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Special Needs
sweetie0228
member
PSSA/Standardized State Testing-vent
sweetie0228
member
I don't think anyone considered how difficult this is for my dx ADHD DS w/ symptoms of Asperger's. The PSSA testing has been going on for weeks and will for another couple weeks. They are doing a couple sections of the standardized testing every day.
But it has rocked his world b/c it messed w/ his schedule and he misses recess. He has been coming home each day needing a nap or very agitated and has a meltdown from controlling himself and "being good" for the testing environment all day with no outlet break. He's normally controlled but the added stress and anxiety of a testing environment verses a normal school day has him putting more energy into being still.
Next week starts the writing sample portion he's talking non stop about that and I think it's nerves. He has very poor handwriting and it takes him longer to write things out rather than type. So he is not looking forward to this next part at all.
Does anyone have any suggestions how I can help my DS through this part of school or can commisserate w/ me about it?
This discussion has been closed.
Re: PSSA/Standardized State Testing-vent
Does he have an IEP? There should be a testing accommodations page in there. It sounds like he could use the "frequent breaks" accommodation, along with "small group".
Then could you send some little things for him to fiddle with and blow off steam during the breaks-- silly putty, bouncy ball, etc?
Also, have you heard of wiggle seats? That might be a possible help to him also.
I agree that the testing environment is so challenging for these kiddos. I teach kids who go to school at home. They are used to breaks and freedom of movement, and coming in to the testing environment is tough.
I also am annoyed by the tests, because they jump from topic to topic, rather than check for several different skills in context. But that is another vent for another time.
Hang in there!
He does have an IEP. It doesn't have anything in there for testing accommodations....yet. My next crusade. I need them to update the IEP. It was written in 1st grade and he's now in 5th.
He hates the wiggle seat b/c he feels like it makes him wiggle more and he feels "different" b/c he can have one and the others don't. He can and does chew gum and is allowed to have that durning school for the PSSA. So we have been going through a lot of gum. I will check w/ his teacher if the silly putty can be used
That IEP needs to be adjusted ASAP, it is supposed to be redone every year! I'm sorry that the testing has thrown your son off. My husbands cousin has Aspergers and his mom always has to fight during standardized testing times to make sure that her son is given the appropriate amount of time to take the tests, given his struggles with testing.
I hope you can get the IEP re-eval'd soon!
I had no clue it was supposed to be written every year. I found out in 3rd grade when we had him tested for the ADHD that they hadn't followed the IEP ever. He had an IEP put in place because he had significant speech delays as a toddler and while the intermediate unit said he wasn't delayed...although he wasn't talking at all at 2 and was very garbled at 3 and pronoun confusion. I had him independantly evaluated and he qualified for and recieved 1 hour of speech intervention 4 days a week for 3 years. He was supposed to be tested every year since kindergarten and he has a file over 3 inches thick that I have a copy of at home.
Found out in 3rd grade none of it was even read or distributed to his teachers. I bring a new copy every year to the new teachers. Because the school either doesn't supply his background or they have so many to read they don't want to bother w/ a large file.
While I'm not new at being his advocate. I'm realizing there is a lot of rules and procedures at the schools that I am both unaware of or I'm not accessing.
OMG! They are so out of compliance with the law!!
I second PP, the IEP has to be reviewed and rewritten every year. Your child also needs to have a re-evaluation every 3 years. It is a legal document and if it hasn't been rewritten the school district can be sued. I am a first grade teacher and deal with many IEP's. Also, testing accommodations is a whole section on the IEP. It definitely needs to be updated according to the needs of your LO.
As for standardized testing, I think it takes a toll on everyone...including teachers. I know that special needs kiddos take the hardest hit though. It is not fair. It takes away from a lot of learning time as well. I wish people in the government would have some sort of education background before they push through so many standardized tests. Pretty soon the scores will be used for merit pay for teachers. It is all so sad.
Everything has pretty much been covered by all other posters, but piggy-backing on what Auntie said, you need to ask for "Assistive Technology" for the writing portion of the test. This will allow him to type in a program like Notepad, and then depending on the grade/state/regulations, usually the teacher will have to transcribe exactly what the student wrote onto the test answer document.
I am a HS principal, and this is a very standard accomodation (and was at the elementary level as well). I cannot believe how out of compliance the school is with his IEP.
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