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Avoid Grade Retention

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It’s the time of year when struggling students may be considered for being held back and to repeat a grade.  The National Association of School Psychologists 2011 position paper recommends parents and teachers do not retain students. They report, “The majority of studies conducted over the past four decades on the effectiveness of grade retention fail to support its efficacy in remediating academic deficits.” In other words, just repeating the same thing does not fix your child’s problem. I’ve found retention only works well when the child receives a substantially different and specialized curriculum designed to meet their needs. How do you know your child’s needs? Testing your child helps you learn what reading, writing, or math program can best help your child learn.

In the position paper researchers wrote, “When retained and promoted peers are compared at the same age, retained students achieve at a slower rate. When retained and promoted peers are compared in the same grade, retained students experience a short-term boost that dissipates within 4 years.” This implies that retaining your child is a quick short term solution but it the same problems will return when your child’s older. As the adage says, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” You can be proactive now with testing and special instruction or spend a lifetime repairing your child’s low self-esteem and feelings of inadequacy.

The National Association of School Psychologists recommends, “Students whose performance is substantially below their grade level peers need an intensive individualized intervention plan with frequent progress monitoring and involvement with specialists and related services providers, in order to ensure the maximum benefit for the student.” You can start now before the school year ends. I can help you determine the root cause of your child’s struggles and help you prevent learning catastrophes (like dropping out of school) in the future.  Call our office and we are here to help.

25 Ways to Help Your Teen with ADHD

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Some teens struggle socially and teens with ADHD must have good people skills in order to live life to the fullest.  After all, building relationships is one of our primary functions as a human being.  In order to help your teen I recommend using the book 25 Ways to Win With People, by Drs. John C. Maxwell and Les Parrott.  It’s packed with practical ways to build relationships.  The writing is readable and not at dense or technical. It includes many stories to illustrate the 25 key points.  And the book is small.  It won’t overwhelm teens that are immediately turned off by thick, textbook-style volumes.  I encourage parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and important adult friends to read the book ahead of time, or together with the teen. This allows for important common grounding. In other words, everyone has the same information. That opens the way for discussion and shared experiences or ideas. How might your family work this valuable book into your routine? There are two ways you might do so:

Save this book for summer reading, when the academic demands of school lessen.  Read the book in advance, and let your son know that over the summer he’ll be reading an excellent and potentially life-changing book called 25 Ways to Win With People. For the first 25 weekdays of summer, he’ll read a chapter a day. Reassure him/her – the chapters average less than seven pages. It will take five weeks to complete the book. Each day, you’ll ask him/her to write a short summary of the key point and discuss it with you.  Role-playing is another effective practice tool. You can practice these new skills within the supportive context of your home, where he/she shouldn’t be as self- conscious as he/she might in public. 

 Make learning and applying the 25 points a family project. Together, the family agrees to read one chapter per week. Some parents set aside part of the day on Saturday or Sunday to have a short talk about the key point. For the entire week each family member works on applying the step. Family members practice with each other as well as out in their school, work, or daily activities. If the family has dinner together, they should talk about their experiences.  

Even though a new point is introduced each week, it’s important to keep in mind that earlier points don’t get discarded. Apply them as much as possible, especially if there are one or two you have found highly useful. This is what I call the “rent to own” philosophy.  We are teaching our teenagers to try the point out (or rent it) for a week.  If he/she finds it useful, he continues to rent it and use it. At some point your teen may decide that this point is so helpful that they’ll decide to own it and apply it on their own, because he/she has recognized its value in his/her life. 

 Think about your family and decide which way would work best for you.  Your teen will soon have 25 ways to become more successful with people.

Prevent Being Held Back

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Be proactive.  If you suspect your child may have learning or behavior issues at school, contact me.  I find that most moms are very intuitive about their children so trust your instincts.  My advise to you is don’t take a wait and see approach.  Time is too valuable as there are only five months of school remaining and FCAT testing is close.  Historically, school districts move slow when supporting kids that struggle. 

The results of my evaluation will identify your child’s strengths and weaknesses.  I make sure to tailor the evaluation to answer your specific questions!  It is accepted by public and private schools.  This documentation can speed up the help your child receives in school.  Without written documentation, your child’s school won’t usually make any adjustments.  These are called reasonable accommodations and they are required by law if your child has a learning disorder.  There is still time to give your child an academic boost to get through the school year.

A proactive investment in your child’s future can save you from wasting your money on hit and miss search for answers.  Your child’s school can give extra help and support if you have the proper documentation.  Answers await you.  Don’t wait for your child to fail before getting help.  Your child will thank you and you’ll have peace of mind.

Holding Kids Back

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It is the time of year when parents and/or school personnel consider retaining a small percentage of children to complete another year in the same grade.  The argument that parents often hear is something like, “Mark is immature and lagging academically behind his peers so another year would allow him to catch-up and boost his confidence because he’ll do much better with the curriculum a second time.”  In most cases, I disagree.  If your child is average or only has a learning disability, ask yourself the question, “What will be drastically different in the academic curriculum that makes you think Mark will need another year?”  The answer is “probably not very much.”  A second time will not solve most problems.  Major research studies indicate that retention (regardless of grade) is associated with later high school drop out, lower levels of academic achievement in the 11th grade, and decreased self-esteem.  It’s cited that children perceive retention as one of the most stressful events they could experience (see my www.wrightslaw.com for references). 

If your child is doing so poorly that the school is considering retention, have a thorough psychoeducational evaluation completed as soon as possible.  The evaluation provides answers so you don’t use a hit and miss approach for helping your child.  An evaluation should be thorough and information should be gathered from parents, teachers, the child, and others.  At minimum, a licensed school psychologist’s evaluation should include intelligence, academic, self-esteem, and information processing tests.  Parents should receive a through, in person, follow-up explanation of results with specific recommendations in a written report.  A psychoeducational evaluation is the main way to identify your child’s strengths and weaknesses to form an appropriate action plan.  The plan is used so parents and school personnel can work together to improve your child’s performance without retention.

Is Your Child’s Education in a Recession?

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If your child has repeated a grade, is at risk for failing this year, struggles to read, or gets in trouble in school, invest in your child’s future by having a strength based psychoeducational evaluation.  Many parents think about investing in their child by funding a Roth IRA or the Florida prepaid college program but may not always invest in their child’s educational success.  A strength based psychoeducational evaluation is a process that determines exactly how your child learns best and determines if they have any learning disabilities or other childhood disorders.  We then create a plan for your child’s educational success that can be used in any public or private school. 

My evaluations are highly comprehensive and I gather information from the parents, teacher, child, and from my interactions.  By having multiple viewpoints, I am able to see the whole picture of your child’s current status across many settings.  My evaluation will allow you to know exactly how your child learns best, how they process information, insight into their innate abilities, the status of their self-esteem, and much more!  When I am finished working with your child and gathering information, I meet with you and we create an action plan with recommendations and steps you can take to enhance your child’s educational success.  As a former teacher, I know which teaching methods and support will best help your child.

The report I write can be used in any public or private school setting so your child can receive accommodations, if needed.  If your child qualifies for extra time as an accommodation, my report is also used to get extra time on the SAT or ACT.  Your investment in a strength based psychoeducational evaluation for your child will continue to pay off for years to come!  You will know exactly what steps to take to make sure he or she finds success and happiness in school.

Dr. Forgan is a licensed school psychologist who can evaluate your child for dyslexia, learning disabilities, and gifted program placement.  Call Dr. Forgan at 625-4125 to discuss your child.