Difficulties With Diagnosis of Disabilities and Special Education Eligibility

Do you have a small child who thinks it autism or other disabilities?
Your school district does not agree with you and say that not to do? This article discusses why it is so difficult to get a correct diagnosis of a disability, but also because it is difficult for a parent who found the child eligible for special education services.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires states to engage in child assessment process. This process requiresStates to identify, locate and evaluate all children with disabilities who need early intervention or special education services. Member States should give children with disabilities a free appropriate public education to all their needs met.

Here are the problems I see with diagnostic and eligibility:

Before Some school districts are not enough to diagnose psychologists with experience or training for specific types of disabilities, dyslexia or learning difficultiesautism, etc. School districts often use the word classification rather than diagnosis, but they mean the same thing.

2. Many school districts refuse to acknowledge that a child has autism, even if the parent has a previous diagnosis from a physician or Independent evaluator. I believe that this is because, the school district knows that services for children with autism are expensive, and most do not want to pay for them.

3. A lot of special education personnel want to label a child with a behavioral or emotional disorder, rather than figure out what the child's disability truly is. The child will not receive an appropriate education, if their disabilities are not correctly diagnosed.

4. There are not enough free or low cost qualified medical and independent educational staff available, to determine diagnosis's for children with disabilities. The US has wonderful medical and independent educational staff, but they are usually extremely expensive, and not available for parents who cannot afford to pay.

5. School districts are not held accountable for violating Child Find! There is no punishment for not finding a child eligible. Even if eventually the child is found eligible to receive special education services, the school is not punished for finding the child ineligible in the first place.

6. Many special education personnel are not truthful with parents during the eligibility process, and many parents do not know this. If a parent understood that they were being lied to, they could learn skills to overcome the lies, which may help get their child eligible for special education.

7. The eligibility process is so tough that few parents understand it! There are things that parents can do if their child is found ineligible, but many parents aren't told what the process is, so they cannot participate. More training for parents in the area of eligibility is needed!

By understanding what the difficulties are in diagnosing a child with disabilities and having them found eligible for special education services, you can fight for your child. If your child needs special education but cannot get it, their life may be forever ruined. Use this information to stand up for your child, they are counting on you!