Reluctant reader or Specific Learning Difficulty?

[Jerbil]

Had Multi-agency meeting the other day. Was supposed to be SALT, EP, Psychologist, SENCO and CT. SALT and EP sent apologies, but both will still be involved although EP only seeing minutes (invited by CAMHS not been hired in by School).
Psychologist and SENCO very supportive and interested. But CT very disappointing. One minute CT said there may be a Special Educational Need therefore they want assessments carried out. 10 minutes later I informed all that I had been thinking about Dyslexia (he has visual tracking issues and we have a family history), to which CT said "or he could just be a reluctant reader?" 'CT dismissed my concerns over his visual problems saying he can copy off the board despite the fact I also took in a letter to the meeting from the Optometrist to support what I told them. CT was asked if he kept up with the class and the response was that he keeps up within the group he is working with. That is the SEN group where all children need support.
So disappointed and not hopefull for this year at all now. It seems CT only has low expectations for DS1 and as long as he's meeting them nothing else seems to matter.
CT also said about some of his behaviours that he does at home and asked well why doesn't he do them at School then? Someone else answered on my behalf that DS1 cannot control the school environment but can control the home environment.
I can almost hear CT thinking to self "parenting problem". Well if that's the case then why did we have CAMHS sat there describing difficulties? and supporting us in going for a 2nd opinion re: ASD.
1 step forward and 3 back!

:(

Thing is, whether or not your child has dyslexia, it's not going to change this teacher's attitude to him, or to teaching him.

A dx of dyslexia does not help a teacher to teach a child. All it confirms is that a child is not learning to read appropriately.

Now of course there is a big difference between being reluctant because you can't do it, and being reluctant because you don't like it.

But I can't see that distinction helping your teacher. :(

But if your child is not progressing 'as expected' with reading, you should keep asking what extra support he is getting with that. And keep asking. Put it on his IEP etc.

DS can copy from a white board. (he hates writing though and bad tripod grip) But to him he calls them pictures so he draws the shape he sees. As for reading he struggles with the phonics side of things and reads as in "whole word". How is your ds with phonics?

Wow, coff33pot I could have written the first bit about copying pictures and shapes. For example ai sound for example he has no idea it comprises an 'a' and an 'i'.
DS1 hates writing - doesn't have a tripod grip something about a thumb hook grasp. I recently asked where his triangular pencils were and was told they were waiting for him to ask for them!!!

Hi Indigo I fear you are correct :-(. 7 weeks into the School year it's not a good feeling! The day after the multi-agency meeting where CT has told us homework will be differentiated when it's writing; he came home with the same as everyone else!

He's being assessed for literacy and numeracy soon. I say soon, we were told that last year! This time though as we're further on through CAMHS etc. think they have to be on the ball. So once assessed then he MAY get an IEP!

Amazingly this is a School many are begging to come to for Special Needs provision!

"waiting for him to ask for them"?????? They could wait till we had blue snow before DS would actually ask for anything let alone a pencil! He detests writing so is hardly going to ask for something that means he is going to have to write.

They really dont get it I think..............

Jerbil
Sounds like you have a problem CT, we have been through a number of those, the worst of which we eventually reported to the NSPCC.
The issues the CT is limiting her comments and attitudes based on behavior, which is the limit of many in the education systems training and professional understanding of all classroom issues, which then means that all problems and failures are responsibility of the child or the childs parents, and nothing to do with the teachers lack of training, qualifications, or the responsibility of the school. This is a hangover from the 1980s when all education was see as a behavior issue, and not about the various cognitive or neurological issues which can create learning barriers which teachers now need to fully understand to enable them to provide the teaching methods best suited to each childs needs. The majority of children are able to access the full range of learning abilities required for each task they need to learn to perform, bur many others require information and teaching to provided in methods and ways that their specific learning abilities are able to processing and understand. So your CT would appear to be a below standard teacher, who lack the required knowledge and understanding to be a primary school teacher, and unfortunately there are many of them about.
It also sounds as if the school are not very receptive to outside support, and advice, again we had similar issues some years back, and eventually nearly all the staff moved on after the dominating poor quality HT left.

Unfortunately dyslexia is a man made problem, not a condition, but you seem to have identified one of the underlying cognitive causes of the dyslexic symptom, his visual processing problems, which is a medical issue, and a disability which the school if properly run should take note of and provide the the correct support under the Disability Equality Duty (DED) requirements of the 20005 Disability Discrimination Act. Each school has had to have a DED policy in place since 2009.

Those who have any of the various cognitive deficits are able to develop and use coping strategies for a limited time each day. Running these coping strategies is energy consuming and stressful, so we can run these coping strategies and seem as normal as we can be for a limited time, say at school, but we need some form of release when it is safe to be ourselves at home etc. The same applies to adults when at work, and needing to let go when at home and hopefully those at home have some understanding of our needs to allow us to let out the built up stress, can drive my DW to the edge sometimes, as as we both share the same disability, we have some understanding of each others coping mechanisms.

Sorry to have rambled on a bit, and probably off topic.

Thanks Dolfrog. No not off topic. Actually you bring a number of relevant points especially the need to release when DS1 gets home. In fact it starts the minute he is outside the school doors!
SENCO seems to be onside now just a shame about CT who is there 3 days per week. I now need to discover if the other CT has the same opinions; interestingly DS1 favours the other one who actually appears to be more strict.
Coff33pot, yes blue snow indeed. The fact was they were saying he could write with the other ones. Well, yes, he could write with the other ones perfectly well. But his intense pressure on paper and incorrect grip is not being addressed while he was!