Case
Parents who refuse help their child needs

I have a new student who is considered EBD (Emotional Behavior Disorder). He has an IEP for behaviors only, no academics. He has a dedicated para in general and special education classes (sped classes for social skills). He has "fits" daily and has to be removed from the room, often for hours at a time, hence the dedicated para. Both the general ed and special ed teacher have gone out of their way to accommodate this student, changing classroom routines, schedules, tasks/activities to best help him. His behaviors are beginning to have a negative effect on other students (in both classes as well as neighboring classes). Often times, these "fits" involve a psychosis that we, as teachers, are not qualified to "fix." When trying to place him in the correct class (EBD self-contained) his parents pulled him out of school to home school him. Now, he is being served in a self-contained class that is grade levels behind because his parents have threatened to sue. How do we go about giving this student the services he needs while looking out for the best interest of other students in the class and keep his parents happy? This child also needs services that the education system cannot provide and his parents think he's ok, that his very disturbing threats and actions are nothing.

Posted on: 10/11/15 | Views: 859
Solution #1
Top Solution
This is a very tricky situation. However, the most important thing in this situation is documentation. It is vital that documentation of the hours/time spent outside of the classroom is written down for parents to see. Also, a behavior plan is vital for this student. He needs to be involved in creating the behavior plan. The more he is involved in creating the plan the more impact it will have on his behaviors. He will have some ownership of the behavior plan. He needs rewards for completing the desired behaviors outlined on the behavior plan. It may be that he needs to start with several immediate rewards that he can earn right when the teacher sees the desired behaviors. Then the rewards can decrease as the desired behaviors are exhibited more frequently. The parents need to see and sign the behavior sheet each day. Make a copy just in case the student loses or doesn't show the parents the behavior sheet. Notify the parents of the plan, so that they are expecting the behavior sheet to come home and can keep the student accountable for the sheet.
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Solution #2
This is a very fine line to walk. Certainly the parents feel like they are making the best choices for their child, but often times parents have no idea what is truly best in the school setting. I taught sped for three years before switching to regular ed, and I often found that some parents were in denial. I think the first step here is possibly conferencing with the parents to let them know that you only have the very best intentions for their child. Maybe not bring up any other issues than just that simple fact.... "We only want the very best." This would hopefully set a more positive tone for future conversations. Good luck!
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Solution #3
It sounds like you are doing all you can to serve all of your students. Continue to problem-solve the behaviors and document everything. Reassuring the parents that you want their child to be successful and that you care about their child will go a long way. Teamwork is a positive step toward finding the most appropriate solutions for everyone involved.
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Solution #4
This is such a delicate situation because of how the parents are seeing the issues as opposed to your true experiences in the classroom. I might invite the parents into the classroom so they can get a better understanding of the real issues you are seeing from the student on a daily basis. Only then will they start to see how this behavior affects not only you, but the surrounding students. If they still wish to take no action then you might have to remove yourself from the situation.
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Solution #5
This is so sad. I would just be persistent in making contacting and effort to involve the parents. Also. document everything!!
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