper education.

Special Education Child Actually Being Served

March 19th, 2012 by admin No comments »

First of all, I would like to let you know that there are many special education teachers who, day in and day out advocate for special education children, and teach your child to the best of their abilities. The fact is that these teachers are not being supported, and are being made to put their license on the line, and first and foremost serve the local high-profile students first. What do I mean by high-profile students? I mean students whose parents are school administrators, lawyers, local politicians, or work for some other local high-profile organization. That’s right, if you are not one of these parents, then you need to investigate whether or not your child is being served properly, according to his IEP. The excuse that the administration give the teachers for this behavior, is that they do not have enough money to hire enough special education teachers.

Let me take a moment here and educate you as to what that statement actually means. Not having enough money does not mean that the state or the city does not have enough money to hire teachers. What it means is that they did not budget enough money to hire the teachers necessary to accomplish the balanced service of special education students. They have budgeted many thousands of dollars in states such as South Carolina, for roads, highways, and research to stop flooding on city streets, and at the same time laid off teachers. Oh, of course they don’t call it a layoff, they cover that by calling teachers positions slots, and just tell you the parents that there are no slots left. The parents tend to buy into what the school system says, because the school system is very good at covering their tracks.

At this point you may be asking how I know these things, and where I was able to acquire my information. I have been a special education teacher in two states and in at least three major counties. I have relatives who are teachers in other states, so my information is about as inside as it gets. In fact you can hang your hat on it. As I am writing this I am in contact with state officials and am trying to create a task force for this very purpose. I don’t know if I will be able to pull this off without the backing of many parents with children having special needs, and attending public schools. Now that you understand that I am in contact with many special education teachers, I want you to know the unbelievable truth, and that is that when these teachers complain that they are serving high-profile cases, and they are not able to find the time to serve others, that do not have parents in high places, they are threatened, they are told that they will lose their jobs if they say the wrong thing, they are given extra work to do, sometimes in an attempt to have teachers quit if they rock the boat. » Read more: Special Education Child Actually Being Served