Should i send my child with speach delays to a special education school?

Question

my daughter lost her hearing for the first 2 years of her life, and has therefore, had speech problems. she seems to be catching up just fine at home, but when she gets into the classroom, she becomes distant and won't say as much. the school has written her an IEP and is now trying to send her to a special education school. the choice in the end is up to me, but they are strongly recommending it. I'm wondering if a special ed class would slow down her development, or help her to progress.

Answer 1

I was born basically deaf and I did have to catch up a bit. I wasn't put in special education, because there was nothing wrong being able to learn, but only being able to communicate clearly. I would talk to your pediatrician and get their advice and also a speech pathologist. You need to probably have your child around other children more often, like in a park setting or with friend's kids around the same age. If children have just started school and have no experience in social interaction with other children, yeah, it will take them a little time to adjust. This is true with children that have been at home with Mom most of their life and no other children in the home. You need to talk with a professional. Teachers are not speech pathologist or child psychologist. Remember that.

Answer 2

how old is she---if she is younger tahn kindergarten-I would consider it---to giver her intense instruction...

I'm guessing she can hear now...

if she is kindergarten or older--i would lean toward inclusion through a 504 plan (instead of an IEP)---an accommodation could be a classroom aide taht could be there to encourage her to join in and facilitate it

Answer 3

Give it some time. If that doesn't help, go and talk to her about it. Don't let the school br the parent of your child.

Answer 4

That's a tough call.  I know this has to be a really tough situation for you.  I would really talk to the teachers about what the options for after she goes to a special school.  Also, is this a school for the deaf/hearing impaired or is it a school for all sorts of special needs?  I do not know about your state, but my school provides parapros to help students like your daughter to be engaged in class.  However, a school for hearing impaired children may have a track for students who are on track with intelligence but behind in social and speech, so the education she may get there might be just as good.  I would also want to know whether she would be able to get out of that school if she improved and caught up.  I would ask if students do transition back from that school if they show marked improvement.  If your daughter needs special, intensive help, this might be best for her.  In my experience, teachers usually want to help students succeed in their class and only ask for a change if it seems impossible that the child can succeed.  I teach high school and have rarely lobbied for a student to change placement, except if the student really cannot perform near the level that is needed.  

I would also ask about what interventions you can get if you do not go to the special school - can you get speech therapy?  Are there programs you can get for after school or therapies that she can get outside of school to help her?

The bottom line is that your daughter needs to be in placement that helps her to succeed.  So, if moving her school helps her to participate and enjoy it, that will pay off in the long run.

Answer 5

The choice is a team decision, by law, but the hope is that you reach a consensus with the school.

The research suggests that she would learn more in a general education classroom, with her non-disabled peers. That's why US law requires the schools to address the Least Restrictive Environment in your daughter's IEP. They need a strong--I would say, a compelling--reason why your daughter would benefit from a more restrictive setting. I have plenty of opinions, but I have no idea from what you've told me why the school is pushing in that direction. On the other hand, what's in your daughter's file is really none of my business.

The disability rights advocate I used to work with (sometimes against) told me that there is a disability rights organization in every state. If a parent asks for their help, an advocate gets the parent's signature on information releases, so that the advocate and the school staff can ask each other questions and answer them. The advocate reviews the file, attends IEP meetings, interviews others who work with the child, and may even testify in due process hearings.  

I didn't always see eye-to-eye with the advocate assigned to our school. But we respected each other and recognized that we were both trying to work in the best interest of the child. I was glad to be working with the advocate, because the advocate was much better at explaining all our crazy obscure educational terms than any of us were! So many disagreements evaporated into thin air once we are all on the same page, talking about the same thing!

Answer 6

hi i'm only a teenager but i have had some members in the family who had speech delays

my brother is now 5 and he has gone to IEP meetings and things like that and when he enters kindergarten, he will be in a classroom with about 8 other children so that he can have more time with teachers. In school, he never talked much but at home he sings songs and tries to show us what he learned at school. My mom thinks the smaller class size will help him feel comfortable with his peers and make him feel better about speaking.

my cousin who is now 14 had some speech delays as well. his parents sent him to a special education school until he was about 6. After going, he had no problems. In fact, currently he the smartest student in his class and he might skip a grade or two.

Special education class wont necessarily slow her development, it will just teach her things slowly so she gets a better grasp of things. Though it may be difficult to accept now, it will be a huge help for her future.

Hope this helped or gave inspiration.

Answer 7

How old is your daughter?  Is her hearing within functional limits (based on the audiology report) or is she considered to have a hearing impairment?  From a speech-language pathologist perspective, I think placing her in a school program would be beneficial in the long run.  She needs to work on auditory training, cued speech, as well as speech production.  Additionally, she will need to learn how to rely on visual cues within her environment (academic and home) in order to process information correctly.

Just make sure you have a SLP and a teacher who have experience working with children with hearing impairments (auditory training, speech reading, the Ling method, Lindamood program, sign language [it's still helpful in learning language even if she is not deaf], etc...).

In most cases, placing a child in to a specialized program does not slow the child down and usually increases progress.  The staff are to teach her at her level NOT the level of the lowest functioning child in the class.  She may be quieter and distant in the classroom because she is trying to take it all in (i.e. understand the classroom expectations, feeling comfortable with classroom routines, getting to know her peers, teachers, and therapist).  Try it for 6-9 weeks and see what kind of progress she makes.  A child with a hearing impairment and speech/language delays requires extra time to process information and correct speech production errors.  In a classroom setting, she will receive language-based instruction (instruction geared for increasing receptive/expressive language) and has the opportunity to practice speaking with staff who can help her correct/improve speech production.  Additonally, with this type of help, she can learn to generalize her new skills in to other settings (home, community, playing with friends, etc...).  Maybe you can compromise and have her attend school 3 days a week and stay at home 2 days a week.  

Whatever decision you make will be in the best interest for your daughter. If you decide to keep her home, look in to bringing her to school just for speech/language therapy or consider bringing her to a private SLP.

Answer 8

I would  try it, and let her see how she feels there.  Remember, there are some teachers who are really great at making the students open up and it also will help to know that there are fewer students in the classroom.  Don't totally close to this door being opened to her, just try it out first.  I got a feeling that she will get accustomed and enjoy her learning experience.

Answer 9

no, I wouldn't. Try searching for a speech therapist. I mean, no one on here can make the decision for you, in the end it's really up to you, but I have 3 kids myself, and I wouldn't put any of them is Special Ed, I'd look for alternatives first.

Hope I've helped you somewhat. Good luck and have a wonderful week.

♥Crystal