DD not able to stay in all her classes due to health issues - what should the school be providing re teaching time?

[SirChenjin]

Quick background - DD (15) has severe anxiety-related IBS. Currently under a Paed Consultant and waiting for an appointment for guided self help and CBT with CAMHS (4-8 months waiting list). Has also had 10 sessions with a private counsellor.

The main problem is that she finds 'quiet' classes very stressful as her stomach and bowels make terrible noises, and the anxiety this produces is so severe and sudden that she experiences terrible pain and has to run to the toilet before she soils herself. As a result, she now sits out of these classes and works in the library by herself. Although she gets work from those teachers, she is missing out on teaching time - and as a result her grades are suffering. She has very important exams coming up this year and the next 2.

Is there anything that the school or LA should be doing to ensure that she is getting this teaching time? We're in Scotland, if that makes a difference.

Tbf, if any teacher is worried about being filmed they have every right to say so.
SirC, does your school use SQAs Solar online resources for teaching and learning? I'm just wondering if lessons could be uploaded onto that for your dd.

I agree with noble - the school needs to work with the student on getting her back into lessons.

Wow, a lot of posts, thanks . Thanks also to all of you who PM'ed me - I'll reply to each of you individually, they have all been amazingly helpful.

The anxiety/IBS problem is a very severe one, which is why she is under the care of the Paed Consultant and waiting for an appointment with the Psychologist, and they will work to get her to the point where she can physically and mentally remain in every class. The Pupil Support team have acknowledged that it goes beyond what they can do, so unfortunately it's not as simple as just getting the school to work on getting her back into class. The GP is now pretty much out of the picture for this - everything is being dealt with at Consultant level. She only sees the GP for her beta blockers which allow her to function at a level which at least gets her to school.

I will speak to the school about the possibility of having the lesson recorded on audio for DD. I can fully understand the reluctance of some teachers to be video recorded though. I haven't heard of Solar - will look into that, thanks. I'll also have a look at InternetHigh, but we were advised to keep her in school - she does have friends and enjoys the lessons she can attend, which is really good for her mental health.

She doesn't actually get lessons to work through from the teachers. They tell her what they are working on, she goes to the library and reads up about it or goes online, and then goes to them with any problems.

What a rotten thing for your DD to have. Teens have enough things to stress about at the best of times - she sounds like she deals with it well. You must be proud of her.

I am very proud of her (when she's not being a typical stroppy teenager )

As a teacher I would still expect to set her work and mark it. I would also be offering to meet her 1:1 after school, in my own time, to discuss her progress.

That's interesting Mostly - do you think I should push for a specific lesson to be set for her that she could then work on herself?

I work somewhere where it is usual for pupils to often opt to or be required to work in a different room. I always prepare work that follows the theme of the lesson but which they can work on independently and I always mark the work. The teachers should really be doing this for your daughter.

Thanks fleecey. Sounds like I need to push the school a bit more - I suspect things have slipped a bit, there's probably been a lot for the teachers with exams and assessments going on this term.

I am sorry that your daughter is going through this, being a teenager is hard enough.

i don't think that a voice recording would be that useful, and also getting a good quality recording is actually rather more difficult than people would appreciate (is recording equipment available for each of the teachers? Where in the room is it placed so that all of the questions and responses can be clearly heard? How does the recording get passed to the pupil? If you can't see and hear it may not be overly useful.. i.e. teacher pointing to diagrams or passages on the board). Skying is definatley out of the technology capabilities of most schools I know.

I would agree that her subject teachers need to make sure that the work set is accessible and then marked and areas for improvement identified. What are the school doing to ensure that she is back in lessons quickly? Why is she so very anxious? Have pupils been particularly horrid about her condition?

Thanks Science. The school are not able to do much about getting her back into class - this is now a medical condition which is under the care of her consultant and we' re waiting for an appointment with CAMHS. The other pupils haven't been horrible at all - she just finds the whole thing v embarrasing.

If the class is quiet, I am guessing they are all working away quietly and so she is no different doing it in the library.

Sorry - not sure what you mean Judge?

Skype or video link, if it focuses on the teacher then other parents don't need to be informed, or a dictaphone to record the lesson.

You might also look in to getting a 'personal amplifier' - they are designed for people who are hard of hearing, the person speaking ie the teacher would have a microphone clipped on a lapel or hung round their neck and the sound is delivered to headphones. As dd id in another room it would need to be one that worked without needing to be cabled.

Does the school have a phone in the classroom? It could be used to link to an amplifier. It wouldn't be as good as being in the classroom but it would allow her to listen to the lesson. If the teacher is using ppt then that could be supplied ahead of time.

Link below for wireless headphones, you can get a wired system for under £40 which the school would find difficult to deny but dd would have to be in the next room. The link is for a system where the teacher could have the microphone on their desk and dd have headphones.

actionfordeafness.org.uk/products/geemarc-cl7400-foldable-wireless-headphones