When I left teaching, a major reason was that I found myself advocating strongly for other people’s children more than for my own child, who needed me. However, I never questioned that my ‘job’ was to advocate for what was best for my students.
Today, in one of my lEP support groups, a teacher was asking for parental advice regarding her ESE student, who she was giving a state assessment to. The child required extra time, as many lEPs state. As time went on and hours passed, it became clear that this child did not want to continue. The teacher noticed the time and saw that it was time for PE. The child expressed a desire to go to his special class and was upset about missing it. The teacher made the decision to send him. She was asking us as parents if we would be upset by the decision she made.
My response is that it was acceptable! This child was already at a level of frustration, and she advocated for what was best for him at that time. I would appreciate her recognizing that and removing my child from that stressful environment. This raises many questions, but first, let me share another educator's response. The educator mentioned that she should not have made that call because it put her career at risk! I'm sorry, but this struck a nerve. Isn't a teacher's primary responsibility to prioritize the best interests of their students? If worrying about being fired for removing a child from a mandatory test—one that only serves to provide funding to a district while undermining a child's true strengths—means that I have truly lost faith in what our educational system is becoming. After all if her administration was upset with her than they are forgetting the one key take away that was always instilled in me as an educator, "that is somebody's baby/child!"
This scenario raises many important points for parents who have children with lEPs. Ask questions and seek definitions! You would be surprised by what 'small group' and 'extended/unlimited time' mean in a school setting. Just this week, our school informed me that a small group consists of 20 or fewer students. If I hadn't asked, I would not have known this. Needless to say, we now have 1:1 testing accommodations. Now, I will be inquiring about the extended time. Honestly, I don't want my child to take the test, but if we are required to proceed, I want there to be a limit, or I want to be notified after a certain amount of time. Today's takeaway is this: teachers, please don't stop advocating for what is right for your students, and parents, ask questions!
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