how to deal with MoCo administration re autistic child accosting other kids in 1st grade class

[Anonymous]

Op here - Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Sue the school, then they will get the message.

[Anonymous]

Behavior related to a disability is hard to deal with, because the parents of the child with autism may threaten the school system with a lawsuit if remedies such as suspension are enacted. Discipline is a huge issue under IDEA. I'm sorry your child is experiencing this, OP. It's terrible. I don't think the schools here are well-equipped to deal with this kind of thing, and they're fearful of lawsuits.

[Anonymous]

I would strongly re-emphasize a point that PP made above and this that the school is doing the disservice here - not the special needs child. But for the fact that the Para is not where she(he) is supposed to be and doing what she(he) is should be doing this incident would not occur. The whole reason the SN child HAS a para (which is a VERY expensive accommodation, btw!) is to facilitate the SN child's interactions. If violent incidents are occurring it is the fault of the adult who is being paid to ensure they do not not occur.

You will meet with more success if you keep the onus on the Para and the school, not the SN child. Pushing the blame onto the child risks turning it into an argument that will be much harder to win - i.e., "most inclusive environment."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thanks for your comments. My Darling Husband has already said that if our son is hit again, we will call the police. My immediate concern is psychological harm. My son claimed he was ill today, threw up, and then later my husband found him drawing a picture of this special needs child choking another child, and children lying in the nurse's station. My son admitted he didn't want to go to school because of fear.

Seriously, we wouldn't want to go to work in an office setting with random violence. It wouldn't be tolerated. Our kids count on school to be a safe place. And yet the principal told me that he can't promise it won't happen again. I am really in shock that MoCo school officials think this this is acceptable.

Another venue is to file an report with the department responsible for insurance and risk management. Ask for reimbursement on ALL expenses. I posted yesterday also and my child who was abused for years was left with lasting psychological scars. He has a disability and it really impacted him.

[Anonymous]

Can someone tell me what, precisely, a paraeducator does/is responsible for?

[Anonymous]

OP - I haven't been through your sitautaion, but something similar. Group of parents upset about an issure. Best hing was to be sure to put it all in writing, and make sure the princiapl's BOSS knows about it. I.E just complaining verbally to the principal does not good. You need it in writing, and you need the area superintendant to know how many parents are not happy with the situation.

Also -- It's possible that the para isn't really full time or is being pulled to cover other duties. I would suggest each one of the 7 parents taking a turn observing for a few hours to see what is going on.

[Anonymous]

This happened at our school a few years ago. Parents sued - principal appeared before judge and they tried to get rid of her - very ugly situation - principal and school system won apparently as child was placed elsewhere and principal stayed. (honestly - I'm not sure of the details, but there was legal action taken of some sort). Same situation - the child was disruptive and violent and emotional -clearly not comfortable in the classroom. Very sad. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

FYI- A paraeducator is probably not the correct term for the position. Paraeducator usually don't work w/ just one child. They act as classroom assistants or aides. The child in question probably has a 1:1 or a shadow. They are usually hired by the school for that one particular child. A paradeducator or instructional assistant is hired by the county/city school system. When I student taught, our classroom had a paraeducator (it was a K class) in addition to the regular classroom teacher. A few months into the year, a 1:1 or shadow was hired to work w/ one student who needed help staying on task in the classroom. Her only job was to work w/ that one student. She was paid hourly and didn't get any benefits (I think she was a parent of a child in the school trying to earn extra money).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your child is suffering. I'd call the police now. Though the delay may be problematic. I'd simply explain that we didn't realize the extent of the assault until he started exhibiting these things you describe and talking about it. You realized it was more severe than you thought. And file a complaint.

The police??? This is a child with special needs, not a criminal. Have you tried to talk with the kids parents? The higher ups in the school board?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your child is suffering. I'd call the police now. Though the delay may be problematic. I'd simply explain that we didn't realize the extent of the assault until he started exhibiting these things you describe and talking about it. You realized it was more severe than you thought. And file a complaint.

The police??? This is a child with special needs, not a criminal. Have you tried to talk with the kids parents? The higher ups in the school board?

If a child is being choked, and the school district isn't acting to protect that child from being chocked and otherwise attacked, I'd say it is a matter for the police.

Have you ever been choked? Even by a toddler (my own toddler choked me by surprise a few times), it can be an extremely scary experience. And I was basiclly able to protect myself, or felt I could.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your child is suffering. I'd call the police now. Though the delay may be problematic. I'd simply explain that we didn't realize the extent of the assault until he started exhibiting these things you describe and talking about it. You realized it was more severe than you thought. And file a complaint.

The police??? This is a child with special needs, not a criminal. Have you tried to talk with the kids parents? The higher ups in the school board?

The point of calling the police is to get the school to take things seriously, not to punish the child.

[Anonymous]

OP here - thank you again for all of your supportive responses. We now have a meeting confirmed with the principal and I am acting on many of the suggestions you made. Thank you, thank you, wonderful DCUM community! I will let you know what transpires...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Behavior related to a disability is hard to deal with, because the parents of the child with autism may threaten the school system with a lawsuit if remedies such as suspension are enacted. Discipline is a huge issue under IDEA. I'm sorry your child is experiencing this, OP. It's terrible. I don't think the schools here are well-equipped to deal with this kind of thing, and they're fearful of lawsuits.

Under IDEA, if the behavior is a result of the disability, very little can be done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Behavior related to a disability is hard to deal with, because the parents of the child with autism may threaten the school system with a lawsuit if remedies such as suspension are enacted. Discipline is a huge issue under IDEA. I'm sorry your child is experiencing this, OP. It's terrible. I don't think the schools here are well-equipped to deal with this kind of thing, and they're fearful of lawsuits.

Under IDEA, if the behavior is a result of the disability, very little can be done.

That depends on your goal. If your goal is removing the SN child, then no - the removal of the child cannot (nor should it be!) the end result of the collective complaint because the goal itself is in contradiction with established law. IOW, you don't get to remove a student because you don't feel it is appropriate for them to mix with your child. There's a rich history of civil rights legislation that has been (and will continue to be) mined on behalf of SN children in education. If you head down this road you will lose.

If the goal is to create a safer environment and one more conducive to learning for all students - the non-SN children and SN children alike, then YES quite a lot can be done. Specifically, the supports can be legally put into place which create the safer academic environment for both groups of students. This may require more classroom resources or accommodations, but if you want to succeed you will have better luck on this path.