{"id":4221,"date":"2011-05-09T10:00:17","date_gmt":"2011-05-09T14:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/?p=4221"},"modified":"2013-02-26T17:02:15","modified_gmt":"2013-02-26T21:02:15","slug":"parents-spouting-off-%e2%80%93-what-options-do-you-have","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/parents-spouting-off-%e2%80%93-what-options-do-you-have\/","title":{"rendered":"Parents Spouting Off \u2013 What Options Do You Have?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"padding-bottom:20px; padding-top:10px;\" class=\"hupso-share-buttons\"><!-- Hupso Share Buttons - https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/ --><a class=\"hupso_pop\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/gallery\/share-button-gray.png\" style=\"border:0px\" alt=\"Share\" \/><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\">var hupso_services=new Array(\"Twitter\",\"Facebook\",\"Google Plus\",\"Pinterest\",\"Linkedin\",\"StumbleUpon\",\"Digg\",\"Reddit\",\"Bebo\",\"Delicious\");var hupso_icon_type = \"labels\";var hupso_background=\"#FFFFFF\";var hupso_border=\"#FFFFFF\";var hupso_image_folder_url = \"\";var hupso_twitter_via=\"wrightslaw\";var hupso_url=\"\";var hupso_title=\"Parents%20Spouting%20Off%20%E2%80%93%20What%20Options%20Do%20You%20Have%3F\";<\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/js\/share.js\"><\/script><!-- Hupso Share Buttons --><\/div><p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft\" style=\"margin: 4px 10px; border: 1px solid black; float: left;\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/nltr\/img\/adults\/dispute.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"95\" \/>Upset with the IEP process? Concerned about the constant chaos at IEP meetings? Have trouble maintaining control in your dealings with the school?\u00a0 Turn that \u201cchronic complainer\u201d label around. Kill them with kindness. Personal notes, treats at meetings, and accentuating the positive first are strategies that will help.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Having Difficulty With Your Child&#8217;s Teacher?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Is your child struggling in class?<\/li>\n<li>Does the teacher think you are blaming her for your child\u2019s difficulties in school?<!--more--><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Consider talking with your child\u2019s teacher so you better understand the teacher\u2019s concerns. Express your concerns. If you find there is reason for her concern, discuss options and listen to her choices.\u00a0 Document your conversations.\u00a0 That way, you can refer back to the details and follow up with questions or action.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes parents who are under pressure \u201cspout off.\u201d They may not know other ways to express their concerns.<\/p>\n<p>On the other hand, teachers may see parents as adversaries.\u00a0 When someone does not share your professional perspective, it is normal and human to feel defensive.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong>Control Your Emotions<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Take a deeper look. The empowered parent can be a teacher\u2019s best ally.<\/p>\n<p>When you can articulate the issues without bombast and realize the school is hearing your concerns, the chaos may decline.<\/p>\n<p>Again, when parents feel empowered, they get their emotions under control and are less likely to explode.<\/p>\n<p>Parents who spout off, chronically complain, or exhibit overtly aggressive behavior feel powerless to help their child. They feel left out of the team. They believe school personnel see them as less competent than the \u201cprofessionals.\u201d When parents become involved in the action plan to help their child, it is easier for them to calm down and take advantage of other options.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Can\u2019t Afford an Attorney?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If a parent does not have the money to hire an attorney, there are other options.<\/p>\n<p>For a much smaller amount (though still not cheap) you can consult with a special education attorney. This can result in developing a valuable action plan.<\/p>\n<p>Consider connecting with an advocate from the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.yellowpagesforkids.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Wrightslaw Yellow Pages for Kids<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 Lay people are frequently very well versed in regulations and case law.\u00a0 They also have the important experience of working directly with parents and districts.\u00a0 They have been in the trenches and have seen the nitty gritty of special education issues.<\/p>\n<p>If a district is not implementing an IEP, there are complaint processes through your <a href=\"http:\/\/www.yellowpagesforkids.com\/help\/seas.htm\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">state Education Department<\/span><\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/info\/sec504.faqs.ocr.complaints.htm\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Office for Civil Rights<\/span><\/a> in DC.<\/p>\n<p>I know, from experience, that the processes can be overwhelming and intimidating. If you are persistent enough, you can get results.<\/p>\n<p>If you are like many parents, emotions are your Achilles heel. Learn how to use your emotions as a source of energy and power. Focus on getting an appropriate education for your child \u2013 that\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/advoc\/articles\/advocacy.intro.htm\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">What Advocates Do<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Upset with the IEP process? Concerned about the constant chaos at IEP meetings? Have trouble maintaining control in your dealings with the school?\u00a0 Turn that \u201cchronic complainer\u201d label around. Kill <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/parents-spouting-off-%e2%80%93-what-options-do-you-have\/\">Continue Reading \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,1369],"tags":[47,421,585],"class_list":["post-4221","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-advocacy","category-state-complaints","tag-ocr-complaint","tag-parent-advocacy","tag-state-complaint-procedures"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4221","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4221"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4221\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9409,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4221\/revisions\/9409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4221"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4221"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrightslaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4221"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}