Awaiting _____ diagnosis

[Bozzul]

I work in a school and we obviously have pupils with SEND, who have certain strategies we use with them and a number of others to monitor and trial things to include them.

All of them have attached documents to let staff know what's needed, but there's currently a trend for adding a sentence to say huge numbers of pupils are awaiting a diagnosis - awaiting dyslexia diagnosis, awaiting ADHD diagnosis etc.

They're not. They're still awaiting being assessed, and often because someone unqualified to judge has decided it's possible or suits them. But it might not be the case that a diagnosis is made (I'm thinking that the chances our school have such numbers compared to national data aren't high)

I'm all for doing what works for each child, and if they have tendencies that are normally addressed in a certain way, then of course these things can be used to help them too, but I don't think it's helpful to staff or pupils to imply issues which haven't been diagnosed.

Edited, helpful TO either staff or pupils

I write a lot of reports for send kids. In the areas where I can assess, once my assessment is complete and awaiting diagnosis, my report will flag their significant traits for x.

In areas where I am not qualified to assess, I describe the traits I see without adding any kind of a label eg 'Fred finds it very difficult to focus and it is this, rather than his motor planning which impacts significantly on his handwriting'

I also provide a lot of advice to teachers and sendcos about creating ND affirmative classes, looking at the environment and signposting to resources on teaching methods (I'm not a teacher and wouldn't dream of telling a teacher how they should educate their kids).

If 90% of your class have some firm of learning need, then it is your duty to accommodate it to ensure they learn to the best of their ability and meet their potential.

What on earth do you mean?

The support my dd got was being allowed to wear ear defenders in class because of a sensitivity to noise. She could also access a quiet area between classrooms if she was overwhelmed. She wasn’t getting free biscuits.

"I thought that a child does not need to have a formal diagnosis before support is put into place."

Yes the code of practice is clear on this.

I think very obvious autism is very obvious to a TA too. I'm talking about where it seems like it's written there for the sake of it.

And when I cover another class with a seemingly improbable amount of need (I see more different groups of children over any given period than most members of staff in my school) and it's not addressed in the class teacher's planning (which is not my responsibility), I see a picture of inaccurate records, which deliberately vague wording, which isn't narrowing any gaps or achieving parity for anyone.

You should hand in your notice if this is your mindset.

OP, have you considered the reason so many of them may be seeking a formal diagnosis is because of unqualified people like you clutching at their pearls, calling them snowflakes and denying they need anything special in the first place.
As a TA you're not qualified to say whether they meet requirements for diagnosis or not, and it sounds like you dont have the right levels of empathy to be working with children anyway.

Are you saying you think parents are chasing assessments/diagnoses to explain away behaviour that would be solved by some decent parenting?

I'm guessing mainstream for all the rhetoric that's being blasted all over social media suggests sen kids are being targeted yet again do they not understand they are the most defended population parents of sen children are used to fighting

Unfortunately

But YOU don't know if they need it or not.

My DD doesn't 'look' autistic to those that don't know her well or only have a basic understanding of the condition and normally no understanding of it in girls, she just comes across as highly academic, quiet and well behaved - until the shit hits the fan and she can't cope anymore.

Her disability only disables her occasionally but when it does she loses the ability to talk, make decisions etc. 9/10 she doesn't need the accommodations that are on paper for her, but her teachers need to be aware of them because on a bad day she does need them, and on a really bad day I'll get called in to pick her up if she is too dysregulated. And her dysregulation shows as tears, motor tics and panic attacks - her autism is an issue for her and no one else.

So if I noticed something that looked like off rolling or manipulating exam results, I'd be responsible for that too?

The figures don't seem representative of typical intake. Pupils in y10 are suddenly all going to be eligible for arrangements intended to allow those with additional need to access exams. This will disproportionately affect pupils who actually have these needs.

Extra time for someone without slow processing (whose parents have rocked up just before it counts to say that they think there are some sort of undiagnosed difficulties) means they have an advantage to show more of what they know.

I'm saying I don't see how they possibly can all need it. We don't have such a high percentage in the population. It's never been as prevalent as is being suggested.

Well this proves you know fuck all. Autism is obvious is it? Lol. My child was an expert masker.

Goady nonsense. Or maybe you really are clueless. Your wording says goady though.

Fucking hell. Would you like to be a little more disparaging and dismissive of school admin staff?

@Bozzul but exam access arrangements have to be assessed in advance and the students normal way of working they aren't just handed out like smarties - unless the entity of Year 10 go skateboarding and break their wrists the day before an exam.

DD is predicted all 9s in her GCSEs is exceptionally gifted, but her processing speed is 'average', she gets extra time as to meet her full potential she needs that time to get her answers formed and on the paper. She would no doubt still pass if she didn't get extra time but probably 5/6 which is not fair when she should be hitting 8/9s.

GCSEs are required for the workplace, most good workplaces are now open to reasonable adjustments there too so it's really not an issue to level the playing field.

I really get you @Singleandproud .

I mentioned my granddaughter as being obviously autistic but I didn’t think to add to those who know her well. She masks very effectively. I agree it’s helpful to staff to understand this.

And by the way, many years ago I was that very quiet, well behaved, academic girl too. I was diagnosed last year at the age of 64.

See this is where I think your lying my son has slow processing speed it had to be in his education psychology report observed by multiple staff members evidenced by him not completing tests fir him to be put forward for extra time as a parent I've never just been able to "rock up" and demand extra time and it was put forward in year NINE ready for year ten mocks year ten is too late

What are you classing as the vast majority? Vast majority to me means about 80-90%, which would be surprising indeed.

You say one class had 17 - but how many on average in a class? You said something about ability profile which I'm not clear on, do you mean that it's a lower ability set or inclusion class?

Remembering that SEND is supposed to be an umbrella term to cover learning difficulties which may have a medical/developmental cause, but also children who struggle to access learning for any reason including ESL, trauma, patchy school attendance, severe poverty, difficult home life etc. I don't think I would be hugely surprised to see about 6-10 pupils per class with some kind of note. More if you're including everything including things which might not directly affect learning e.g. allergies, asthma, diabetes.

I do kind of see the point that the wording assessment should have been used rather than diagnosis (though this is splitting hairs a bit - an assessment includes a differential diagnosis process). But it seems that's not really what you're objecting to, you're objecting to the fact there are too many of them in your opinion.

Some accommodations can and should (IMO) be offered to everyone. It takes the stigma out of them.

so half of the class having additional support needs?

following on from austerity, a pandemic, lock downs, recession. Etc it’s hardly a surprise

if health checks for 1 year olds and 2 year olds get dropped, as did the Sure Start centre early child support groups etc stop. The early interventions are missed. The kids have lost a year out of learning. Parents are more stressed than ever. Any funding for intervention in reading / writing in primary school get dropped.

stripping away kids socialising pushed them further onto digital devices. Increasing screen time etc.

none of this is any surprise really. We were all on the bones of our arse and then with no societal resilience we dropped into a pandemic. And now we’re climbing out of it of course there are unprecedented numbers of children struggling at school.

Kids with SEN tend to trickle down to the lower sets…you’re talking yr10. So the 17/30 is within a set. How many kids in top set have SEN? You should really be counting by entire year to compare to population and then you still have to assess whether any difference is statistically significant given the small sample size and type of school- state schools have a higher % of SEN kids than fee paying schools. Schools in deprived areas have a higher % of SEN kids than schools in affluent areas.

i don’t think the poster meant everyone in school meets that criteria, but everyone you get a shitty thread or comment on here by someone who ‘works in a school’ it’s normally a busy-body type.

A lot of children have very obvious needs and a diagnosis is just a formality. most camhs departments have even threshold for accepting someone for an assessment - locally, a high percentage of kids don't even make it over that hurdle. One of mine is on a 6 year Asd assessment waiting list. Are you suggesting to minimise all her difficulties (she tried to take her own life recently because the MH is so poor because of unmet need due to lack of formal diagnosis) simply because our local camhs isn't able to diagnose within acceptable manner? Should schools pretend kids like her are fine?

You sound like a right goady f*cker who is clearly in the wrong job. sorry

But the criteria for it changed, the stigma towards it lessened, increased medicine means more people survive very early births parents have access to more information to make an informed decision.

As a long shot it could be related to Covid in that it could have caused a PANS/PANDAS-like condition - but I don't really believe that.

How many adults through our family trees preferred to be alone? Didn't do well with relationships? Self-medicated with drugs and alcohol? Were diagnosed with other MH conditions instead? I can look through my family tree and see lots of people that applies to and DDs diagnosis was not a suprise - it just means we can put things in place so she can thrive.

I think it's far more likely that autism is far more common than anyone realised and that the current onslaught of continuous ongoing sensory arousal means those that could cope before now cannot and because they are overloading their ability to cope more people will seek assessment.

Schools (and I say this as a former teacher and TA) are one size fits all, they are a safe place to be whilst parents are at work. That is what they always have been and always will be. It is not natural for us as animals to sit still 5 hrs a day, looking at a board, reading and writing. It is no wonder that more children can't cope.

Factory work and farm work whilst gruelling probably suited our ancestors in the past, physical and repetitive work can be a good thing.

If my child’s last school hadn’t been of the same mindset as you he would have been assessed and diagnosed years ago and probably wouldn’t have reached the stage of self-harming and suicidal thoughts. You would have no idea of any of this because he masks. Luckily his present school are much more educated and supportive.

You know op, I hold many TAs in high regard. Many of them have been a fantastic support to my children before and after diagnosis. One was a real advocate for my eldest when others weren’t taking his yet to be diagnosed autism needs into consideration (he has since had the diagnosis). However, your viewpoint as a TA means little. You’re not a teacher or (more importantly) a HCP/clinician. Your job is to support based on the information given, not to judge what is and isn’t appropriate. Having said diagnosis means little, it is preemptively as well as post diagnosis that support in recognising needs matter, not how far along a waiting list the individual is on.

There is more than a little whiff of the usual SEN shit stirring here, it’s getting tiresome.

Exactly this. You're not qualified to make the judgement calls you're making in this post, OP, nor do you sound as if you have the required levels of empathy. I'd look into a new career before your attitude damages the children you teach.