UNDERSTANDING LEARNING DISABILITIES VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '09

Join Etta K. Brown, author of the nonfiction guide, Understanding Learning Disabilities: Understanding the Problem and Managing the Challenges (Langdon Street Press), as she virtually tours the blogosphere in July on her first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion! Etta K. Brown received her undergraduate degree from the Ohio State University with a major in Dental Hygiene Education and the Masters in Education degree from South Carolina State University with a major in Special Education. The Educational Specialist Degree was conferred at Kent State University with studies in School Administration, and a major in School Psychology. Through her graduate programs, and internships, the author acquired skills with speech and language, visual-motor training, auditory training, and the teaching of reading and handwriting. During twenty years of professional experience in the public schools in Ohio, Iowa and California she has worked as a special education teacher, a school social worker and as a school psychologist. At no time, in either of those positions did she feel that she was able to apply any of her acquired knowledge to help children to learn. Instead, while she didn't always agree, much was learned about what not to tell parents about their children. She also learned how school systems function, why they function the way that they do, why there were some things that it was not in the best interest of the school district for parents to know and why they should not be told. Those were long, frustrating years watching children being placed in Special education because that was all that the School District had to offer. On the other hand were the frustrated parents who agonized over what to do about their child’s learning problems and the stigma of being placed in Special Education. Having recently retired from public education and started a practice as a Licensed Educational Psychologist, the author is now free to discuss Special education and share information believed to be in the best interest of parents without being unprofessional or disloyal to employers. She continues to reach out to parents and children through her writing. Her current book is a summary of all that she would have told parents during her career had she been permitted to do so. Ms Brown may be reached at www.understanding-learning-disabilities.com This work, while written by an academician, is an uncomplicated resource of information addressed to parents who have been introduced to the concept of Special Education for the first time. Overall, this work is a road map of how-to activities which will be of assistance from the beginning to end of the special education process. Part I is an introduction to the environmental influences since World War II, that are believed to be contributing to the incidence of learning disabilities that is increasing at a rate of 20% every 10 years. Part II includes a definition and history of special education and its intended role and function in the effort to educate all children. The reader is introduced to the process of determining eligibility for Special Education, and Federal and State Legislation are explored in terms of the parent's rights in the process. Part III is an exploration of processing disorders as required for a designation of learning disability. Behaviors exhibited in the classroom, a rationale for the behavior, along with modifications and accommodations for the general education classroom are listed. These interventions are applied to the elementary, middle school, and high school environments as an aid in developing the individualized education plan (IEP). CHAPTER XIII ADVOCACY AT ITS BEST As stated previously, before beginning advocacy for a child’s special education, it would be helpful for parents to be sure that any trauma, injuries, nutrition or health problems have been addressed and the child’s vision and hearing have been checked so that as an advocate, parents are doing or have done their part at home to prepare their child for learning. Children with learning disabilities represent the largest category of students receiving special education, and the term has become so closely associated with special education that some professionals have actually referred to special education as a form of treatment for learning disabilities, and some parents and teachers have been led to believe that special education will solve their child’s learning problems. This is far from the truth of what special education is and does. When a child has a learning problem, the special classroom modifies the way the information is presented to the child. If his problem is visual processing, information may be presented so that the stronger auditory senses are utilized. The child then learns more effectively, but that does not mean that the visual processing problem has been cured. Children with many types of developmental immaturities benefit greatly from the special techniques and assistance received in special education. The law states that identification should occur at an early age and that, for school age children, services should be provided in the least restrictive environment. Because learning-disabled children do not learn in the same way that the majority of children learn assessment is needed to assist the teacher in determining how they do learn best so that teaching methods can be adapted to their needs. Without this help, the teacher is overwhelmed with challenges for which she may have been ill-prepared in her training program. Add to that an overcrowded classroom of 30 to 35 students and the child with special needs often does not receive the special accommodations that he is rightfully entitled to under the law. When this scenario exists, the child with a different learning style is often referred to special education, where, ideally, the smaller class size is expected to make it easier to accommodate unique learning needs. However, approval for the placement of a child in an isolated group should be given only after the parent has visited the class, examined the curriculum and talked with the teacher about special teaching techniques. Special Class Placement Data suggests that students with disabilities living in inner-cities are more likely to be placed in restrictive learning environments. In these settings, 41.3 percent of students with disabilities are enrolled in full-time programs that remove students from regular classes for 50 percent or more of the school day, compared to 23.4 percent in non-inner-city areas. Once placed in these classes, without specific assessment and accommodation of their learning style, they continue to underachieve. As a consequence, they are rarely able to return to an educational setting with their non-disabled peers because they have fallen too far behind academically and are, therefore, condemned to these settings for the remainder of their school experience. Eventually, because school is so meaningless, by middle school truancy becomes a problem and they drop out. This raises a question. If the child is not going to learn at grade level anyway, why is it that he cannot be accommodated in the general education classroom and at least learn the social skills available through interaction with his classmates? The answer is that teachers sometimes believe the hype given to parents. “He will benefit more from placement in special education.” And theoretically that should be true, but in reality it often is not. Again, the school district has a logical defense for its actions. It is hard to retain good teachers in some schools where there is limited parental participation; there are a limited number of English-speaking students; these children enter school “unready” to learn, etc. While this may be true in some instances, and a major problem in others, enrollment statistics are not a problem which should have negative impact upon the education of the individual child. The parent’s objective is to see that their child receives an appropriate education. And if an appropriate education cannot be provided in the home school environment, parents have the right under the law to request that their child be transported, at school district expense, to an environment in which he will receive an appropriate education. And if English is not his primary language, he should be enrolled in a class that will develop his academic skills while he is learning English. Referral for Special Education Part of the reason for referral to special education is that the child may present a problem for the classroom teacher because his special needs demand services and accommodations which cannot be provided without special skills. So the teacher utilizes the only option available by referring the child in need to special education. Another situation that places the child in jeopardy is the law that requires a minimal number of students for special classes. If the number in a given area is 12 and there are only 10 students identified at the child’s school, it becomes easier to find two more students to fill that class requirement than to lose a good teacher and bus the other 10 students to another school. So, an additional question becomes, does the child “need” special education and is special education “appropriate” for the child even if he is eligible? With good advocacy parents can weather this storm and achieve an educational program that is “appropriate” for their child in “the least restrictive learning environment.” It is their right under the law. And with good advocacy and involvement in the process, they can claim their rights. Etta K. Brown's UNDERSTANDING LEARNING DISABILITIES VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '09 will officially begin on July 6th and end on July 31st. You can visit Etta's blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com during the month of July to find out more about this great book and talented author! As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available.