Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

No, the alternative is to write the IEP correctly in a way that doesn't fake hours by claiming OP's child is getting service hours just by sitting in PARCC.

An IEP is to help a student access the curriculum. Providing accommodations on assessments is helping the child access the curriculum. Does it suck? Yea. Just as much as it suck for every child taking PARCC and every staff member that has to administer it. But in reality, they are receiving supports that are outline on their IEP. The IEP is allowing them to be testing in a small group, reduced distractions, etc. They ARE receiving supports and services from their IEP during that time. Those services may not be geared directly towards the goals on their IEP but they are helping them access the same assessment that everyone else is taking.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

No, the alternative is to write the IEP correctly in a way that doesn't fake hours by claiming OP's child is getting service hours just by sitting in PARCC.

An IEP is to help a student access the curriculum. Providing accommodations on assessments is helping the child access the curriculum. Does it suck? Yea. Just as much as it suck for every child taking PARCC and every staff member that has to administer it. But in reality, they are receiving supports that are outline on their IEP. The IEP is allowing them to be testing in a small group, reduced distractions, etc. They ARE receiving supports and services from their IEP during that time. Those services may not be geared directly towards the goals on their IEP but they are helping them access the same assessment that everyone else is taking.

Well we don't know what supports OP's child is getting, only that they claim they can be provided by the general ed teacher - so I assume it's something like seating or extra time, not a scribe. Are you seriously trying to claim that the hours that a kid is seated at the front of the class should be counted as actual hours of services in the IEP? No, that is absurd.

IEP service hours are the hours that a child needs help to be able to access the curriculum. If PARCC is what is going on in the curriculum, and all a child needs to access PARCC is preferential seating (hard to imagine that in a kid with an IEP, but OK), then that child's needs are being met. If the child needs more substantial help during weeks when reading instruction is part of the curriculum, then they should get it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

No, the alternative is to write the IEP correctly in a way that doesn't fake hours by claiming OP's child is getting service hours just by sitting in PARCC.

Would you actually be fine with that, though? If I came to an IEP meeting with an IEP that said your kid would get 9 months of services instead of 10, that would alleviate all your concerns?

As a special ed teacher, I spent a great deal of my time and energy on advocating for my kids. Recently, I've gone up the chain to advocate for changes in how a field trip was set up, and changes in how some after school sports were operating, or for changes in the curriculum that were in my student's best interest. But I can only choose so many issues. The fact that IEPs aren't written with a separate section to describe how kids will be supported during PARCC (beyond the extensive accommodation section we're already creating) is no where near the top of that list.

I'm also laughing at the idea that this issue, of teacher time being eaten up by testing instead of instruction is something hidden or under the table. Teachers and teachers' unions have been incredibly vocal on this issue. Their complaints are all over the media. If you didn't know that instruction basically stops, for all kids, during PARCC, you haven't been paying attention.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

No, the alternative is to write the IEP correctly in a way that doesn't fake hours by claiming OP's child is getting service hours just by sitting in PARCC.

An IEP is to help a student access the curriculum. Providing accommodations on assessments is helping the child access the curriculum. Does it suck? Yea. Just as much as it suck for every child taking PARCC and every staff member that has to administer it. But in reality, they are receiving supports that are outline on their IEP. The IEP is allowing them to be testing in a small group, reduced distractions, etc. They ARE receiving supports and services from their IEP during that time. Those services may not be geared directly towards the goals on their IEP but they are helping them access the same assessment that everyone else is taking.

Well we don't know what supports OP's child is getting, only that they claim they can be provided by the general ed teacher - so I assume it's something like seating or extra time, not a scribe. Are you seriously trying to claim that the hours that a kid is seated at the front of the class should be counted as actual hours of services in the IEP? No, that is absurd.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

No, the alternative is to write the IEP correctly in a way that doesn't fake hours by claiming OP's child is getting service hours just by sitting in PARCC.

An IEP is to help a student access the curriculum. Providing accommodations on assessments is helping the child access the curriculum. Does it suck? Yea. Just as much as it suck for every child taking PARCC and every staff member that has to administer it. But in reality, they are receiving supports that are outline on their IEP. The IEP is allowing them to be testing in a small group, reduced distractions, etc. They ARE receiving supports and services from their IEP during that time. Those services may not be geared directly towards the goals on their IEP but they are helping them access the same assessment that everyone else is taking.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

No, the alternative is to write the IEP correctly in a way that doesn't fake hours by claiming OP's child is getting service hours just by sitting in PARCC.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, what do parents want the service providers to do? PARCC is all hands on deck, every special ed staffer, multiple hours a day for 2-4 weeks at a time. There's no choice, no way out of it. It's physically impossible to fit this all in, plus make sure your whole caseload gets their hours, plus attend the 15 middle school IEP transition meetings that are scheduled when there isn't PARCC. Time just doesn't function that way. And there's no help coming to make up missed hours, because the year is ending and the school system thinks their employees can make 2+2=6, and it wasn't just your kid that got missed, it was 40 others. What do you want them to do?

From a parents perspective, the employees just lie and use any excuse possible not to follow IEPS. It really stinks. Really disappointed in how dishonest and bad special ed teachers are.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

No, the alternative is to write the IEP correctly in a way that doesn't fake hours by claiming OP's child is getting service hours just by sitting in PARCC.

Anonymous wrote:The only other alternative is for the spcial educator to get a sub for some part of the testing time. It puts the IEP in compliance but your child will not be better off for it. When there is a special ed sub, they are being pulled out of their classroom for little benefit. Subs are limited in education and training and I promise you they are better off with it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, what do parents want the service providers to do? PARCC is all hands on deck, every special ed staffer, multiple hours a day for 2-4 weeks at a time. There's no choice, no way out of it. It's physically impossible to fit this all in, plus make sure your whole caseload gets their hours, plus attend the 15 middle school IEP transition meetings that are scheduled when there isn't PARCC. Time just doesn't function that way. And there's no help coming to make up missed hours, because the year is ending and the school system thinks their employees can make 2+2=6, and it wasn't just your kid that got missed, it was 40 others. What do you want them to do?

From a parents perspective, the employees just lie and use any excuse possible not to follow IEPS. It really stinks. Really disappointed in how dishonest and bad special ed teachers are.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, what do parents want the service providers to do? PARCC is all hands on deck, every special ed staffer, multiple hours a day for 2-4 weeks at a time. There's no choice, no way out of it. It's physically impossible to fit this all in, plus make sure your whole caseload gets their hours, plus attend the 15 middle school IEP transition meetings that are scheduled when there isn't PARCC. Time just doesn't function that way. And there's no help coming to make up missed hours, because the year is ending and the school system thinks their employees can make 2+2=6, and it wasn't just your kid that got missed, it was 40 others. What do you want them to do?

I want my child's IEP implemented as we agreed. If there is a resource issue, the teacher should raise it with her administrators. They should not be bullshitting me that testing counts as service hours.

Pardon me while I fall over laughing. What will that accomplish? There are resource issues at every level, every day, all the time. There is no magical extra floating resource teacher or SLP or OT for admin to request be sent out to help the school-based staff make up all their service hours, or a magical supply of test examiners and accommodators that central office can send out to cover testing so these staff can do their regular jobs. Help isn't coming. They'll be told "Sorry, you'll just have to make it work," like they already have been all year with a hundred other issues. Should it be that way, of course not, but it is.

So file a complaint. Complain to your union. Talk to an ombudsman. Call a reporter. Whisper to a trusted parent about what's going on so she can file a complaint. As long as you keep up the pretense and spew bullshit, you are complicit.

Anonymous wrote:I mean, what do parents want the service providers to do? PARCC is all hands on deck, every special ed staffer, multiple hours a day for 2-4 weeks at a time. There's no choice, no way out of it. It's physically impossible to fit this all in, plus make sure your whole caseload gets their hours, plus attend the 15 middle school IEP transition meetings that are scheduled when there isn't PARCC. Time just doesn't function that way. And there's no help coming to make up missed hours, because the year is ending and the school system thinks their employees can make 2+2=6, and it wasn't just your kid that got missed, it was 40 others. What do you want them to do?