Hope for a child with an 80 IQ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son has a lower IQ than your daughter - low 70s. He’s an adult now. The way I viewed it early on was kind of wait and see. No predictions. No expectations positive or negative. Just make sure he had lots of supports and lots of opportunities to be successful and wait and see.

He did not learn to read until 6th grade and that was the result of private services and a special program at school. The school did want to place him in the certificate track which I did not allow because it takes a diploma to get a job. It took a lot to get an IEP because there was no expectation of success academically with that low of an IQ but I was able to find support at school to get him what was available even during the years when he didn’t have an IEP.

He now has a great career in the trades, thanks to vo tech and a two year post high school program with a full scholarship from a trade union. He earns decent money (almost $35/hour). He has health insurance and a pension. He has paid sick leave and paid vacation and is earning double time and a half working today because it’s a holiday.

One thing I will say is this. It is a lot of work as a parent to make this happen. Getting an HS diploma meant I didn’t get a day off from working with him to pass his classes ever. I worked with him daily for months to study for every certification test he’s ever taken and still do when he needs to recertify.

Anyway, good luck to you and your daughter. I hope you find a path that brings you peace.

Just wanted to say that you and your son are both amazing. Peace and love to both of you and thank you for sharing this.

Thank you. I am really proud of my whole family for their parts in making my son successful. It’s been a long road and it’s a relief to know he will be able to care for himself when we aren’t able.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you can afford a private eval, you should get one OP. (Even if it hurts the feelings of the school psychologist who is posting here.) The school’s testing might be spot on but you’ll likely learn a lot more from the private testing, and they will have recommendations for you. Hopefully you will leave that feeling empowered rather than scared.

OP, you are entitled by law to an Independent Educational Evaluation, which is an evaluation paid for by the state but with a private evaluator that YOU select.

Write an email to your IEP case manager and tell them, politely, that you appreciate their hard work but given the seriousness if the diagnosis, you are not sure you agree and would like to get an IEE. Ask them to provide instructions about that process.

This is not correct. You are only entitled to an IEE if the school system's eval was not appropriate (e.g. incorrectly or incompletely done). You can request an IEE and the school system then has to defend that their evaluation was appropriate. If the judge finds that it was, no entitlement to an IEE. "I didn't like the results" does not mean that it was inappropriate. It is not some automatic thing that you just file for and they give you thousands of dollars towards another eval. Not at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Doesn’t iq change every time you take the test?

Depends. It can. Mine jumped 6 points once I had my OCD treated, because the condition's negative effect on my working memory was that strong. But in general, no, it doesn't change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would get her evaluated privately. The school has an incentive to find “just low IQ and not a learning disability,” because then they’re not on the hook for services.

+100

So not true. Please don’t be fear mongers and tell parents that schools don’t care for children or do accurate assessments. Just stop. Not helpful. Haters gonna hate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you can afford a private eval, you should get one OP. (Even if it hurts the feelings of the school psychologist who is posting here.) The school’s testing might be spot on but you’ll likely learn a lot more from the private testing, and they will have recommendations for you. Hopefully you will leave that feeling empowered rather than scared.

OP, you are entitled by law to an Independent Educational Evaluation, which is an evaluation paid for by the state but with a private evaluator that YOU select.

Write an email to your IEP case manager and tell them, politely, that you appreciate their hard work but given the seriousness if the diagnosis, you are not sure you agree and would like to get an IEE. Ask them to provide instructions about that process.

This is not correct. You are only entitled to an IEE if the school system's eval was not appropriate (e.g. incorrectly or incompletely done). You can request an IEE and the school system then has to defend that their evaluation was appropriate. If the judge finds that it was, no entitlement to an IEE. "I didn't like the results" does not mean that it was inappropriate. It is not some automatic thing that you just file for and they give you thousands of dollars towards another eval. Not at all.

Most schools will just grant the IEE because the parents who request IEEs are typically in denial, angry, bitter, with no trust or respect for school professionals and are the type to escalate. The school just hopes they’ll be civilized and not verbally abuse staff. They demand public school assessments. Then they complain about the assessment and results. Then they request tax payor funds for another assessment (it’s their right!). Then they want public school services. Then they complain about the services and staff. It’s just lovely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son has a lower IQ than your daughter - low 70s. He’s an adult now. The way I viewed it early on was kind of wait and see. No predictions. No expectations positive or negative. Just make sure he had lots of supports and lots of opportunities to be successful and wait and see.

He did not learn to read until 6th grade and that was the result of private services and a special program at school. The school did want to place him in the certificate track which I did not allow because it takes a diploma to get a job. It took a lot to get an IEP because there was no expectation of success academically with that low of an IQ but I was able to find support at school to get him what was available even during the years when he didn’t have an IEP.

He now has a great career in the trades, thanks to vo tech and a two year post high school program with a full scholarship from a trade union. He earns decent money (almost $35/hour). He has health insurance and a pension. He has paid sick leave and paid vacation and is earning double time and a half working today because it’s a holiday.

One thing I will say is this. It is a lot of work as a parent to make this happen. Getting an HS diploma meant I didn’t get a day off from working with him to pass his classes ever. I worked with him daily for months to study for every certification test he’s ever taken and still do when he needs to recertify.

Anyway, good luck to you and your daughter. I hope you find a path that brings you peace.

Just want to say this is an amazing story!!! Kudos to you!!!

[Anonymous]

School psych who posted earlier.
My feelings aren't hurt by this, but I don't want the OP to go out and spend thousands of dollars to hear the same result. IQ tests are objective and not particularly hard to administer after a few practices. The scores are accurate, for your child, on that date.
Interpretation is another story, and it's very possible the psych who interpreted them may have a different opinion than a private provider. That being said, I'd recommend waiting, especially since you noted that she is getting an IEP anyway.

[Anonymous]

Only spend time and money on additional testing if you think it's going to get your daughter more services. Otherwise, spend the $$$ for tutoring, enrichment, camps and classes that might help her develop skills, friendships, and interests.
The silver lining in this is that she is young, and you're ready to face reality. There are many paths available beyond sheer academics.

[Anonymous]

This thread has been completely derailed by public school employees and “psychologists” and I am sorry for that. Back to your question.

Iq is just one measure of a person, and for people with disabilities it’s pretty meaningless. I know numerous kids with ASD with crazy high IQ who will never function in the world. I know kids with average IQs who are amazingly successful. I know gifted kids who struggle.

So the IQ issue means she will need support throughout her schooling. Tutors for everything. I personally have never depended on the school for anything and I would not if I were you. No point. Also, further testing, meh. Not for IQ. Maybe for things like anxiety, dyslexia etc. that might be worthwhile and which you can impact and target. We focus a lot on skill and daily life stuff. It’s hard. But as for “hope” - your daughter will grow and change. She will develop a personality and interests. There is no guarantee for any kid or person, and if she has solid social skills and life skills, please keep in mind an average IQ is 85 and she’s almost there. It’s not like she is ID. She will just need support. And with good strong support you should be able to fade it in certain aspects.

[Anonymous]

Get a second opinion asap!! You mentioned adhd, that's a processing disorder that can have widespread implications. Get a neuropsych eval and pay the money now instead of waiting for her to struggle more. Do not trust the public school eval. They are under qualified to administer them and there is pressure from up top to overlook problems and downplay effective intervention.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would get her evaluated privately. The school has an incentive to find “just low IQ and not a learning disability,” because then they’re not on the hook for services.

+100

So not true. Please don’t be fear mongers and tell parents that schools don’t care for children or do accurate assessments. Just stop. Not helpful. Haters gonna hate.

A lot of schools don’t in fact do accurate assessments…you’re right that it’s not necessarily from a negative place though

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son has a lower IQ than your daughter - low 70s. He’s an adult now. The way I viewed it early on was kind of wait and see. No predictions. No expectations positive or negative. Just make sure he had lots of supports and lots of opportunities to be successful and wait and see.

He did not learn to read until 6th grade and that was the result of private services and a special program at school. The school did want to place him in the certificate track which I did not allow because it takes a diploma to get a job. It took a lot to get an IEP because there was no expectation of success academically with that low of an IQ but I was able to find support at school to get him what was available even during the years when he didn’t have an IEP.

He now has a great career in the trades, thanks to vo tech and a two year post high school program with a full scholarship from a trade union. He earns decent money (almost $35/hour). He has health insurance and a pension. He has paid sick leave and paid vacation and is earning double time and a half working today because it’s a holiday.

One thing I will say is this. It is a lot of work as a parent to make this happen. Getting an HS diploma meant I didn’t get a day off from working with him to pass his classes ever. I worked with him daily for months to study for every certification test he’s ever taken and still do when he needs to recertify.

Anyway, good luck to you and your daughter. I hope you find a path that brings you peace.

You sound like an incredible mom. <3

[Anonymous]

Just wait and see and keep all opportunities open. DH was given a low 70 IQ based on how he performed during his neuropsych test. He is also ASD nd ADHD. However, he’s a junior in high school with a 3.5 GPA and will attend a four year college. He’s not going to major in anything difficult but he’s fully capable of getting a degree and then a job. He always performs better in real life than on any standardized type of test.

[Anonymous]

So, yes IQ can vary based on tester and of course there is a range where if the IQ is 80 due to standard of error it might fall anywhere from say a little lower to a little higher. Also, the rapport matters. My kid's IQ varied greatly from the county to private. The private tester was peppy, gave more breaks with exercise and he came after a good night's sleep and a big breakfast. At school he was dragged out of PE which he needed and other classes he likes and it felt rushed getting him to the testing room and getting him back. The actual report mixed up his name a few times and percentiles were off. For example if one standard score was say 110 and another was 90 and another was 80, the 80 had a higher percentile than the standard score of 90. I pointed it out and she corrected, but I do wonder if they were his scores.

Also, I took the same approach as another poster-it is not the schools job to make sure my kid got everything he needed. I jumped in as needed to help with studying, executive functioning, etc. We wanted to standard diploma not certificate for the most job prospects and turns out he will be in good shape for a 4 year college.

[Anonymous]

I think I would want a private eval to see what is going on with a kid testing like this. It seems surprising there is no LD with the other things going on.

Is the ADHD treated with meds? That can impact IQ scores. We were told that our kid (who tested about 30 points different on IQ tests a few years apart) was probably getting a lower score the second time due to the impacts of ADHD, which we had not previously had a diagnosis for. He knew certain things but didn't get the points because he didn't pay enough attention to the directions. I would want to make sure the ADHD is under control first.

Second, I think you can take a wait-and-see approach with a IQ. I would not fall into the trap of thinking there's nothing that can be done because it's "just low IQ." There are many things you can do to support development and learning. I would seek out some good external supports for this if the school is throwing up their hands.