As a teacher to be surprised at how many in my class have SEN?

[Floatingcactus]

I teach a reception class of 26. 4 of them have an EHCP plan, 6 are waiting assessment and at least another 4 are showing possible signs of SEN including speech delay.

I’ve been teaching for 10 years and I personally believe there is an increase.
I don’t know if lockdown plays a part or whether it’s down to other factors.

I work in a nursery and the amount of SEN children seems to be rising all the time. It is very difficult and getting the funding for these children takes ages for the claim to be processed.
We do have children with SEN who just need a bit of extra support but we have others who need a lot of support.
I feel like everyone from the child with SEN, to the other children, to the staff and parents are constantly let down. Look after and educate this child but with no extra money or support.
I think lockdown has played a part and increased awareness. I just find it heartbreaking that we have increased awareness but not increased support.
Sorry bit of a rant there but I'm so upset that these children don't get what they need and deserve.

It does depend on the class anyway.

My class: We had around 30. There was one boy who definitely would have been diagnosed with ADHD. There were a couple of others who might have been assessed, but beyond that nothing obvious.
Then the form below me had again around 30, and around 2/3 had (even back then in the 80s) considered (extra needs). I know it was about that number because if the form got particularly bad they'd send the ones who didn't have "issues" into us to give them a break.

My sisters class had around 45 in her class and without thinking hard, and not knowing the class that well, I could name around 10 who would definitely have been diagnosed with something like ASD. Those were just the ones who were obvious looking back. I'm sure there were more who went under the radar.

ASD has a genetic component. ADHD has a genetic component.

It becomes more common from generation to generation

I am a child of the 70s.and 80s and parenting then was not what it is now. Kids were parented less. It was school play out and then bed and weekends where play out or follow parents to the pub or get left with grandparents. I think it's the absolute opposite and parents are so focused on their children and how they develop now that any difference to what may be considered usual milestones they want investigated and looked into. In the 80s were left to catch up and they did or they didnt. My son is ASD and it was very obvious from birth. However I have close relatives and freinds who continually ponder an ADHD diagnosis or ASD diagnosis and this is because they are very focused on how their child behaves and interacts in society. On the whole parenting is much more hands on even with the addition of technology.

What's your qualification to say that? Ados is a standard test carried out by a psychologist and a paediatrician for example. Neither are stupid qualifications for stupid people to easily obtain.

As a governor n a SEN school I know for a fact first hand in my county that my LA wants to place most children in mainstream. To save money and because we don't have enough in county sen schools. So the more severe needs are now creeping into mainstream. Plus if you think no socail interaction didn't effect toddlers development then I'm a bit shocked. But hey what I know?

If you think you can just ask for a echp or just ask for a diagnosis then I wish I could be as nieve as you. I bet you also belive anyone can be become a medical doctor or psychologist these days by just declaring they feel like that's what they identify as today.

You feel that your child identified as having SEN but that would get you a ehcp. For example two of my kids have ehcps with asd diagnosis ( by a doctor, psychologist and speech therapist- spoiler all three have at least a degree, the psychologist has a doctorate) and I still had to take my LA to tribunal at the Royal courts of justice in London multiple times to get the ehcp. So tell me again. How can others avoid that and just Bullshit it? Maybe they could save my pain here? My two are in a sen school now. So please oracle of wisdom. Do tell

Some year groups are shocking OP. My DS2's class at primary had numerous kids with SEN (of which my DS was one), but it was literally about a third of the class. My older DC's class had nothing like that number.

I'm sure Covid lockdowns and the suspension of many NHS services via health visitors, GPs, SALT, diagnostic clinics, etc will have made the situation much worse. So DC aged 1-3 at that time with say delayed speech, would previously have been able to access SALT, but during Covid they couldn't so those DC are now starting school with problems that either haven't been picked up at all or haven't been dealt with.

Everything seems to get blamed on Covid though I’ve yet to meet any child who has been affected by the lockdown and that includes babies who were born that year. It hasn’t affected any kids I know.

Great post.

I also suspect that with ADHD and ASD, modern life and schooling contributes to higher levels of stress among children and, therefore, more noticeable expression of certain traits. This, coupled with better awareness, leads to more diagnoses.

Speaking as a SEN parent, the screen time and ASD/ADHD isn't the gotcha some people think it is. A lot of DC use it to regulate. A screen is more predictable than complex messy in person human interaction. The causation may well be the other way round e.g. neurodiverse = uses screens a lot vs uses screens a lot = becomes neurodiverse. The DC aren't watching telly in the womb...

Everyone is quick to blame parenting. No one is willing to look at the obvious. People are having children later in life. It is a fact that the chances of having an autistic child increase with the others age.

This. There is a very clear link between advanced maternal (and paternal, though to a easter extent) age and the chances of a child having SEN. Also there’s a clear link between prematurity and SEN. Given that there’s an increase in very premature babies surviving now there’s obviously going to be an increase in SEN children. Similarly, ASD is more likely in children whose mothers had preeclampsia, which again is treated now leading to mother and baby being more likely to survive. It’s not just an increased awareness, though that plays a part, but more children being born who are more likely to have SEN and developmental issues.

On the devices issue, worth pointing out that kids who are reception now would've been 2 and 3 in the first lockdown. There was a period when the provision of childcare for many working parents in this cohort was withdrawn and so naturally, reliance on the electronic babysitter had to increase. That's what parents muddling through often looks like. If heavy device use early on is a problem, then we're going to be reaping those consequences in that age cohort for a while.

Lesser extent, not Easter.

I don’t see it as a ‘gotcha’ I see it as a contributing factor, along with some others. If it regulates then why does it increase hyperactivity and worsen ADHD symptoms?

@Fancysauce ADHD isn't just about being a bit hyperactive. 🙄

Obviously parenting can play a massive part, believe me it'll be questioned when going through the assessment process. My son has SEN, his main area being cognitive need. We have done parenting courses which have done diddly squat. It was clear from a young age he wasn't meeting milestones at the expected age.

It's infuriating to read that some people believe that can be caused by them watching TV.

There is a lot more we need to find out about SEN. Until then people find it easier to blame parenting. Lockdown has definitely played a part, we don't even have a local baby clinic anymore. There's barely anything. Everything has been cut.

Ds3 (16) with ASD & DCD can’t use the toilet during breaks when there are other students pushing each other out of queues, hand driers going and packed toilets. If he can’t go during class time then he has to wait until he can leave the school grounds at lunchtime or until he gets home. He tries to choose a time that causes the least disruption possible if he really has to go. I’m sure there are a few who take the piss (pardon the pun) but it’s better than those in need missing out.

I agree that constant over stimulation is a problem. But it doesn’t just happen at home now. Every minute of every day at primary schools are planned to the nth degree because that is what the curriculum demands. Apart from playtimes, there is not a lot of relaxing time for children at school these days, it is so prescriptive, and everything is monitored and recorded with a view to assessing progress.

What happened to letting children just do things for fun? We used to have regular time at school (pre National Curriculum) where we would just sing songs. It was probably classed as coming under the music curriculum, but it was very relaxed and just enjoyable. My old school reports are very simple. Eg it would simply say things like “Curly enjoys our weekly singing sessions and joins in with enthusiasm.” Art lessons were done on a Friday afternoon and were really relaxed and enjoyable. A lot of the time we simply went through different mediums and had a free choice of what we produced. In the summer if it was nice weather the teacher could change what they’d planned and we could go outside and draw a tree etc.

For each subject on reports now you get a very long winded cut and paste job over what your child has covered in the curriculum and what they can do now. That depth of description is unnecessary all round. It’s just so prescribed and frantic, the school day. Yes, the National Curriculum brought benefits. But things have gone too far, and schools are expected to squeeze in far too much in the school day. And then we are surprised when so many of them struggle with their mental health.

The kids who were most affected by the lockdowns were the children with occurring issues anyway.

A child won’t have developed a speech issue or ADHD because of lockdown, but delays in picking up problems and lack of support have undoubtedly compounded problems.

Especially when you take into account that delays are ongoing. So children and families who should have been on a short waiting list or getting support during that period are still waiting for assessments and support.

That in turn has a massive impact on schools.

There will also be some children who were completely unsocialised during lockdown for whom the problems will be a direct cause. I can only imagine the impact on any child who was living in a situation like the one I would have been - neglectful parents, no outside agency input and near silence for the whole time.

ADHD is not just hyperactivity. The diagnosis could be hyperactive but there are other sub-types in a modern diagnosis; inattentive, impulsive or combined. The focus on hyperactivity is why so many girls are missed as they tend to fall into the inattentive sub-type. Are you including those subtypes in your assertion that ADHD is “caused” by screen time? I’m not saying lots of screen time is a good thing but I don’t think you understand what ADHD is.

I am 36 and have been a TA and teacher across Primary, Secondary and PRU. A lot of the PRU (as it was a behaviour unit) was 90% sloppy parenting and the 10% should have had proper interventions and a SEN statement when younger.

As a primary school TA I noticed it was a 50/50 split between the parents of suspected SEN children who either pushed massively and were crap parents and those who were a mix of good/bad/ok parents who had genuine concerns. Eventually, enough nagging gets the school to do something.

I think it's always been a high number. All you have to do is look back at parents friends/family and see their odd behaviour and their massive lack of literacy/numeracy skills and recognise they were a SEN child and were never diagnosed. I can look back at school friends and distinctly see a few would have thrived with proper support and awareness and SEN statement with interventions in place.

Awareness is what has changed, crap parenting and children's behaviour only takes a tiny portion of the blame (in this particular context- the societal impact on terrible parenting is HUGE, but thats another thread entirely). Ex. A diagnosed SEN child requires simple interventions at home to thrive, they don't, because the parents can't be bothered OR in some cases I see they are undiagnosed themselves and have had several children who all display a high level need and are just incapable of understanding how to deal with it.

It's difficult OP.

I agree with that @signonthewindow

(Undiagnosed) DH has almost certainly got the same mental makeup as (diagnosed) DD but growing up in a small rural community in the 60s and 70s, was accepted as a bit quirky and supported as an individual by his primary. He is very clever and worked out how to mimic behaviour to fit in.

He says it was better in the days when local education authorities really knew their communities.

@IncessantNameChanger but a doctor or psychologist don’t decide whether something is a medical condition, they’re only qualified to measure a child up against a diagnostic criteria they’ve been given and say yes or no. Ditto with the provision - a lack of provision doesn’t mean that SEN does not have a lower threshold now, it just means once diagnosed there isn’t much in place to help. You’re sort of confusing ‘special needs’ as an abstract with diagnosis, and diagnosis with provision.

I'm in my 30's and I've had everal people in my social group has been diagnosed on the past few years with ADHD and ADD (this had a new term I think?) But I went to school with two of them and scouts with others and nobody diagnosed them until they were well into adulthood. Also in my brownies when I was a leader there was a time in the late 00's where we had an influx of kids with SEN like almost half the kids. Now there is one. Obviously all anecdotal so I do wonder if its a some type of combo between the diagnosis and awareness+increase.

This is true but lockdown still has paid a huge part. A lot of people hate baby classes but use it as an excuse to be able to get out the house, so majority of the parents were stuck indoors looking after young children without seeing friends and family which are their usual support network which ultimately robbed from their mental health as well as a young baby's social development. My child's nursery teacher said she's sad that my ds's class have spent a good year or so interacting with people who wore face masks. Young babies like to look at mouth movements, mimic but this interaction wasn't possible which is important with even minor interactions with strangers and people in supermarkets etc.

@tootiredtospeak but as I said in a previous post parenting has also changed massively in terms of boundaries. I’ve worked in education for over 20 years and there’s a marked difference in behaviour of those children coming through the system now. The unwillingness to follow basic rules, the lack of respect is widespread. This can lead to huge behavioural issues which can spiral with SEN issues. I’m speaking from experience (and before I get shot down I’m obviously not blaming bad behaviour on SEN - so much more complex than that).

Also awareness has changed massively.

I can think back to my own time at school and instantly pick three “bad” or “naughty” kids (as they were labelled then) who, in hindsight, very clearly had other things going on.