my child is not getting an education what are our rights he is 14?

Question

he was excluded from mainstream school in april and i can not get anyone to educate him he is in care at the moment and has been promised a tutor for months he is very intelligent but noone seems to care he suffers form adhd but is trying to control it he wants to learn and is getting worried about his exams whitch he is due to sit next year what can i do

Answer 1

Hire a Lawyer. They love these kinds of cases.

Sometimes just threatening the school board with hiring a lawyer will work. Also, some states have Child Advocates that work kinda like lawyers, but are free.

Answer 2

You get an advocate and a lawyer who deals with special ed, and adhd. The state has to provide an education but they do not have to provide a QUALITY education. Do you see the catch-22? Next, call schools that deal with add/adhd. I know that these cost money but it is the best thing you can do for your child. Some of them have waiting lists and some may provide some kind of financial help. Ask for help. Be persistent. Call every day if you have to. Get your child into one of those schools so he could get the education he deserves. Some might even provide trasportaion if the school is too far. My friend did this for her daughter and it was the best thing they ever did. The girl is now 21, works and is very happy. Good luck.

Answer 3

There are laws in the US that require a free public education for your child. Since your child is adhd, I would start with meeting with the Director for Special Services in your local school district. Meanwhile, document everything from your meeting!!! If you do not receive services there, contact your state department of education's special services department. If necessary, you can even contact the US Department of Education to find out your rights. Remember the "No Child Left Behind"? If you ask the right questions and demonstrate your knowledge of the law, you will not need to spend money hiring an attorney.

Answer 4

Dont know hat country your in but imagine it is the same anywhere. I work in a special school in the uk and we take in adhd boys who have been excluded from mainstream and sometime other special schools. Special schools always have places but you have to really push for them. I have some really intelligent kids in my classes who will do well in life becassue they now have direction and self confidence. Dont give up, keep going to the school board or look on the council website for your area and look up special schools - give them a ring and see if the can help you or tell you the correct procedure. Dont hold out for a home tutor, they are very rarely given to kids who have been excluded. Good Luck!

Answer 5

I take it from the terms you use you are in the UK. The US respondants to your question don't understand the systems over here so best to disregard their answers.

First, talk to ACE (Advisory Centre for Education - www.ace-ed.org.uk or 020 7704 9822) they specialise in giving free advice to people in your position - with a child excluded from school.

Are you the parent or the carer? With a looked after child (a child in care) there are greater hurdles but also more possibilities. Sometimes kids living away from their parents move to a different local education authority (LEA) area and there are disputes about who is responsible for education. My opinion would be talk to the child's social worker, your social worker, the headteacher of the excluding school and an LEA officer about arranging a multi-agency meeting.

The DfES (government) publish a folder of guidance called "Education of Young People in Public Care) which you should be able to get by ordering online. Try www.teachernet.gov.uk. The reference code is EDGUIDE.

Finally, but most importantly, tell the child this: life is what you make of it, school is not the only time in life you can learn. You will be able to control your symptoms better as you get older. Take your doctors advice, think about changing your diet (yes, sounds strange but it can help) but try to be positive. You can achieve what you want but it will be harder. If you put the effort in (e.g. try and find ways to learn for yourself) think how proud you'll be of your success when you achieve your goal.

Best wishes

Answer 6

I work in a pupil referal unit and we have planty of children that are in public care, all the children are permanetly excluded from mainstream school.
Your son by law in entitled to an education whether he be in care or excluded. If your son has a Statement of Special Education Needs due to his behaviour then he is entitled to attend specialist schools. Unfortunatley places are often limited. It also depends if your son now lives out of the Brouogh he was excluded from
If the childrens home provides education he should be apart of it if not then he should be in a school of some sort. When you have LAC meetings involving your son, raise the issue.
Get in touch with childrens services/education department of your council (LEA) and inform them of the situation.Hassle your sons social worker.
Good luck and don't give up until he gats where he wants to be.

Answer 7

You don't say why he was excluded. Personally, I think disruptive pupils cause mayhem in our education and I wonder if school is the right environment for your child. (I'm selfish - I want my child to have an education, too, without disruptive kids in the classroom.)
Have you ever considered home schooling?
I do know people who do do this. It takes a tremendous commitment but I think some kids are best suited to this.
Many schools have an exchange programme - you take my trouble child and I'll take yours. They feel that a change of environment might help. It might be interesting to find out if this is an option, too.

Answer 8

I would get an attorney. That usually scares the hell out of the schools. Find a home tutor in the mean time. If your child is considered "handicap" your health insurance should cover the costs for extra home care.

Answer 9

Since nobody wants to educate him guess what? It's up to you to either make sure it gets done or to do it yourself. There are no rights. It's a law that the child has to be educated but it is not the law that it has to be provided. Interesting oversight in that one I think.

There are plenty of educational websites out there and worksheet resources. You can have him write reports, study history (on the internet it's amazing!), science (Good visuals!), and all math subjects, along with reading comprehension.

Answer 10

Have you asked your school to see if your child can qualify for special education services?
By law, schools are not obligated to help with any problems a child may have UNLESS the child is in the special education services.
There is a specific legal process that must be followed by schools and parents in getting the help the child needs.
Unfortunately, schools won't tell parents this. ANd parents don't even know they have laws and rights to protect them.
It's called IDEA 'individuals with disabilities education act'
But like I said, schools do NOT have to help a child with any problems UNLESS the child is in special education and recieving an IEP (individual educational plan)
OR, I forgot to mention the other legal way of getting help for a child is called 504.
But for now, I'll talk about special ed.
There is a specific legal process to finding out if your child qualifies for this.
First, you write a letter addressed to district special ed director. It doesn't matter what the school or your child has done in the past. It doesn't matter what the school has told you that they will or will not do. This letter will be the first step in overriding all of that and will wipe the slate clean so you can start over--

Dear (district sped directors name) DATE at top of letter!

I am requesting a full, comprehensive educational evalaution testing in all areas of suspected disabilities for my child (name) as specified by IDEA law. My child is in (grade) in (teacher) class in (school name).

My child is having these problems--
(here, list all problems child is having that affects school, homework, concentration, behavior, learning problems, etc. list all diagnosis you may have gotten from a doctor, and list all things mentioned by teachers as problems)

I understand that IDEA law states the district can not do this evaluation without written parent consent. Please consider this letter my parent consent.

I also understand that the district has 60 days from the date of parent signed consent to have all evaluations completed.

Please send me a list of all evaluations that will be administered to my child. Please send me a copy of all test results and evaluation report at least 5 days before eligibility meeting.

Thank you
your name

Now, keep a copy for yourself! If school refuses to do this evaluation, there is more legal action you can take.
If they do this eval and say your child doesn't qualify for special ed services, then the next part of the legal process kicks in, which will prove if the school is honest in deciding the child doesn't qualify.
You don't just take their word for thier decision, they are suppose to have written proof of their decision.

Also, in each state is a federal funded agency that helps parents in these situations, free of charge. YOu can call your state dept of education and ask them for the phone number to the
'federally funded parent advocacy agency'

Unfortunately, all parents have to FIGHT hard to get the help their children need from schools. So it is always best to get an advocate from this agency to help you.

It's not a good idea to get a lawyer from the start, they will not take your case. There is a specific legal process to follow before the lawyer will step in.

There are 2 great websites that will help you learn all about the special education laws.
www.wrightslaw.com
www.reedmartin.com

The world of special ed in schools is VERY complicated and VERY frustrating. You really have to know and follow the laws in order for the school to do right.

Another peice of advice is go to www.schwablearning.org
sign up for free and post your questions on their 'parent to parent' message board.
This is absolutely the best place to get information and support!