The Stigma of Special Education

I thought I would once again talk about this VERY important topic. It has come up a few times with other mothers I have spoken with, and it's time to educate everyone about it!

In the "old days" when a child was considered "mentally retarded" they were either placed in an asylum or another special school away from the mainstream children. Parents were ashamed and often left no choice but to give up their children to the state to take care of. It's true that we have come a LONG way... but we still have a long way to go. It breaks my heart when I see a child who needs intervention and the parents choose to ignore it because of their fears of stigma attached to labels of "special education." Luckily, mentally retarded is not used very often these days. Instead they use words such as "learning disabled" or "delayed". The reason that "mentally retarded" is not used anymore is because educators know NOW that just because a child learns differently does not mean they are not intelligent or capable of learning.

I have been blessed with children who are of superior intelligence. However, I can definitely relate to the fear of stigma. I am just thankful that I got over it! I recently spoke with a mother who is of foreign descent and she had concerns over her son's speech and social skills. Her son is in my #4's preschool class. I spoke with her last year and unfortunately she did have her child evaluated. I tried to make the point that the sooner her son got help, the better the outcome. She just did not want to admit that her child needed intervention. She used the excuse that her son was bilingual and that they spoke a different language at home. She thought, at the time, that her son's delay was only temporary. NOW...it's a year later and her son's condition is not improving. She called me and asked me what she should do and I advised her of who to call and how to go about getting an evaluation. I could sense her frustration and pain. I went through the exact same thing! I tried to reassure her and told her that her son might only need speech therapy for a couple years. Perhaps he would not even qualify by the time he started school. He is currently 3 years old and has about two years before kindergarten. That gives him PLENTY of time to make some major progress.

I have spoken of warning signs for autism and things to look out for. If I had a checklist for all the things that I have spoken about I am afraid that this boy would have many checks on the list. The other day I stayed after dropping off my son and spoke to this mother. I watched her son as he proceeded to cover his ears during "circle time" and my mind started to race! I asked her about it and she said that he did that often. I don't know if she understood the significance of that or not, but then she proceeded to tell me about other behaviors he exhibits at home. She told me that he often will be fixated with inclines and play with cars or whatever toy and "go up and down....up and down" for extended periods of time. She also told me that he will often tell people to be quiet. He doesn't like noise and it seems to bother him. He has recently began to throw toys out of frustration. (That is definitely a sign he needs speech therapy for sure!) I spoke with the teacher and she told me that he has sensory integration issues (fancy wording meaning that he doesn't like certain textures, etc...). She also expressed her concerns about his social interaction with other kids. It breaks my heart to hear all these things because I KNOW for a surety that this child has some form of autism but speech won't fix it!

The fact is that the public school system is not equipped to deal with children who are like this little boy. They can offer speech therapy and occupational therapy... beyond that it is up to the parent. As far as I can tell, this boy is extremely bright! He is already reading and he's not even four! The main thing to do at this point is to offer all the services that they offer and watch him very closely. IF speech therapy doesn't "fix" his issues then this mom will need to have him evaluated by psychologists and other mental health professionals. It might not hurt to see a neurologist as well. There is a clinic at Children's Hospital that has a good reputation. As I see it... time is of the essence! I had MY #4 evaluated by a neurologist at the age of two just to make sure. Parents MUST act quickly and be proactive. They cannot rely on others for the progress of their children. I have learned that the hard way and I am determined to get the message out to everyone and anyone who will listen.
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http://www.cspwal.com/forms/eireferralform.pdf
(that is the referral form for Alabama Early Intervention)
The only problem is that if the child is already 3 years old then they won't "qualify" for early intervention. They would automatically be in the public school system.
http://www.mps.k12.al.us/index.php/departments/special-education/introduction
(this is the link for the Montgomery Public School Special Education Services)
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