Until somebody hears me: parent voice and advocacy in special educational decision making

Abstract

When a family finds out their child has a disability, they enter the world of special education which has its own terminology, rules, settings, and personnel. In addition to grappling with the meaning of their child's special needs, families are also thrown into the role of principle advocate for their child. This research study presents the findings from focus groups conducted with 27 diverse families on their efforts to obtain the best educational outcomes for their children. In this article, Robyn Hess, Elizabeth Kozleski, and Amy Molina bring their collective experiences as a school psychologist, special education teacher, and bilingual counselor, to bear on this topic and frame the issue from a systemic perspective. They argue that engaging in conversation with diverse families around their needs as well as assisting them in their efforts to advocate for their child is the first step in creating more equal partnerships between diverse parents of children with special needs and educational professionals. Parental Voice 3Politicians, educators, researchers, policy analysts, and the media have all scrutinized the value of special education. In the United States, the passage of IDEIA 2004 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of , H.R. 1350 , 108th Cong., 2004, required special education to demonstrate the same accountability as that of the broader educational enterprise. Accordingly, students with disabilities are now required to demonstrate their knowledge and skills on standards-based assessments thereby ensuring that schools are held accountable for the academic progress for students with and without disabilities. By increasing accountability standards, this legislation attempts to guarantee that schools provide students with disabilities opportunities to learn within the general education curriculum. While special educators have long advocated for greater inclusion of students with disabilities, many school systems still provide separate classrooms, if not schools, to educate these students.While on one hand, those who advocate for separate educational settings would argue that these systems allow schools to meet the special needs of children, to protect them and effectively educate all students (Barton, 2004), others would contend that these structures create barriers (Oliver, 1996) and encourage negative labels and stereotypes (Barnes, 1991 cited in Barton, 2004. Given that individuals with disabilities experience higher rates of unemployment and underemployment, higher dropout rates and more restricted community participation relative to others without disabilities (Browning, Dunn, Rabren, & Whetstone, 1995; National Center for Education Statistics, 2000); one might question the efficacy of current practices in preparing individuals for post-schooling outcomes. Of further concern, is the long history of special education in serving a disproportionate number of students of color (Donovan & Cross, 2002; Losen & Orfield, 2002). Given these shortcomings, the educational fi...

Beyond constant comparison qualitative data analysis: Using NVivo.

“…In the following sections, the seven analysis techniques are presented, along with guidelines for utilizing NVivo software for each type of analysis. Finally, real data from Hess, Molina, and Kozleski (2006) have been analyzed and screenshots of what would appear with NVivo8 are included.…”

IDEA and Family Involvement

“…For example, research has demonstrated instances in which it is not typical practice for school personnel to invite parents to discuss issues related to IEP development (Duquette, Fullarton, Orders, Robertson-Grewal, 2011). Relatedly, special education teachers prepare IEPs in isolation and prior to IEP meetings according to the required information for each section as set by the state procedures for doing so (Hess et al, 2006). Therefore, once the IEP meeting occurs, there is very little opportunity for generating new ideas on the basis of parental input.…”

“…The partnership between the family of a student with disabilities and a school is very important in the special education process because a supportive family structure contributes positively to the education and progress of students with disabilities (Hess, Molina & Kozleski, 2006). Families, and specifically parents, know their child's needs best and are therefore positioned to assert their child's interests and make decisions as to what is educationally appropriate for him or her (Lo, 2010).…”

“…Munn-Joseph and Gavin-Evans (2008) assert, "generally, discussion of the family-school relationship in urban schools serving low SES or ethnic minority children and their families focuses on the incongruence between the family and school personnel" (p. 378). This incongruence is mainly based on faulty perceptions of CLD families by school professionals; the U.S. education system is built upon the norms and values of the majority white, middle class U.S. culture (Hess, Molina, Kozleski, 2006). Furthermore, most U.S. teachers are of European American descent and have a middle-class background, which contributes to barriers between teachers and a lack of understanding of the culture of parents from different backgrounds, which has significant implications for how school professionals explain the academic performance of CLD students (Hess, Molina, & Kozleski, 2006;Trainor, 2010).…”

“…This incongruence is mainly based on faulty perceptions of CLD families by school professionals; the U.S. education system is built upon the norms and values of the majority white, middle class U.S. culture (Hess, Molina, Kozleski, 2006). Furthermore, most U.S. teachers are of European American descent and have a middle-class background, which contributes to barriers between teachers and a lack of understanding of the culture of parents from different backgrounds, which has significant implications for how school professionals explain the academic performance of CLD students (Hess, Molina, & Kozleski, 2006;Trainor, 2010). Research has demonstrated that teachers have attributed academic struggles of ELLs to disability, rather than typical performance in light of the students English language acquisition (Klinger & Harry, 2006).…”