July 10, 2010

It's July - Let's Catch Up

School’s out! So it’s time to catch up on some things you might have missed. I was doing that on July 4th at a friend’s house, when she introduced me to a young man who is in his last year of law school. He had been a policeman and before that a teacher’s aide. Now he wanted to be an attorney and go into special education to help parents. He had no idea who I was, treating me as an elderly lady who brought the potato salad. He explained that his parents were both teachers, so that he had some idea about the letters used- such a I E P. He mentioned a woman lawyer, who represented parents in a nearby county, whose name I had never heard. He was going to work with her and learn about due process. He was cocky and nice enough. But the guy did not have a clue what he was getting into and behaved as though his charm would be enough to solve any problem. My bet is that in the event he graduates from law school, he’ll never survive six months if he goes into special education. The old adage- things never change so much as they remain the same- applies.

These are some things you need to know about:

1. DSM-5, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Disorders, fifth edition in draft form, published by the American Psychiatric Association, is about to be field tested. Approximately 500,000 people gave input to the new edition. One major issue is the grouping of the present four classifications of autism spectrum disorders into one to better reflect the state of knowledge about its pathology and presentation. The current Manual separates autistic disorder, Asperger’s syndrome, childhood disintegrative disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified. In an effort to make the Manual more useful for a broader audience a task force was formed to make one version for psychiatrists and another for nonpsychiatrists. Field trials will continue through February 2011, with a target date for final publication in 2012. (American Medical News, Christine Moyer, 6/21/10).
2. The brain mechanisms of autism may soon be known, though at present its causes remain a mystery. Bradley S. Peterson, chief of child and adolescent psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center, working with Ravi Bansal, associate professor of clinical neurobiology, developed computer algorhythms to quantify blood flow and brain activity in millimeter-square-sized pieces of brain tissue. In their paper, to be published later in the year, they explain that people with autism have less tissue in Broca’s area, as well as in other brain regions associated with language and social processing. If this theory is proven, it would provide the first objective test instrument to diagnose autism with an MRI scanner. The problem in finding the cause is that there are so many different forms of autism, each working in a different way. (Summer 2010 Columbia, Autism Unmasked, David J. Craig.)
3. Special Ed Cuts. States across the country are questioning the amount of money that special education costs due to the financial crisis they face in their state budgets. In an unknown built-in escape clause in IDEA, states can cut special education services in “exceptional or uncontrollable circumstances such as a natural disaster or a precipitous and unforeseen decline in the financial resources of a state.” Iowa and Kansas have both been granted this waiver for the first time in the history of special education, though it is unclear exactly how the cut will affect those children who are now in or in need of special services. South Carolina has also applied, according to a blog supporting parents of children with disabilities- IDEA Money Watch. There is no federal template for states who want a waiver, though the federal education department has offered clues to what it looks for:
   1. Special education can’t have a larger percentage cut than other education programs;
   2. Additional monitoring will occur to make sure that FAPE is still provided
      
      (Come on, now…)
   3. IDEA permits school districts to cut back on special education if morefederal dollars flow in. A January report from the GAO found that at least 44% of the states reduced their local spending on special education because of the receipt of stimulus money. Those spending cuts remain permanent unless the district chooses on its own to increase funding. This reduction poses more problems that the waivers do. (Education Week, States Seek Waivers For Special Ed. Cuts, Christina Samuels, 6/16/10).
4. Retardation Name Change. States and agencies across the country no longer use the term “retardation”, a term that emphasized weaknesses rather than strengths. Even New York is working to rid itself of the term as now seen in its “Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities”. Only Rhode Island still uses that language. The renamed New York agency will be called the Office for Persons with Developmental Disabilities. (The New York Times, Name Change at Agency to remove ‘Retardation’, Jane Gottlieb, 6/8/10).
5. Creating National Education Standards. America is one of the few developed countries that lack national standards for its public schools. On June 2, 2010, all governors and state school chiefs released their final recommendations for English and Math requirements in order for students to move from the primary grades through high school graduation. Current state standards vary so much that it is impossible to compare test scores from different states. There are now two documents: Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects and Common Core State Standards for Mathematics. These standards define only what students are expected to know and do, and do not replace the local curriculum relative to the selection of required readings. It is unclear how many of the states will adopt these standards, such as Texas and Alaska who refused to participate in developing the standards. No place in any analysis of national standards is special education discussed. (The New York Times, States Receive A Reading List: New Standards For Education, Sam Dillon, 6/3/10).
6. An Objective Test For ADD. Dr. Martin H. Teicher, a Harvard psychiatrist, has invented a test for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder called the Quotient A.D.H.D. System. The Food and Drug Administration approved its sale in 2002 and many insurers, including Aetna and Blue Cross, now cover its testing. To date, more than 70 clinicians in 21 states have bought or leased the device. Teicher says that it offers an efficient way to figure out the most helpful kind and dose of medication to treat attention problems. The National Institutes of Health awarded Teicher a $1 million grant to further develop a definitive test, or biomarker, for the disorder.( The New York Times, Seeking An Objective Test for Attention Disorder, Katherine Ellison, 6/1/10).
7. Child Find and IDEA. In Compton Unified School District v. Starvenia Addison, a parent sought compensatory damages because the school failed to evaluate a child who failed all of her classes but was promoted each year. The Court held that under Child Find a school district is obligated to actively find students with disabilities. If they are negligent they may have to pay for compensatory services. In combination with the Forest Grove v. T.A. decision by the U.S. Supreme Court the cases represent an expansion of the principle of child find, an issue to be strongly debated when IDEA reauthorization begins. (CEC Policy Insider, Child Find Has Teeth! A Sign of Things to Come in IDEA Reauthorization, 4/2/10).

So now we’ve had a little catch up of news. As always, there is nothing about special education but its cost. The CEC Policy Paper, though, is interesting in that it is the only publication that has referenced reauthorization. We need to get ready for that, too. Get a black dress or pants because it will surely be a funeral. The IDEA patient is now on life support, but the family is about to stop any extraordinary measures. Pull the plug. Yup. That’s what lies ahead.