My child is NOT autistic!

I have a child in special education. 
I have learned very important things about special education over the past nine months. 

The most important thing I've learned is that, no matter what you are told by health care professionals, the school system has a different way of doing business.  The school system speaks a different language and has a different definition for almost every aspect of special education vs. medical terminology.  I've learned that the more than appropriate diagnosis given to you by your child's specialist means about as much as a hill of beans in the educational setting.  I say that because Patty was just recently diagnosed with Cognitive/Developmental Delay and I find myself wanting to shout "My child is NOT autistic!" which is better than beating your head against the way or kicking the cat.

My perception is that when dealing with the educational environment, there is only one category of disability: autism.  Now, to be completely fair, the "checklist" for autism in our state is very generic.  I'm guessing the generic quality is due to the wide range of disorders included on the autism spectrum.  But, that doesn't mean that every child in special education best fits into the category of autism.  It may mean that students in special education easily fit into the category of autism, but being the easy choice doesn't make it the best choice.

In reality there are 13 distinct categories of disability (read them here or here) plus Developmental Delay for kids under age 9.  That fourteenth category called Developmental Delay is where things start to get a little tricky for us.  At six years old, Patty can be categorized as Developmentally Delayed, but in three short years that label has to be changed.  Now, this is where things start to make me really upset. 

Patty is not autistic. 

You will never convince me that she is autistic.  No amount of reports will sway my opinion.  And I'm not saying this to be stubborn.  I've done my homework.  I read about the various autism tests and I know that other disabilities can result in false probables on autism screenings.  That's why you're told about "standard deviations" when given test results. 

And here's where I want to beat my head against the wall or kick the cat.  There are 13 disability categories and not once during an ARC have I been presented with a full list of the 13 categories.  (Well, truthfully that list may be in the parent rights booklet, I will have to check.)  But, I know there are 13 categories of disability under IDEA, and I can't list them from memory.  Don't think I didn't just print the list and put in my big bag of special ed stuff for future reference!

Heck, most parents probably have no idea what IDEA is and how it affects their child.  Most parents are probably overwhelmed and scared shitless in their first few ARC meetings.  I'm a serious believer that the school system should inform all parents of Protection and Advocacy services as part of the parent rights portion of each ARC.  Additionally, part of the ARC process should include going over the list of qualifying disabilities to, if nothing else, eliminate as many categories as possible. 

So, now, as I sit here typing, I am left wondering where does that leave us in our journey through special education.  For me, the single most important thing I want to keep in mind is that special education is not the be all, end all answer to the problems of kids who need special education services.  It's pretty much the same as any parent who wants to make sure their child is passing their assignments.  Right?