As an educator, there are a few things that I need to clarify for several of the ladies that have posted responses to R..
All schools and school districts are required by law to offer special services to students in need.
There is no such thing as a classroom for students with ADHD. There are no longer self contained classrooms for the "special kids". Today all students are included in the regular classroom. I am sure many of you have heard of the term inclusion classroom. Why would anyone want their child in a special classroom and isolated from others because of a disability or impairment? All teachers are trained to teach all learners regardless of having a special ed degree or not.
An ADHD diagnoses DOES NOT mean that a child is a special ed student. Some students with ADHD have other disabilities that qualify them for special ed services. If a student only has ADHD and needs accomodations, they would have a 504 plan which is accomodations and modifications for regular ed students with a physical impairment or a medical condition(for example, a child in a wheel chair).
As far as keeping students back, parents are certainly involved in the decision, but by law, it is ultimately the schools decision. A student would never be held back because of behavior or immaturity. The only reason a student would be retained is because they are performing well below the grade level expectations. Retention is at the discretion of the teachers and administrators.
Several people have assummed that Rachels child has ADHD. Maybe she is just an active little girl who is in need of some behavior modification. Only her pediatrician or other medical Dr. can diagnose ADHD, not the school. The school system determines if a students needs testing to qualify for special services and again, ADHD DOES NOT mean your child is a special ed student.
IDEA is a law that protects students with disabilities and requires the school system to be responsible for all students receiving a proper and appropriate education based on their individual needs.
Hi R.,
I am a first grade teacher. I wanted to address your questions about your child being retained in kindergarten. It is ultimately the decision of the school. If your daughter is doing well academically and has successfully mastered kindergarten academic expectations they will not keep her in kindergarten for another year based on immaturity or any kind of behavior issues. If the teacher is telling you that she will probably be retained in grade 1 it may be because she feels that the behavior issues will impact her learning next year and the result will be retention. Children are never left behind due to behavior issues, it is based only on academic progress. As far as medicating... this is obviously a personal decision for you to make and I agree that at times it is over prescribed, but if her behavior is such that she it is impacting her learning, which it sounds like it hasn't yet, you may consider it. It may be as simple as she needs some behavior modification which the school can certainly help you with. I just returned to work in January from my maternity and I had a child that had been in kindergarten twice and he was half way through grade 1 and still reading substatially below grade level well in part due to his behavior and inability to stay still and focused. Shortly after my return, his parents decided to try medication for him and he is now reading on grade level and doing much better in school academically and behaviorally. Many parents opt to only medicate their children during the school day so they can be more successful and in most cases it works. It is important to think about the ramifications for her to not acheive in school because of behavior that she may or may not be able to control. I would suggest talking to her teacher next year early in the year and if this behavior continues putting her on some kind of behavior plan to see if the behavior is such that she cannot control it. If she cannot, you may want to seriously consider medication. If she is choosing to make poor behavior choices for herself, that obviously needs to be addressed also. Either way, work with the school and as a team you can address her issues and the goal is obviously for your daughter to succeed.
I wanted to comment on what Lora said because there was some incorrect information. If your concern is ADHD, the school does not test for that. Her teacher can provide input as far as her school behavior and fill out a behavior ratings scale which is one tool your Dr will use in diagnosing. ADHD is a medical condition that has to be diagnosed my a medical doctor. The school can evaluate other issues such as LD and can certainly provide whatever support you need as far as tesing for a variety of reasons but the school cannot and will not diagnose ADHD. It is important to understand that IDEA is for students diagnosed with disabilities.
I hope this helps.