Educational Services for Children with TBI Ann Glang Teaching Research Institute Eugene, OR

David The teachers say David is fantastic, such a joy. A little slow. But thats David now. They dont know David as any way else. -Davids mother

David I dont know if the information about his brain injury got passed along to the 2nd grade teacher. Its in his cumulative file, but I dont know if anyone reads those. -Davids mother

David I had no training in TBI. It was tough…I wanted to push him, but I didnt want him to get frustrated and shut down. -Davids teacher

Overview What do we know about transition and school services for children/youth with TBI? Factors impacting service delivery

Special Education For most children, rehabilitation takes place in school Identification for special education is necessary to access services

Special Education Once identified, child is entitled to: Comprehensive assessment Development of Individual Education Plan (IEP) based on unique needs Instruction tailored to needs Most appropriate classroom placement

Special Education Once identified, child is entitled to: Annual review of IEP Re-assessment every 3 years If child doesnt qualify, some services can be provided under Section 504

Under-identification for Special Education Annually: 30,000 with persisting disabilities from brain injury Annually: 10,000 (1/3) needing special education supports Cumulative total (K-12): 130,000 Total on federal Sped. census (2002): 14,844

Under-identification for Special Education

Under- identification Lack of Awareness Apparent Low Incidence Lack of Training Lack of Research Money Inappropriate Services Under-identification Cycle

Back to School Study Examining under-identification for special education services Study conducted in Oregon and Washington

Annual surveys Annual interviews with sub-sample Quantitative Qualitative Back to School Project Design Classroom observations and in-depth interviews

Back to School Project (n = 74) Gender

Back to School Project Geographic Distribution

Back to School Project Severity of Injury

Back to School Project Age at Injury Mean10.92 Median12.00 Range4-15 SD3.26

Back to School Project Cause of Injury

Back to School Project Identification for Special Education at 3 months Post-Discharge 74 children enrolled in tracking study 28 report no problems 21 are served under TBI category 5 are served under another category 6 are served under are experiencing challenges and are not identified for special education

Back to School Project Preliminary findings from interviews with parents N = 57

Parent interview Did you receive information about TBI from hospital?

Parent interview Was there communication between hospital & school?

Parent interview Did communication create smoother school re-entry?

Parent interview School programming %

Parental concerns Re: speech, language, communication %

Parental concerns Re: physical / motor skills %

Parental concerns Re: social/behavioral skills %

Back to School Project Educator surveys N = 34

Educator surveys Have you attended TBI workshops/trainings?

Educator surveys Have you found other resources about TBI?

Educator surveys How many school staff are aware of students TBI?

How much of a concern is this for your student?

How prepared do you feel to provide support in this area?

Emerging Themes Students may be viewed as malingering, lazy, disorganized, just adolescent Many parents are not aware of potential school services available to their child

Emerging Themes The parents usually bear the responsibility to educate school personnel about the effects of TBI Even when schools are aware of the TBI, they dont associate certain behaviors with the injury

Why are Students with TBI Under-Identified and Under-Served?

Under-identification Educators knowledge/awareness Lack of preservice training Lack of feelings of competence Forgotten injuries

Appropriate Identification Increased Awareness Accurate Incidence Appropriate Funding Breaking the Cycle More Appropriate Services Training for teachers

Promising Practices Systematic training for educators can lead to increased awareness and identification for services

Oregon Students (Age 3-21) with Special Education Eligibility in the Area of TBI ( )

Arizona Students with Special Education Eligibility in TBI ( )