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Parents, teachers, and school administrators work collaboratively to provide the best educational opportunities and accommodations for children/adolescents in the classroom. Many parents are not aware that school systems are not able to adequately diagnose ADHD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) or mental health disorders that impact students’ ability to perform to their best academically and behaviorally.
Where should parents turn to seek out appropriate diagnosis, treatment, and assistance in navigating the educational system to provide the best opportunities for their children?
Often students with emotional concerns and/or attention deficit disorders come to the awareness of teachers or school administrators when behavior becomes problematic, when grades suffer, or when academic benchmarks fall behind their peers developmentally.
Students who struggle with diagnosable mental health concerns can experience significant difficulty performing to the best of their ability in a traditional classroom setting. Accommodation is sometimes necessary to help students with extra time to complete tasks and tests, work in smaller groups, or benefit from individualized attention and learning opportunities.
Teachers and school administrators are often overburdened with large classrooms and demands on their time. Many schools have had to cut testing psychologists or special education teachers due to budget shortfalls. Thus, when a student is pointed out as having behavioral, emotional, or attention problems, even if testing is available within the school, the waitlist may be significant (often 6-18 months). If you are a taxpayer and live in a school district (most of us) you have the right to educational resources even if your child attends private school. However, due to limited resources in many school districts, your child may be at the bottom of a lengthy list of educational test-takers. Schools are sometimes able to test children for educational diagnoses (such as learning disorders) which may qualify for an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) based on the definitions of learning disabilities set up by Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
An educational plan, such as a 504 plan or IEP may help your child academically, but concerned parents will also want to intervene behaviorally at home for consistency and effective life skills and organizational help. Working with a counselor, therapist, academic coach, or private professional can provide your family with the executive functioning assistance your child may need. A family approach to helping your student, in our experience, offers the most successful systemic intervention.
Even when schools believe that ADHD or another mental health disorder is present in a student, they are legally limited in their ability to make that diagnosis. For instance, in Oklahoma, if a school does make a mental health diagnosis, they become liable for the treatment.
Instead of going through the school district, many parents choose to seek out private educational, emotional health, and/or behavioral assessments. At Christian Family Institute, we offer these assessments and evaluations in an individualized manner. We take the time to get to know your family, and your child’s needs. Our process includes taking a detailed history of the concern, customizing an evaluation process that includes psychological tests and data, gathering behavioral observations from multiple sources, and sitting down with the family to provide feedback—including developing a treatment plan that can include helping your family advocate for accommodation needs within the educational system.
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