After we learned that our daughter, Bug, was struggling a little in class because the teacher had changed her seating arrangement and had her sitting in the back of the classroom, we I started looking into ways that I could best advocate for her. I turned to couple of my d/Deaf & Hard of Hearing Facebook groups, talked with a family member who is a teacher, and to a friend who recently had been struggling to get her daughter’s elementary school to set up an adequate plan for her recently diagnosed diabetic daughter and was advised that an 504 was the way to go. I’m pretty sure my husband thought it was overkill and that I was making a big deal out of nothing and maybe so, but I wanted to make sure that my kid has an advocate and someone in her corner.
What is a 504 and how does it differ from an IEP? Here’s my somewhat limited understanding of what each are bearing in mind Google has been my best friend through this process.
An IEP or Individual Education Plan is a plan put in place for students in special educational needs in school and a 504 is a plan for how a child with a medical need or disability regardless of enrollment in special education classes will have access to learning in the classroom. They sound the same, but basically an IEP focuses on the what and how something is actually taught to a student in a special education setting where as a 504 focuses on what does the child need in order to best learn in his/her general education classroom environment. Not all students who have a 504 will have an IEP and not all students who have an IEP will have a 504. Clear as mud, right? Both an IEP and 504 were created to ensure that students are getting everything they need to do as well as possible and to ensure that educators, administrators, parents, and staff have some accountability when it comes to the education and the availability of necessary services for students who may otherwise get lost due to either their physical disability or their intellectual disabilities.
Getting the ball rolling for Bug’s 504 was actually a lot easier than I anticipated (especially after hearing my friend Holly’s horror story about getting her daughter’s 504). I emailed the school counselor to get information, she replied asking for any medical forms we may have (i.e. hearing tests/audiograms) and set up a meeting with both my husband, herself,and one of the school’s hearing impaired educators. We discussed our concerns for Bug and what we thought was needed to address them and decided that a 504 meeting would need to be scheduled. Later, the counselor sent us some paperwork that needed to be filled out formally requesting the 504 and answering a questionnaire. Quickly after having that returned, the official 504 meeting was scheduled with a group of people including two counselors, the principle, the hearing impaired teacher, Annalyse’s current 3rd grade teacher, my Husband, and myself. That meeting was today. Because of our communication with the school counselor, we were able to have an effective meeting without surprises.
What does our 504 look like for our daughter with mild hearing loss?
•Preferential seating in the classroom so that sits close to where most of her teacher delivers most of the classroom instruction as well as clear visual access to the board.
•Teacher should be aware that she may miss information at times when excessive noise is present
•Closed captioning for videos and presentations used in the classroom when necessary
•Have visuals provided during instruction (i.e writing down homework assignments, page numbers, etc)
•Permission to use noise cancelling headphones as needed in situations where the noise makes it difficult for our daughter to pay attention or if it’s loud and hurting her ears (provided by us, her parents)
One of the greatest benefits of having this done now is that as long as it’s medically necessary the 504 follows the student. Overtime, she will learn to advocate for herself and speak up if/when she has difficulties in the classroom, but having this 504 in place will allow her to transition from teacher to teacher, year to year without difficulty. It will be easier for us as parents because with this plan we are able to effectively communicate the needs of our daughter to teachers and staff who work with her throughout the day we also have a point of contact in the school that if things change or if there is a problem in the classroom we have something that spells out the needs of our child.
With such a mild hearing loss, why would something like this even be necessary especially for my daughter who is bright and excelling academically in school? Simply put, having a hearing disability directly affects her ability to always hear what’s going on. When her seating was changed earlier this school year, she began relying on the students around her to tell her what she was missing and sometimes she would be reprimanded for talking during class because she was asking a neighbor. Eventually, missing important information causes a student to become frustrated and struggle in the classroom and over time that student’s ability to excel is compromised. A 504 helps even the education playing field.
I’m thankful that our school and school district as teachers and staff that value our child and her education. Not all schools make this process an easy one for parents because of funding, lack of accountability, resources, knowledge, or support. Parents who advocate for their child’s educational needs are essential. Had I not recognized a need, researched, and requested that my daughter’s needs be addressed she may still be sitting in the back of the room struggling.
Hears to Hoping,
Betty Jo
Hears to Hoping 