Is this a fair comment on school report of dyslexic?

[shelsco]

Ds2 (in year 7) got his report today and there were several comments about improving spelling, learming to spell key words etc in order to improve. He was diagnosed dyslexic this year and does work incredibly hard but just can't retain spellings. School have given him no support at all with regard to dyslexia. I do appreciate that overall he is doing well and there are many other children who need the school resources more than him. Even so, I felt that the references to improving spelling, given that they have put no input into helping his spelling at all, seems a bit rich. I've put loads of work in at home supporting his spelling but it's still weak. AIBU to think that if school want him to improve spelling they should actually help him?

Sorry if I am repeating what others have said but I got to a point then skim read as I was perplexed.

I am a secondary school teacher and I simply don 'to understand why YOU needed to tell teachers at PE about a recognised result of dyslexia. Who did the test? Why were teachers not informed internally?

I was saddened to read that experience has taught a PP not to expect anything from school. Dyslexia is our bread and butter and every single teacher should be adept at providing support. ALL teachers should know the needs of ALL teachers in their class. Some will poorly word reports but in essence the comments you are reading are simply not helpful.

I don't work in the English system but for us to expect our exam board to recognise a request for extra time/reader/scribe for external exams we NEED to have had it in place for internal exams including discrepancy testing.

I am not sure if any if this helps but it might give you an idea of what could be happening.

I recommend writing to the school highlighting the comments made and asking, with respect to the recognised need your child has, what support can be provided for him.

It could well be that the message has taken a while to get through to staff but it is bad timing and they need to make their support policy clear to you.

An external assessor did the tests for both my boys but there is no doubt over her qualifications. The senior ed psych at school has also looked at it ( as school were saying ds1 was achieving too well to be dyslexic). She said report was accurate and told school wha t to do but it seems a bit hit and miss as to what happens. I think I do need to talk to someone as I don't think the correct procedures are being followed.

He was 'achieving too well to be dyslexic'?

That is a worry.

Again, this might be as much use as a chocolate teapot but here an educational psychologist must sign off on any diagnosis regardless of who made it.

The messages being sent are very confused - he is achieving too well but spelling is mentioned numerous times on his report.

Perhaps request a meeting with the head of year and the ed psych to talk about exactly what the processes are

There are lots of resources available to your son.

I agree electronic spell checkers are a waste of time. Type in peel, and you find out that, yes, it is correct. Well, okay, but not if you are talking about the sound a bell makes.

However, a spelling dictionary is really useful. You can look up the word "giraffe", and it will be listed in red letters as, "jirafe", say, with the correct spelling next to it. There are definitions next to the correct spellings, so you know you have the right word.

By year 7, could he be typing a lot of his homework, at least? That way he can use the spellchecker on the word processing software. It's much easier to edit using a computer, anyway, and even if it has to be handed in typewritten, he can type it up, then copy it out, which is no different from doing a rough draft and final draft, anyway.

DD2's Y7 English teacher told her off for spelling "dyslexic" incorrectly. Makes you laugh, really. Or cry.

Just marking my place for reading and getting resources later. DD is dyslexic and I'm not so sure school is doing enough.
Thanks for the thread.

From bitter experience I can tell you that the only way of ensuring that all his teachers know of his diagnosis is for you to make multiple photocopies of the statement, highlight the bits that are really important (eg 'he has an IQ of 130' or 'sequencing is a problem') and hand them to all the individual teachers every year.
Anything else will be met, as you say, with blank incomprehension..! Communication within schools - and the sheer volume of pupils being taught by every teacher - means that the message will never be passed on (or if it is, it won't be heard).
You can tell that I've been there can't you...?

The positive side is that if his J8 is done in year 10, in time for GCSEs, it will still be 'live' (just) when he goes to FE/VI form. Make sure you actively give permission for it to be passed forward.

Keep on at them... good luck.

Thank you. The whole system seems to be a mess. Neither of my boys seem to have any sort of plan made for them because, apart from spelling and running out of time there seems to be other problems. The spelling seems to be something that they comment on but don't address and the running out of time is currently being looked at for ds1 (I hope, still chasing that up as SENCo not responding to emails) and ds2 was meant to get but didn't. Think I need and meeting with the Senco at the start of next year to see exactly what provision has been put into place for both boys and to clarify the procedure for extra time in assessments as it doesn't seem to have happened. Am hoping a convincing j8 will be done for ds1 to avoid another battle at sixth form. School acted against advice of specialist assessor and didn't record relevant evidence so outline application was rejected by JCQ. Lea then went in at my request and told school to use exams where he had run out of time to build up case for extra time. School-becomes academy in September so presumably Lea will have no say then. It has been a long, hard battle with ds1 (and isn't over yet) and now it looks like it is starting again with ds2.

There should be no battle at all at VI form or FE - especially FE as they are not connected to any school. They will start from scratch if they have to, but an in date J8 speeds things up.

Some schools don't forward J8s, using outdated confidentiality regs, so we are used to doing it all ourselves. Which can be great for the student. Some hide their previous EAAs as they have been made to feel wrong in so many ways. So we ask all students and allow them to opt out. But we also then refer them back if they seem to be struggling at any point. This is our standard practice for every single student that passes through our FE college, with or without any previous EAAs.

Keep shouting. Exam boards do have to look at the info they are given and we haven't had any problems, so your school must have tried hard to screw up, in my opinion and as your info seems to suggest.

Thanks nomama. I was worried about sixth forma nd FE and that does reassure me a bit. School aren't bothered about exam board, it is JCQ they seem obsessed with. They seem to feel that JCQ will accuse them of cheating for entering a high achieving student. It is basically the SENCo (who has always been praised by JCQ for having copious amounts of evidence of each child entered) who feels her reputation will be tarnished if enters someone who qualifies but has less evidence than she usually submits. The Senoir Leadership team assume she is telling the truth and therefore back her without looking at the situation. Hence our problem.

Ah! That's cos JCQ is the governing body that write the regulations the exam boards have to abide by. The school sends the info to the exam board, so they a can get modified papers, scribes, etc, but it is JCQ regulations they read to know what to send.

It sounds as though your SENCo is a total jobsworth. If you think she might be the block then you do need to keep shouting as she is supposed to be the gatekeeper to opportunity not a turnkey to close it down. EAAs are given by right to those who qualify, they are not something that should be fought for. The school should be penalised by Ofsted for failing Every Child Matters and issues of Equality and Diversity.

You could always contact them.....

WEll I did end up taking it to the local MP and the LEA who backed me. I also took it to diocese as it is a church school but they said they would investigate and never got back to me.
The school strategy seems to be to ignore and hope I go away. The LEA has told the SENCo to use exam papers to rpove extra time is needed but the school hasn't contacted me to let me know that the situation has changed and when I emailed and asked for info I received o reply. The hhead and deputy backed the SENCo and just assumed she was right. A new head is taking over in September and the school becomes an academy so I'm hoping that someone new might make things happen!!
I'm sort of running out of options but figure that leaving it until September to meet with the SENCo is the best option as I don't want to meet, disagree and be left to worry all holiday.
I am totally fed up as it seems that, although a number of external agencies have said she is in the wrong, the school is an independent centre and therefore no one can make her record the correct evidence. I am going to try though. I'm appalled by the whole situation. by the way I checked OFSTED but was told that at least ten complaints have to be registered before they will investigate. They don't investigate individual complaints apparently.

Ooooh! That's not useful, is it? Good luck in September. Be that parent until you get somewhere.

Good luck xx

Thank you. I'll keep battling. :)