Compensatory Services

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We heard at our IEP meeting that evening and weekend compensatory hours were available from non-FCPS teachers. No one is making teachers do this work.

Who do you think is combing through the IEPs from the last few years and holding extra meetings on top of the already way-too-full
schedules? What services are being provided to the students while the teachers are dealing with this? They can’t teach and do this at the same time.

Aside from pay, which I agree should be more, what do you suggest? Not provide IEPs? Additional services? Or outsource it altogether?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe teachers should direct their irritation about compensatory services toward their leadership? Parents didn’t make the directive that they didn’t have to teach special kids.

I taught special ed kids. Every day during the virtual learning year. This lawsuit even covers the year we were fully back in person. And requires us to spend hours combing through old data and hold second iep meetings for literally every special education student in our building before June. It's almost impossible to get through all the meetings in a regular year but now we have to do it twice. OCR has lost there ever loving minds.

That is nice that you taught special kids when it was your job but many schools took away services. It happened to us. We were fortunate to be able to go to a private tutor- it was expensive but the teacher was fantastic and our child made massive improvements. It was worth it but it was expensive.

I have no expectations that the FCPS compensatory services will be good so we are not doing them but we are submitting our expenses for the time we paid for the private tutor. We probably won’t get paid back but I want someone to see the cost.

Ok: wow- that was really expensive. You really helped your kid by paying all that money. You really love him! A+ for parenting. Bad school. Bad teacher. Bad emergency response. Bad bad scared teachers.

Does that help? What you are saying is you are angry and want acknowledgement because you can’t handle it. You want the teaching profession to pay. We got it. At this point it is like give us the paddling you think all those horrible lazy women teachers deserve and move on with picking up the pieces. The misogyny that is inherent in the lack of respect teachers and nurses are feeling right now is incredible. So abisive. You need to be heard so make women do more work- got it.

Stop. First of all, yes it IS A+ parenting and one that schools and everyone in it should be thankful.
This poster said nothing about "bad teachers" or paddling. But the fact is, lots of parents DID have to PAY to fill that gap. We were happy do so, as well. But don't you dare complain about those parents who did so and picked up where the schools left off. And your screed only gives teachers a bad name.

[Anonymous]

Agree that gatehouse staff should be doing the paperwork and meetings. This was a systemic failure and should be handled out of gatehouse not indovodual teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can tell you it is designed to break the backs of the entire FCPS SpEd apparatus, from administration to teachers. If OCR wanted to "help" students by doing this, I think they took the wrong route.

This is my fear. At our IEP meeting I said I think they are going to burn out at the SPED teachers with this and I do not need a meeting. I said if they offer something for X issue (my child's academic issue), please feel free to email and we can communicate that way, but the SPED teachers work enough already.

I’m a teacher. My department chair is a teacher and her husband is a sped teacher in FCPS. When this came out he spent 6 hours alone poring over the IEPs of kids he doesn’t even teach anymore to do all this shit. Been doing elementary sped for 10 years and this has pushed him to thinking it’s time to leave. Sped teachers cannot teach, manage a current caseload, AND go back and redo and provide compensatory services for kids they haven’t taught in 3 years. It’s inhumane.

Six hours is really not THAT big of a burden.

I think how “difficult” this is for teachers is being overblown.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We heard at our IEP meeting that evening and weekend compensatory hours were available from non-FCPS teachers. No one is making teachers do this work.

Who do you think is combing through the IEPs from the last few years and holding extra meetings on top of the already way-too-full
schedules? What services are being provided to the students while the teachers are dealing with this? They can’t teach and do this at the same time.

Aside from pay, which I agree should be more, what do you suggest? Not provide IEPs? Additional services? Or outsource it altogether?

I'm one of the Special Ed teachers who responded upthread. Central Office should be handling all of it with the possible exception of delivering services. I'd be a lot more willing to provide the compensatory services myself if I had time. I don't, because of all the extra paperwork and meetings I'm now required to handle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We heard at our IEP meeting that evening and weekend compensatory hours were available from non-FCPS teachers. No one is making teachers do this work.

Who do you think is combing through the IEPs from the last few years and holding extra meetings on top of the already way-too-full
schedules? What services are being provided to the students while the teachers are dealing with this? They can’t teach and do this at the same time.

Aside from pay, which I agree should be more, what do you suggest? Not provide IEPs? Additional services? Or outsource it altogether?

SPED teacher are so in demand that they can easily just not do it and switch to another district over the summer. A SPED teacher could tell a principal that’s what they’re doing and still get away with it because you can’t fire and replace one

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We heard at our IEP meeting that evening and weekend compensatory hours were available from non-FCPS teachers. No one is making teachers do this work.

Who do you think is combing through the IEPs from the last few years and holding extra meetings on top of the already way-too-full
schedules? What services are being provided to the students while the teachers are dealing with this? They can’t teach and do this at the same time.

Aside from pay, which I agree should be more, what do you suggest? Not provide IEPs? Additional services? Or outsource it altogether?

I'm one of the Special Ed teachers who responded upthread. Central Office should be handling all of it with the possible exception of delivering services. I'd be a lot more willing to provide the compensatory services myself if I had time. I don't, because of all the extra paperwork and meetings I'm now required to handle.

It looks like it is being handled in the annual IEP meetings. How is that such a huge burden?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe teachers should direct their irritation about compensatory services toward their leadership? Parents didn’t make the directive that they didn’t have to teach special kids.

I taught special ed kids. Every day during the virtual learning year. This lawsuit even covers the year we were fully back in person. And requires us to spend hours combing through old data and hold second iep meetings for literally every special education student in our building before June. It's almost impossible to get through all the meetings in a regular year but now we have to do it twice. OCR has lost there ever loving minds.

That is nice that you taught special kids when it was your job but many schools took away services. It happened to us. We were fortunate to be able to go to a private tutor- it was expensive but the teacher was fantastic and our child made massive improvements. It was worth it but it was expensive.

I have no expectations that the FCPS compensatory services will be good so we are not doing them but we are submitting our expenses for the time we paid for the private tutor. We probably won’t get paid back but I want someone to see the cost.

Ok: wow- that was really expensive. You really helped your kid by paying all that money. You really love him! A+ for parenting. Bad school. Bad teacher. Bad emergency response. Bad bad scared teachers.

Does that help? What you are saying is you are angry and want acknowledgement because you can’t handle it. You want the teaching profession to pay. We got it. At this point it is like give us the paddling you think all those horrible lazy women teachers deserve and move on with picking up the pieces. The misogyny that is inherent in the lack of respect teachers and nurses are feeling right now is incredible. So abisive. You need to be heard so make women do more work- got it.

Stop. First of all, yes it IS A+ parenting and one that schools and everyone in it should be thankful.
This poster said nothing about "bad teachers" or paddling. But the fact is, lots of parents DID have to PAY to fill that gap. We were happy do so, as well. But don't you dare complain about those parents who did so and picked up where the schools left off. And your screed only gives teachers a bad name.

OH dear me- get the smelling salts a bad name for teachers- the HORROR!

Of COURSE PP didn’t say anything about paddling. I was using the literary technique of exaggeration. The anger towards schools and teachers was evident: “Plan on presenting receipts”even though they know any services that will be offered will be “no good.” The poster also opened with an attempt to shame the teacher they replied to, “ That is nice that you taught special kids when it was your job.”

For my kid, I was lucky and I was able to take a year off from teaching for virtual. We missed out on thousands of dollars so I could be home with my SPED kid, so I do understand the sacrifice. I don’t really need to get acclaim, recognition or punish someone for it, it was an emergency situation and my family did the best we could, as did yours and the PPs. In PPs post, they seemed to need this validation and are seeking to blame someone for their anger.

A+. To them! For their kid
D- for understanding their emotions and needing to take out anger for a situation that sucked on someone else. It isn’t even like this person was looking for help, just looking to vent anger. Grow up. Be in control of you, stop looking to blame someone. Blame never sticks to higher ups, it only sticks to the front line. Misogyny and racism dictate who get to be the higher ups.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone explain:

1) Why did FCPS sign this voluntary agreement?

2) Why was FCPS singled out for an OCR investigation? What happened in FCPS to special education students from 2020-2022 was not terribly unique.

I do not understand the dynamic and politics of the settlement at all.

They picked a few large school districts in the US for this investigation. School districts all over the US did WAAAAAAY less than FCPS did but because we're big and always in the news, we got singled out. FCPS was following the guidance they were given by VDOE but someone decided that wasn't good enough.

where is this data? it is hard to do less than nothing.

Yeah, okay...the teachers did nothing. My kids were online every, single day with their teachers learning the curriculum. My child who receives special education services was pulled into small groups online just like she would have been had she been in person. She got her accommodations and she got instruction. You people who keep saying the teachers did nothing are flat out lying. I simply do not believe you. I understand that some related services such as speech and OT got the shaft, particularly since it's hard to provide those services virtually. But do not lie and say your kid literally got no instruction for a year.

I think they are referring to receiving no ‘special Ed’ services for a whole year. No pullouts, no 1 on 1s, no small groups. This did happen to my DC.

I’d be willing to bet at least half of the people saying their children received no instruction really mean “my kid didn’t want to sit/logon to virtual school and instead of forcing the issue/monitoring them during school time I just threw my hands up”.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone explain:

1) Why did FCPS sign this voluntary agreement?

2) Why was FCPS singled out for an OCR investigation? What happened in FCPS to special education students from 2020-2022 was not terribly unique.

I do not understand the dynamic and politics of the settlement at all.

They picked a few large school districts in the US for this investigation. School districts all over the US did WAAAAAAY less than FCPS did but because we're big and always in the news, we got singled out. FCPS was following the guidance they were given by VDOE but someone decided that wasn't good enough.

where is this data? it is hard to do less than nothing.

Yeah, okay...the teachers did nothing. My kids were online every, single day with their teachers learning the curriculum. My child who receives special education services was pulled into small groups online just like she would have been had she been in person. She got her accommodations and she got instruction. You people who keep saying the teachers did nothing are flat out lying. I simply do not believe you. I understand that some related services such as speech and OT got the shaft, particularly since it's hard to provide those services virtually. But do not lie and say your kid literally got no instruction for a year.

I think they are referring to receiving no ‘special Ed’ services for a whole year. No pullouts, no 1 on 1s, no small groups. This did happen to my DC.

I’d be willing to bet at least half of the people saying their children received no instruction really mean “my kid didn’t want to sit/logon to virtual school and instead of forcing the issue/monitoring them during school time I just threw my hands up”.

Maybe, their parents had jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We heard at our IEP meeting that evening and weekend compensatory hours were available from non-FCPS teachers. No one is making teachers do this work.

Who do you think is combing through the IEPs from the last few years and holding extra meetings on top of the already way-too-full
schedules? What services are being provided to the students while the teachers are dealing with this? They can’t teach and do this at the same time.

Aside from pay, which I agree should be more, what do you suggest? Not provide IEPs? Additional services? Or outsource it altogether?

I'm one of the Special Ed teachers who responded upthread. Central Office should be handling all of it with the possible exception of delivering services. I'd be a lot more willing to provide the compensatory services myself if I had time. I don't, because of all the extra paperwork and meetings I'm now required to handle.

That's fair. But, another question: Central Office folks are not going to know these kids and their needs. So would that be most helpful to the kids? I hear what you're saying and it sounds like an excellent option on its face. I'm just not sure how it would work in practice?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone explain:

1) Why did FCPS sign this voluntary agreement?

2) Why was FCPS singled out for an OCR investigation? What happened in FCPS to special education students from 2020-2022 was not terribly unique.

I do not understand the dynamic and politics of the settlement at all.

They picked a few large school districts in the US for this investigation. School districts all over the US did WAAAAAAY less than FCPS did but because we're big and always in the news, we got singled out. FCPS was following the guidance they were given by VDOE but someone decided that wasn't good enough.

where is this data? it is hard to do less than nothing.

Yeah, okay...the teachers did nothing. My kids were online every, single day with their teachers learning the curriculum. My child who receives special education services was pulled into small groups online just like she would have been had she been in person. She got her accommodations and she got instruction. You people who keep saying the teachers did nothing are flat out lying. I simply do not believe you. I understand that some related services such as speech and OT got the shaft, particularly since it's hard to provide those services virtually. But do not lie and say your kid literally got no instruction for a year.

I think they are referring to receiving no ‘special Ed’ services for a whole year. No pullouts, no 1 on 1s, no small groups. This did happen to my DC.

I’d be willing to bet at least half of the people saying their children received no instruction really mean “my kid didn’t want to sit/logon to virtual school and instead of forcing the issue/monitoring them during school time I just threw my hands up”.

Mine DID log on. Did all homework. Participated. We had lots of conversation about if the teachers had to be present and teach then DC was going to go and do school as if it was in person. There was still a LOT missed. Like, a lot. We had to tutor and provide extra work ourselves for the entirety of distance learning. So your sweeping accusation is, in fact, false.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the options for kids that are now high school seniors? They can’t get services to make up for their partly 9th, 10th and 11th grade years.

You can extend the IEP until age 22 and use that for transitional services, including college or trade school, interview and job training skills, etc.

Some of these parents somehow want blood from a stone. They want a time turner . They want the pandemic to never have happened. They want their kid to somehow have not suffered any minute loss even though EVERY HUMAN ON THIS PLANET was impacted in some way by it. They want someone to PAY, they don’t care how, they don’t care who, but somebody owes them something

I mean, fcps has signed a legal agreement admitting that they owe people something. No one knows what. It is BS that they dumped all this on teachers. I agree with pp, don't waste your time reading old IePS. Reimburse for tutors or provide extra help or whatever.
Fcps has dumped all this shit on you. Just spend their money.

Yup and the irony is teachers will miss a lot more time with kids. Congrats on "winning" :lol:

It’s not optional. We are required to pick through each and every IEP/ 504, past and present, that is or was on our caseload. We must provide information about services, dates of services, test scores, etc for every single one of these students. It takes roughly 75 minutes per student to do each sheet and that’s for people who know what they’re doing. That 75 minutes doesn’t include meetings with parents or anything else. I’d be happy to just tell FCPS to cut a check to families but that’s not how it works.

Yeah why do they think this is voluntary or that sped teachers / case managers can just NOT do it? This isn’t something that’s optional or that sped tesvhers are doing because they want to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the options for kids that are now high school seniors? They can’t get services to make up for their partly 9th, 10th and 11th grade years.

You can extend the IEP until age 22 and use that for transitional services, including college or trade school, interview and job training skills, etc.

Some of these parents somehow want blood from a stone. They want a time turner . They want the pandemic to never have happened. They want their kid to somehow have not suffered any minute loss even though EVERY HUMAN ON THIS PLANET was impacted in some way by it. They want someone to PAY, they don’t care how, they don’t care who, but somebody owes them something

I mean, fcps has signed a legal agreement admitting that they owe people something. No one knows what. It is BS that they dumped all this on teachers. I agree with pp, don't waste your time reading old IePS. Reimburse for tutors or provide extra help or whatever.
Fcps has dumped all this shit on you. Just spend their money.

Yup and the irony is teachers will miss a lot more time with kids. Congrats on "winning" :lol:

It’s not optional. We are required to pick through each and every IEP/ 504, past and present, that is or was on our caseload. We must provide information about services, dates of services, test scores, etc for every single one of these students. It takes roughly 75 minutes per student to do each sheet and that’s for people who know what they’re doing. That 75 minutes doesn’t include meetings with parents or anything else. I’d be happy to just tell FCPS to cut a check to families but that’s not how it works.

Yeah why do they think this is voluntary or that sped teachers / case managers can just NOT do it? This isn’t something that’s optional or that sped tesvhers are doing because they want to.

Yup and the irony is teachers will miss a lot more time with kids. Congrats on "winning" :lol:

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can tell you it is designed to break the backs of the entire FCPS SpEd apparatus, from administration to teachers. If OCR wanted to "help" students by doing this, I think they took the wrong route.

This is my fear. At our IEP meeting I said I think they are going to burn out at the SPED teachers with this and I do not need a meeting. I said if they offer something for X issue (my child's academic issue), please feel free to email and we can communicate that way, but the SPED teachers work enough already.

I’m a teacher. My department chair is a teacher and her husband is a sped teacher in FCPS. When this came out he spent 6 hours alone poring over the IEPs of kids he doesn’t even teach anymore to do all this shit. Been doing elementary sped for 10 years and this has pushed him to thinking it’s time to leave. Sped teachers cannot teach, manage a current caseload, AND go back and redo and provide compensatory services for kids they haven’t taught in 3 years. It’s inhumane.

Six hours is really not THAT big of a burden.

I think how “difficult” this is for teachers is being overblown.

He did it in ONE night. That is not a one off effort. It’s a massive burden on already overloaded sped teachers and it will decimate sped in FCPS.