CAPD Accomodations/Eligibility

Early remediation is very important. I knew my son was APD when he was 3. My audiologist did a battery of tests when Tony was 5. NO ONE said that it was invalid! I have read that only a very small percentage of children with APD outgrow it by age 12. In any case, education cannot be delayed until that age (or even 8). That’s plain old ridiculous. Your child has a right to free appropriate education no matter the age (from 3-21 anyway).

They have got to be gaming…What jerks…Can she qualify on her speech and language scores?? That would be one that they would have to respect…;something from the CELF or other tests…that would show and speech and language deficit…My daughter has had an assisistive listening device since kindergarten. We still have its and use it..heck I use one in school. I would push the envelope over their heads.. Early intervention is the key with kids who has CAPD and speech and language deficits.

Patti

They are trying to disqualify her period. She was not qualified under speech/language to begin with. Which we never agreed with - she has terrible expressive language (when she tries to explain something, her words get all mixed up in her head and so she just stops talking) and her articulation is still not right.

What makes me most angry is that beginning of this year under her current IEP, they provided the accomodations (except an FM system - I lost that battle too). They feel she is performing adequately in her current classroom, therefore they are dropping her completely. Despite the discrepancies in ability to performance are still there - the gaps are not closed from her current IEP.

And I could go on and on about the games they are also playing on her goals.

She did not qualify for speech language last year because the tests they did last year showed her in the 50% on average. We are requesting speech/language tests to be redone and wondered if you can give me direction on which tests we should stress to them?

She had an auditory processing test (TAPS) done the 1st round. We are requesting a CTOPP be done as I had been advised from a reading center here in town that the CTOPP will show her specific deficits, where the TAPS did not. On the TAPS she scored in 50% overall - however, sentence memory and word memory were both in 15%.

She had the CELF done for expressive/receptive language. However, we felt that this was not a very thorough eval done on her. They tested her on sentence structure, concepts and directions, and word classes for receptive and word structure, formulated sentences and recalling sentences for expressive. She performed in the 50-61% for both.

I’m not convinced that the subtests they did on the CELF accurately evaled my dd’s weaknesses. Her problems are word retrieval and thought organization - holding conversations with people where she is describing something is difficult, singing songs (she gets the words/order mixed up) is another good example. Is there a specific test/subtest that measures this? or did they do that with the tests given?

Here are some tests that you can request. I think you need to hit the langauge component piece and not so much of the phonological piece. That is where she has the biggest deficits… My daughter shows problems with the Test of Language Competency. I think that is the name of it… I just typed in tests that are available at the college I attend.

Receptive:
Vocabulary peabody, receptive one word vocab test, test of auditory comprehension of language, TOLD picture vocab subtest

basic concepts: Basic language concept test, BOEHM Test, Bracken Test of Basic concepts, The Listening Test,
Auditory memory processing;;Test of Auditory comprehension of language, Assessment of children’s language comprehension, BOEHM Test, Token Test for Children, Goildman Fristoe Woodcokc Test of Auditory Discrimination and Memory, Miller-Yoder Langague Comprehension Test, The listening Test

Expressive
Vocab semantics, Expressive one word vocab test, The Word Test, Test of Word Finding, Oral Vocab of the TOLD,

Morphology Test of Early Expression Morphology,
Grammar Carrow Elicited Language inventory, Test of Language Ability

Have you ever had a TOWL Test of Written Language? This would show how she is able to use her expressive language in written form. It also has a dictation section where the clinician would give the sentences in longer complexity and she has to write them down one after the other. This would show how she struggles with the CAPD and putting her ideas together. There is a section on logic sentence structure. She is given a sentence that she has to read and find the problem with it and she has to make it correct. There is a section on vocabulary and she is reading a vocabulary word and she has to use it in a sentence correctly. There is an expressive writing component where she is shown a picture and she is to write a story in 15 minutes. She has to show that she can write paragraphs, sequence a story, have good syntax and language structure.

Hope this helps you…I will know more as I get more involved in the grad program thanks for your patience with me..

I would be requesting an independent comprehensive speech-language eval be done (in writing….you state that you do not agree with their findings and are requesting an independent comprehensive speech/language eval). What testing did they do? The CELF and the ASSEST, as well as the TOLD and the TAPS will probably all show areas of weakness. If you want to know what these tests encompass, you can look them up in the Eric database here….
http://ericae.net/testcol.htm

Have you contacted an advocacy group or a free ed law center? How about NICHY or ASHA? Nichy info can be found here…
http://www.nichcy.org/states.htm

and ASHA is at http://www.asha.org

Why don’t you request a neuropsych eval? This has a lot to do with memory and cognitive functioning. I saw a description of some tests used in neuropsych evals, and one in particular looked very interesting…called the NEPSY. Here are some URL’s for you…..
http://www.psychcorp.com/sub0300/nepsy2.html
http://www.tpc-international.com/psycho/wraml.htm
http://www.tpc-international.com/psycho/cvlt-c.htm
http://www.psychocorp.com/sub0300/cms2.html
http://www.neuropsychologycentral.com (look for resources/FAQ)

LPT-R (language processing test-revised) is about labeling, stating function. associations, ctegorization, similarities, differences, multiplemeanings, and attributes…all areas my son would have trouble with because of recall problems.

TOPL (test of pragmatic language) deals with physical setting, audience, topic, purpose (speech acts), visual-gestural cues, and abstraction.

The TLC(E), test of language competence - expanded, has to do with semantics, syntax, and/or pragmatics.

There is the CTOP (Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing) which tests phonological awareness, phonological memory, and rapid naming.

Another one I’ve heard of, but know really nothing about is the CASL. I don’t even know what it stand for, bu you can try looking it up on the ERIC test locator page I gave you above.

Denise

What kinds of things are they wanting to deny her? I am just interested because my son has CAPD and I don’t think they have done a thing to help him. Maybe we haven’t asked for the right things….

Thanks - I am debating on the IEE. I’m going to wait to see what comes back on this round of testing, and then play that card. I’m also considering that they pay for another CAPD eval if they insist her current one is invalid (she’ll be 8 in July).

I do have an advocate who I hired. I’m not real happy with the outcome - I’ve spent over $700 and feel like nothing has been accomplished and I know as much about law/tests as she did (she is the one who is also telling me that the CAPD tests aren’t valid because she was not 8). However, I’m not really sure there was alot she could do - my dd is not failing(thanks to all the intervention/work WE did with no help from school) and although she has lots of discrepancies they don’t feel that she is not ‘benefiting’ from her education thus far.

She is a high risk kid for falling thru the cracks in 3rd/4th grade. My philosphy is that they should be remediating her deficits now, so she won’t fail in 3rd/4th grade. Doesn’t look like I will win that battle.

My husband and I are trying to look at the big picture on this and gain some perspective. I’m learning that our school is of the thought that they will do minimal and when they are required, they are not up on the latest programs for LD anyway(are a whole language school and don’t practice any of the programs/methods talked of on this board).

I feel that we are in a no-win situation with them. I can fight (and it would be a nasty one), potentially win some of it, but end-up being ‘labeled’ one of those parents. In the end- what have I gained - my dd will never be remediated with what they are able to provide and suffers in the long run because they now think her parents are trouble-makers.

I want them to know that I mean business and they can’t pull the wool over my eyes, but I’m not sure I’m going to make waves about it. We’ll see more progress with private therapy in the long run. If we want early intervention - it will have to be us to provide it for her - our school obviously doesn’t believe in early intervention.

We never won the battle on the classroom FM device, but it is still on my list. My worry now is that they won’t provide any of the classroom accomodations - like sitting in the front. At least all this year, she has been at the table close to front and I think it helps alot.

There are a number of other accomodations - like tapping on shoulder for attention, visual ques, repeating directions etc. I know the teacher once in awhile will tap on shoulder for attention, because she mentioned this to me - but the others although they sound good on paper, I don’t see how you monitor they happen unless you are in the class all the time.

Dea,

Well, don’t overrate the value of the IEP. My son’s IEP clearly states prefential seating. I visited his classroom before the third day of school and he was way in the back. I spoke to his teacher and she had no idea!!! Anyway, she moved him! If you can’t get anything in writing, don’t give up. Just make an appt. early on with her teacher next year and tell her about the CAPD. Explain what helps. Unless you get unlucky, I would think that would be enough to at least get the seating. And you are right—the rest is very hard to monitor.

Personally, I think this is about all you can get from the school. LIke you, I spent $700 on an advocate. All I learned is that the school has program x and program y and it doesn’t matter what your IEP is, this is what they will give you, regardless of how appropriate it is. And, of course, you legally have no right
to have input into programs, just the IEP. I think unless you are willing to let the school do their song and dance and then take them to due process for their failure, you are better off side stepping them as much as possible. They will never give you what your child needs.

OUr son is making really good progress with us working with him and Neuronet. He is now reading at a second grade level (he is in second grade and their last testing in Jan put him at a mid-first grade level). It is still way too much work for him but this is much better than the school could do. He complains that I make him work much harder than Mrs. X did at school!

Beth

Yes - that’s my conclusion as well!!

I know you still have a number of weeks/months left to complete neuronet. Am still interested in your progress.

Our dd complains that she is the ONLY one who has to work this hard. (even tho right now, we have taken a break and only doing reading and homework with some math and journal writing at home) -but I always had to remind her that she was not the only one and we would talk about what other kids were doing too.

Is he feeling good? Does he see his progress?

Dea,

I had to laugh at your daughter. Too bad she and my son can’t commiserate. This morning’s discussion was about how hard he was working while the kids at school are playing. I guess they did something with clay while he was gone yesterday. I told him that he could go back to school fulltime, if he wanted, but he’d have to go back to Mrs. X’s class. He told me they were still doing “the goat roams down the road” (Stevenson). He was quite arrogant about it so it is clear he knows he is far ahead of where he would be had he stayed there. I also told him he wasn’t quite ready for regular class so if he didn’t want Mrs. X, he was stuck with me.

He told me a different day that “when we get my reading fixed, we’ll have to work on my spelling. It stinks!!!”

We’re working on coordinating speech, movement, and rhythm in Neuronet right now. Nancy Rowe thinks the motor component is very critical for him and what is holding him back.

I went for the PaCE training last month and plan to do it this summer. I was very impressed with the AP portion.

Beth

Homework modification is helpful but very difficult to achieve. I’m currently in as battle over my 14 year old son, who has capd. He is scoring average on his
school testing. We’re from the Boston area

Maryellen

Hi Dea

I read another of your posts, and I totally relate to your description of the schools.

I experience much of the same thing you are, I also hired an advocate, an slp

who I hope is good., we’ll see. You can refuse their tests, and have them pay for a private re-eval, that will wake them up when their ill comes to$ 2000
for outside testing!!!

Maryellen

Denise

I totally agree that was ridiculous but I totally believe it!! When my Tim was 6

the school principal told me at my IEP meeting that lots of kids have memory

problems and lists to remind them!!!

That was a meeting that I walked out of!!!!!!!!!!!

Also, my 14 year old has been called “lazy” which I just about blew the rooftop off the building with my steam!!

MaryEllen

I understand you need a slp and audiologist to recommend this.
I’m looking into that now.

How old is your son?

Games are an understatement, they are playing games with me reguarding his speech eval ever heard of signing a consent form for a specific test, and they
substituting it with another test because “they couln’t find it?”

Or, how about the slp asking the parent if he has CAPD after 7 years in the
school system!!You have to keep on top of them, I’m only a parent with no
expertise outside of years of knocking my head on a brick wall.

Good Luck!!!