concussion/504 plan
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Anonymous
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Not sure whether I should post here or in MD school forum....
DC had a concussion and has been out of school for several months (MCPS). We are having great difficulty with the school. Teachers refuse to provide missed work for weeks at a time (despite repeated requests), then complain that she is behind and set artificial deadlines for completion. In some classes, DC has not been given missed work for 4-6 weeks, but she is still expected to make it up. School informed us that DC "must" drop certain classes (even though DC has made up work in the classes and has an A). Have finally had a 504 meeting and school does agree that DC is eligible for accommodations. Meeting was tense, but some key decisions about schooling were made in our favor. But, school still refused to limit the amount of work DC has to do to "essential" work, even though doctor's note specifies this. Teachers (and principal) insist that all work is essential. They are insisting that DC makeup all work since they will extended deadlines. We made suggestions in the meeting about how to limit schoolwork, but all were shot down. They have said DC can tell them when DC can't do something and they will discuss each assignment individually. I think this puts tremendous burden on DC. The concussion means that she has limited cognitive endurance, so without the "limit school work" accommodation, DC will potentially spend time on less valuable work and then when she needs to not do something, she will be told "but this is essential." School also has not provided a HH teacher even though it's been more than a month since we made the official request. I'm somewhat acquainted with 504 law and know that a lot of what DC's school initially proposed went beyond ridiculous to flat out illegal. I'm wondering about other's experiences either with concussions or on 504 plans or for other medical reasons which would have a profile similar to concussion (out of school for weeks/months, significantly behind, but cognitively capable of catching up with home/hospital teacher and limited work). Here are a few Q's. How long did it take Home and Hospital to assign a teacher? Has anyone ever been assigned a home and hospital teacher that could come during the day or do they only provide teachers during after school hours? Did your kid get "limited work" accommodation? Did school say that your child could not participate in extra-curricular activities, even though there was no medical reason not to? If your child had a concussion, what kind of accommodations were given? Is it common for teachers to be uncooperative? How did you resolve problems? Did the school ask that you leave a class that was accelerated or advanced or did the school refuse to adjust workload in accelerated or advanced classes? Any experience out there on contesting 504 plans? We got a due process notice that mentions the following options for dispute resolution -- Section 504 review with Section 504 coordinator in MCPS Dept of Student Services, mediation thru MD Office of Administrative Hearings, or Section 504 Hearing thru the MD OAH. Are these sequential steps you have to go thru or can you choose any option? Any benefits to one over the other? |
Anonymous
| Wow, OP. This is ridiculous. Sorry you are having such a hard time. I would also post in MD Public Schools, as Special Needs generally (but not always) deals with long term (as in, born with them) disabilities. I think the Washington Post had an article about kids with concussions and the need for them to stay out of school. Maybe do a search on the Post website and see if you can turn up the article? |
Anonymous
| Request an assessment for special education under traumatic brain injury. Take in the definition of TBI to the doctor and have him write a note stating your child should be eligible. |
Anonymous
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If ever there was a reason to hire an advocate/lawyer, this would be one of them. I am not prone to jumping to this, but this type of case is exactly why the 504 option is there. If this were my kid, I'd be hiring a lawyer.
--A principal (in Va) |
Anonymous
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I'm really sorry, OP, that you're going through this. I can imagine how difficult it was treating your DD's concussion and the challenge with the school just compounds the anguish and stress. I agree with the PP (the VA principal) that this really does sound like an excellent time to bring in an advocate/consultant. As a non-education professional, it can be very difficult for you to know not just what's reasonable but all the things the school CAN do for your DD. It's also very easy for the school staff (unfortunately) to dismiss you because you lack credibility. THEY are the education experts, not you. It's not cheap but having a good advocate/consultant to keep your DD's best interests at heart can really buy you some piece of mind as well as ensure your DD gets what's best for her. Even though school staff say they don't take resources into account when making decisions, they do. There are also 'unwritten' limits on the types of services/accomodations your DC can receive. In a case like this one, I think it's really best to have someone who has expertise in this area.
We're in VA so I can't recommend anyone for you but there have been a number of posts regarding this. You can search the archives or someone may post a recommendation here. Best of luck to you. |
Anonymous
We have the 504. DC does not need special education. DC can do the work, just needs more time. No special instruction is necessary, just limitation of unnecessary work. Thus, doesn't need "special education," just accommodations. Doctor has written multiple notes. School not willing to follow all aspects. |
Anonymous
| special education is not the same as special instruction. special education can mean only accommodations. hire a lawyer. |
Anonymous
| I work for MCPS and am very familiar with 504 plans. Unfortunately, they are not for temporary conditions. We've had many injuries at my school- concussions, broken bones, etc, and we're at the mercy of teachers accommodating the students because it's the right thing to do. Thankfully, we've never had an issue. No advice - just wish you luck!!! |
Anonymous
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MCPS teacher here. A couple quick points before my DC needs to nurse and I can't type.
If you get HHT you would be only getting 4 periods a week. They send in a teacher to do math and science for an hour and half/week and another for english/social studies for another hour and a half. Frankly, I'm very surprised that they are entertaining a 504 unless everyone has agreed that this is a permanent condition. The curriculum is the curriculum. If you child is unable to do the work then she will not meet the standards for the course and will be ineligible for credit. A doctor's note does not supplant the curriculum. |
Anonymous
| (should read 4 periods per marking period) |
Anonymous
Yikes! If your answer is reflective of the view of most MCPS staff, maybe that's why I'm having such problems. 504 plans are absolutely available for concussions. Schools can even give accommodation for concussions without a 504 plan, but having a 504 puts everything in writing and helps protect the students rights. See these documents -- http://www.nasponline.org/resources/principals/Concussions_%20April_2011_NASSP.PDF -- from the Natl Assoc of School Psychologists which even mentions a MCPS school! http://www.cdc.gov/concussion/pdf/TBI_factsheet_TEACHERS-508-a.pdf -- which explicitly states that 504 plans are available for concussion http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/504faq.html -- see points 34 and 35 -- which address temporary or episodic disabilities, both of which can describe the post-concussive syndrome that can follow a concussion. Typical post-concussive symptoms are difficulties with memory or learning, language difficulties, headaches and/or exhaustion that prevent a child from completing a school day. In addition, concussions are not necessarily "temporary". While it is true that some kids can get a concussion and seem fine after a day or two, others can struggle for months or even a year or more with symptoms that either are bad but improving over time, or transitory, or ultimately permanent. There is no way to predict whether symptoms will be permanent and no need to declare permanent effects in order to qualify under the law. The law says, "A temporary impairment does not constitute a disability for purposes of Section 504 unless its severity is such that it results in a substantial limitation of one or more major life activities for an extended period of time. The issue of whether a temporary impairment is substantial enough to be a disability must be resolved on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration both the duration (or expected duration) of the impairment and the extent to which it actually limits a major life activity of the affected individual." (From the department of ed website explaining section 504). If you and your school have been denying accommodations with or without a 504 plan simply on the basis that a concussion is a diagnosis that is temporary and thus doesn't qualify, you are violating the law. You must make an individual determination as to whether the symptoms are significant enough to constitute a substantial limitation on one of the major life activities (like learning). Can I ask why you think 504 plans are not available? Have you or your school ever received training on concussions and 504 plans? |
Anonymous
| OP, don't get hung up on the idea that "special education" means some sort of cognitive disability or mental disfunction or below grade level work. It simply means an accommodation needed to do the curriculum, such as extra time. |
Anonymous
But, the curriculum is modified all the time for disabled students.... does every child in your class have to do every piece of work you assign? Can a child skip the spelling homework as long as they take and pass the spelling test? We know many kids with concussions who get excused from some of the homework, classwork and quizzes as long as they can demonstrate mastery on some key assessments. A doctor's note isn't supplanting the curriculum, it is just explaining that the student has a disabling condition that requires the school to modify the work. |
Anonymous
My disabled child isn't able to perform physical tasks that are part of the meaningless busywork teachers often assign -- cutting out pictures, pasting, circling items, connect the dots, etc. She is excused. Why wouldn't this child with a concussion be? |
Anonymous
The difference is that OP's child is in HS, not in early elementary. In HS, your grades are going on a permanent transcript and you have to meet the benchmarks for the grade you are given. FWIW, my IEP child has to complete everything. If he doesn't, his grade is lowered to the level at which he has produced. He just gets more time and he gets a support to help him get all of his homework home. OP, I hope you find a solution that works for your daughter. I'm sorry you are going through this. |