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| Sat, 09-01-2007 - 12:27am |
So I knew it wouldn't take long before my need to follow the rules caused me to get in trouble at my new job.
As soon I started, I was approached by the librarian/technology teacher about leaving the classroom for approx. 45 minutes on Friday afternoons so I could help out in the computer lab. Well, the first thing I thought was, hmmm...I don't think they're supposed to use me for stuff like that- an IEP is a legal document and I knew that, according to the IEP, I was supposed to be with "my" student for 6 hours a day. (Our school day is 7 hours long and we take 30 minutes for lunch and two 15 minute breaks.) I didn't want to cause any problems, so I told the librarian/technology, that I couldn't commit to anything because I wasn't sure of the students therapy schedule, and that mom wanted me to attend all therapy sessions. Then I realized that the time they wanted me to cover was supposed to be my lunch time. Next thing I know they've spoken to the principal who is requesting I change my lunch to accomodate the need. Again, I stated that I wouldn't commit until I knew what the therapy schedule was going to be, which won't be "known" until this coming week. (This is huge because my student gets 90 min./week SLP, 60 min./week OT and 30 min./week "autism consultant" time.) So then on Tuesday, when we were scheduled for our weekly library time, the librarian/technology teacher told me that she wanted me to go help out on the lab rather than stay with my student and the class. Not wanting to get into an arguement with her, I just did as she told me...but it wasn't sitting well with me because my reason for being there is to facilitate communication (the student's speech delay is significant) and encourage social interaction. Well, in the libary, there are opportunities for social interaction, and because of the "whisper rule" it's really hard for my student to communicate with the classmates.
Well today I happened to run into the 2nd in command person of the Special Ed. dept. and explained the situation. Sure enough, I was right. I'm assigned to the child and while I'm able to help out the other students in my class, I am not to be reassigned to another class for any reason.
No doubt the librarian/technology teacher is going to be p*'d off when she hears I had the audacity to go over her head and ask if what they were requesting of me was allowable. The funny thing is, this lady is HUGE in the union and a real stickler about following rules, etc.
The best part of the story is that now I have real "staying power" for all of the times they pull Claire's 1:1 to do other things. While that wasn't my intention for asking about the rules, it sure is nice to know that I had a right to get upset last year when they were constantly using Claire's 1:1 for other purposes!
Amy


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Tina~
In our state, 1:1's are called "attendants" and we are employed by the school district. I've never heard of wraparound services in our state, and in fact, typically, as soon as your child reaches 3 years old (which is considered school age) they become the "school district's problem" and many insurance providers will not cover autism related services.
To my knowledge, there is no such thing as PCA's in Illinois. Or rather, if there is, they are only utilized by the profoundly affected/mentally retarded (my apologies if that is no longer the PC term) residents of our state.
On top of all that, attendants in our school district receive almost no training other than "non-violent intervention". The idea of autism training is completely foreign to these people...which is why my students mother, wanted me for the job. At least I knew a thing or two about the disorder. ;-)
Amy
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