WWYD? SChool and dyslexia

[shelsco]

DS1 is 15 and has managed well in school up until now. He struggled to read at age 6 so had vision therapy which had a huge impact in terms of performance and frustration levels and he was able to function well, although his reading aloud wasn't fluent and he was still a weak speller. He has always had difficulty following instructions, remembering things etc but has just asked friends when it came to school and no one has ever noticed a problem. He works incredibly hard and is very well motivated. Recently he started complaining of running out fo time in subjects he usually excels in and so, knowing many of his symptoms could be indicators of dyslexia. I had him privately assessed. I was also advisewd to get him screened for Auditory Processing disorder. Both assessments said he had significant difficulties with cognitive processing speed although his reading comprehension was high. My issue is the school won't accept he is finding things difficult and keep saying he is on target and won't qualify for extra time. Because his cognitive scores were below the minimum requirements listed by JCQ he only needs the minimum of evidence such as his own reproted difficulties, teacher comments and reports and data. He has never met an English target since starting secondary, despite being at the top in primary, and even when a new lower target ha been set each year, he has failed to meet that. There are inconsistencies in other test results in class and we have been told that it is strange that he has to work really hard to reach extension material in maths which the teacher thought was strange as he is exteemely able and works very hard. There is an example of a pupil like him listed in the JCQ guidelines- someone in Year 12 (he is Year 10) who has no prior history of need (so school can't paint a picture) and has low processing scores (his are lower than the example given). JCQ recommend trialling extra time to see if it makes a difference in cases like this. my problem is the school keep insisting he is on target and won't accept he has a need. Thye have suggrested that the test results are wrong, despite them having been done independently by two separate specialists. I have been told all I can do is complain to the head and governors but the head I know is backing the SENCo (who incidently has never worked with ds) and I think they would close ranks. I'm not saying extra time would be needed in all areas but without extra time I don't think DS will meet his targets in some areas, yet he works so hard. WWYD?

[dolfrog]

Hi,
Developmental Dyslexia, has three underlying cogntive subtypes, or causes; auditory, visual and attentional, which menas that an auditory processing disorder, a visual processing disorder, an attention disorder, or any combination of these issues can cause the dyslexic symptom.

You could have a look at the APDUK "Auditory and Visual Dyslexia" web page which includes many links to related research paper collections, international research regardinfgthese complex issues.
www.tempinformation.apduk.org.uk/audiovisual_dyselxia.htm

[shelsco]

Thanks dolfrog. I'll have a look at those. I'm away for a few days now but will have a good look when I get back. I could do with list of symptoms for the teahcers to look aout for, although I don't think they would. The SENCo is apparently an expert on autism (there's a support base at the school) but doesn't seem to think that someone who has a high reading age can be dyslexic. DS can read well but takes ages to process it.
Anyone else ever been in a similar situation? I feel really down.

[dolfrog]

We have included a research paper collection regarding Autism on the APDUK Reseach Paper Collections" web page, as these issues can overlap, and these complex issues can be difficult to unravel.
www.tempinformation.apduk.org.uk/research.htm

[gardenfeature]

I am not 100% on this but does he need to have his handwriting speed tested to qualify for the extra time? I think that for using a scribe you need to be below 85th percentile in spelling, reading and/or processing. I am not sure on this and I would try and find out the exact legal guidelines before pursuing. Try speaking to one of the Dyslexia Associations.

[shelsco]

I have checked out the guidelines and you have to have at least one processing score of 83 or below to qualify for extra time. Ds lowest two processing scores were 73 and 83 so he qualifies for that with only the minimum their evidence, which we also have. The issue isn't whether or not he qualifies but what to do when the school insists that they know better and refuse to follow guidelines. They just can't believe he can need extra help because they haven't noticed his problems. :(

[gardenfeature]

Maybe school need to test themselves? Would this be possible? Could you qualify for extra time because of slow handwriting? They will have tested the other students that qualify. You would think that school would be wanting whatever is best for their students. It's not in their interests to not give a student the best chance of getting the best grades. I reckon it would be easier for them if they backed down rather than faced a fuss from you. I cannot see them wanting to waste time fighting so it might not take much to get them to change their minds. Is there one particular teacher that understands and could be brought on board?

I think a lot of people struggle with the idea that a student with dyslexia may be underachieving despite being on target or forecast Grade Cs for example.

[annebullin]

OP is correct; one below average score (84 or less) in processing speed is enough for extra time. School can make an online application to JCQ and collect evidence to create a picture of need e.g. extra time in mocks etc.

It's JCQ who allocate the extra time not the school. School can accept advise from outside assessors who are suitably qualified. If the school choose to reject the private report they are required to put their reasons for this in writing - have they done this OP? Ask them to as it will give you something to work with.

[annebullin]

sorry that's accept advice

[shelsco]

No they haven't rejected the specialist assessor's advice officially. They told us they didn't believe it. I asked them to ring the assessor and she advised that they submit an outline application to jcq. They did this but then told me that it had been rejected as there had been no prior need. The assessor thought this was strange as there was evidence of prior need so I asked the school if I could see what they had submitted as evidence. They sent me a stroppy email back saying, that they would look to see if there was any evidence to be gathered and let me know. They didn't send me a copy of what had been submitted or acknowledge that request.so far they haven't trialled extra time so I don't know if they will.
I do wonder about what they said to JCQ as originally they told me it was out of their hands as they had rang the exam board who said they didn't accept reports from external assessors. I rang the exam board to confirm this and they were surprised by this. They said they accept the report if the school does. I got them to put this in writing and gave it to the school. The school weren't happy. I do wonder if the way the school presents the information affects the response they get. If they make itcit clear lear they feel there is no need for ds to have extra time it makes us seem like neurotic parents.

[annebullin]

'they told me it was out of their hands as they had rang the exam board who said they didn't accept reports from external assessors.'
This is not true.
As JCQ have stated they will accept the report if the school does. If the school choose not to accept the report they must put their reasons in writing and have this on file for inspection purposes. This is what you need to push them on.

[bruffin]

Ds didnt get extra time until half way through his gcses.He has only ever been tested at school. Ds is very high ability but struggles with organisation ans spelling is not good. He gets 20% exrra for maths subject and 10% for written

[tethersend]

Which targets is he meeting? School set ones? How have they been set? Ask if they have used Fisher Family Trust data or CAT scores to reach his targets.

Has he made progress at the national average rate?

Schools often cite 'meeting targets' as evidence of no additional needs, but examining the targets reveals them to have been set too low and progress is too slow- for example, a child can be set a target of 3A for the end of year 8, and 4C for the end of year 9. This is below average progress and a cause for concern, yet targets have been met.

As Anne rightly says, it is JCQ who award the access arrangements, not the school. Have you showed the school the case study?

[shelsco]

My ds sounds similar bruffin, he is high ability but poor spelling and organisation. He has very high reading comprehension but slow processing so takes ages to read. I don't know what the national average rate is in ks3. He has made great progress in maths and science and its only really recently that he's noticed any problem in these areas. Because he has done so well in them so far there is no historical evidence. Up until this year his slow progress didn't seem to have affected these subjects. In English, he started to find things hard when he transferred to secondary but school just said he needed to be more careful with spelling etc. They always said he was on target but he never met the target so a lower one was set the following year, which he also didn't meet. He is apparently on target to meet his Fischer family trust target based on his ks2 results. Most of his class work is at this level but in his recent controlled assessment he just scraped his target grade despite having had an English tutor work with him on the question for weeks beforehand. I was concerned and spoke to the head of English who said he was capable of an A or higher and not to worry. Given that he struggled to scrape a B despite really hard work and one to one help from a tutor I doubt that. It did make me wonder why this child who supposedly is bright enough to get an A has failed to meet any English targets since starting secondary.
school haven't officially disputed the assessor's report (only verbally to me). The official line is they believe the report but can't find evidence it is affecting his work. The evidence I've found they just say isn't enough and claim it will 'compromise the integrity of their centre' if they apply without enough evidence. I showed them JCQ example similar to my ds and they said they didnt want to trial extra time as JCQ suggest as they said it would give ds an advantage. :(

[shelsco]

Oh and has just had to resit French controlled assessment as it was borderline c/d despite his target being a b. I sat for hours helping him to organise his resit and he did get a b for that so now he's on target again! But he really struggled. I have no idea how he will manage the oral annd listening aspects. With APD he would struggle with these in English let alone French!

[bruffin]

If they are having to reduce his targets then it is affecting his work,

DS was on and off the DN register since primary, but it was his history and german teachers that pushed the SENCO for the extra time in exams when he was year 10, but it was end of the school year so he didnt get extra time until yr11. He ended up with a C at english but was capable for A/A and he got an A for one of his modules in English Lit but overall a B. He is doing maths and physics for A levels and hopefully will get what he needs for his offers from uni, which is an A* A A. We have sent him off to a revision residential "boot" camp this week for physics , which he seems to be enjoying.
We had the same problems in german, he ended up with a D but that included Bs in some of his modules. It took him forever to learn the oral part.

[shelsco]

Well your ds gives me hope bruffin. DS thinks he might want to do maths and sciences at A level so hopefully he'll manage with them. The thing that worried me was that he has started saying that he found Maths papers harder because of the reading not the maths. Yet he is an excellent reader-just slower than his peers. When I told the SENCo he didn't have time to finish she checked it out and said he got the same mark as many of his peers and it therefore wasn't an issue but his peers didn't run out of time like he did!
The school are happy that he will reach all his targets even though he hasn't in the past and isn't for controlled assessments now unless he resits. I wish I could talk to some of his teachers. We had parents evening before the diagnosis and now I feel like I can't get past the SENCo and deputy head to discuss it with people who actually know my son! Do you know what evidence was used for your ds needing extra time? I'm trying to get ds to let me know every time he runs out of time so I can log it and check whether his marks fell in these tests. The thing is, even if they didn't fall below his peers, they are probably still below what he should have got if he didn't finish.

[bruffin]

It shouldnt be how he compares with his peers. It should be how he compares what he is capable of. l 4 for writing at ks3 but his reading was a high level5 and he only dropped 2points on the science test.
He makes silly mistakes in maths ie carrying wrong figure forward or having the calculator on wrong setting. He would have loved to have take history, but he couldnt face the essays, which is a shame because he excelled at the analytical side.

[shelsco]

I know. I just can't get school to see that it should be compared to what he's capable of. They think I'm being greedy and trying to get him an advantage. I keep saying it isn't an advantage- it's just putting him on a par with his friends who can finish in the time given. they just don't see it and there seems to be nobody who oversees that the school is fair. the school are scrutinised to make sure they don't give people time if they don't need it and so the school's answer is don't give it to anybody who achieves well just in case. That's why they won't take any notice of the case study. I feel like screaming. They don't have to justify anything if they choose to 'accept' specialist report but then refuse to gather evidence and saying there isn't any.