Can all these things be written in an IEP Autism, Speech delay, language delay, and mentally handicap?

Question

My little brother has autism but hes very high functional. He use to be in a regular class until now(that hes in 3rd grade!) that my mom decided to put him in an autistic class because of his teachers complaints and his paraprofetional(his aid) wasnt doing her job the right way! she requested an IQ test because they told her that the only way he could have a modified curriculum was if his IQ was below 70. when he was in kindergarten, they did one and his IQ was 89! Now they did it again and he got 69! They labled him as mentally hanicapped! They took off learning disability and replaced it with mentally handicapped besides autism and speech and language delay. she wants to know if on his IEP she can fight so they can so they can put back the learning disbility??

Because of this my mom cant sleep and shes always wondering if she did the wrong thing by letting them write mentally hanicapped!!

Answer 1

adsd

Answer 2

In the board that I work for students can have multiple diagnoses on their IEP.  The IEP is mainly there for the staff to know what accomodations need to be made for that specific student.  As a child gets older and goes through the system they may change diagnoses and the accomodations that go with the new changes.  Working with a school board in a special education class I have seen the way that a students IEP has changed througout their education.  I am not sure what your boards policy is on fighting an IEP diagnosis but talk the special education department head to find out what can be done.

Answer 3

Your little brother has a lot going on.  I can't speak to all of it, because I haven't met him personally. What you consider high-functioning, may not be my definition of high functioning and that sort of thing.  I will add this though.  A IQ score decreasing as time passes is not uncommon.  At five we only expect a child to do so much.. and even then it's hard to say that he or she is the norm or abnormal.  By third grade, statistically speaking, we expect for things to be a little more level from child to child.  Therefore, the score can drastically drop.  He hasn't been able to develop at the same pace as the other students.  Autism and speech language delays often lead to this lower score on a IQ test.  

He did not score high enough to remain learning disabled.  Period.  He must have scored 70 or higher.  That's federal law. If they chose the proper test, there is nothing that can be done retesting wise for at least twelve months, usually.  She can always as for him to be retested using a different test or form of the test.  

It's a blow to most parents to hear that their child is mentally handicapped.  I would suggest contacting the local autism society for support group times and possibly even one of the many on-line parent boards.  I think she will find your family's story very similiar to other parents.

Answer 4

On the IEP he should have ALL of his learning disabilities in there (Autism, speech/language delay), etc. Thats whats the IEP's for.

Answer 5

do what u think is right

Answer 6

I am curious as to why he was not just labeled Autistic. Since that is a spectrum disorder and may range from severe to mild, it seems that it might best describe your brother.

Usually the IEP team agrees upon the label that is the most prominent cause of academic difficulties. However, an IQ score less than 70 is intellectually disabled. A score of 69 would be mild.

In my state the speech-language delay would be a related service, not a primary service because there is a disability that has more impact on his learning.

Every student is entitled to reasonable differentiation in the classroom. However, the curriculum would not be modified since every student is expected to pass state testing per NCLB (No Child Left Behind). So if a modified curriculum was the objective, then I suppose that is why the IEP team went with Mentally Handicapped rather than Autistic. Then they could use the state testing developed to meet NCLB for intellectually disabled students.

Answer 7

Don't get hung up on the label.  What is most important is that they provide the program that your brother needs.  In New York state we only put one label on the IEP...that would be the most important one, or the one that best describes the child.   I bet you could have the label changed if you really want to.

Answer 8

With one of the BIG 3 labels AUTISM, ADHD, EBD, Most states do not allow learning disabilities because the learning disability is likely the result of the primary disability.  So you would get the same kind of services that you would get with an LD label anyway so they just use the one.  Speech can be secondary.  If IQ is below 70 AND there is a low Adaptability score on a standardized test (this is more functional independent skills) a student could be DCD (developmental Cognitively Delayed) Or Mild Moderate Mentally Impaired.  His services will be based on his needs - not the label

It is not unusual for testing in later grades to yield a lower IQ than previously - these tests are nationally normed so as kids get older the expectations are that they know more, if you are a little behind - that will impact the scores on the test.

Answer 9

kids with autism canbe difficult to test-hence the differences in scores--often you can only tell how smart they are by casual observation-

In my state curricullum modifications can be made for any IEP classification--I worked in a high school where there were many students classified in other categories (SLD) that graduated with a modified curriculum.

It's only his school record for now--at this age it doesn't mean much-

You can get an independent evaluation by someone specifically experienced with autism  if it will make you feel better---

Answer 10

If these labels are getting him the services that he needs, then I wouldn't worry about it.  If she does want to argue the label, he'll probably need to be evaluated again.