Chien Le’s Issue
Analysis
The seventh grader Chien Le who suffers the obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is at the heart of our case. The first time when his compulsive behavior was displayed was during his visit to a kindergarten. The boy was worrying about the germs and begun to use the restroom very frequently. When he went to first grade, the disease became progressively sharpened, but it had no impact on his academic achievements, his level of skills was above average. There was only one subject where his skills were below grade level – it was mathematics. According to statistics, patients suffering from the OCD are people with a high level of IQ, but only verbal is well-developed. After the first grade’s problems, Chien’s parents Bin and Jiyeon Le took the boy to a pediatrician, and then to a psychologist. There he was diagnosed with the OCD and the psychologist recommended a medical treatment. The problem was that there was no medication for a child of his age, as the average age of people suffering from the OCD was 30 years and all the medications were intended only for adults’ use. Parents were afraid to give their child untested medicines. So they requested that the district school personnel would work with Chien and sent the boy to a private psychologist’s consultation. In addition, they have hired a tutor for private math classes for his son.
Chien was also given a special services through the school district's multidisciplinary team. This team concluded he would be given the special educational services in the category of serious emotional disturbance (SED). The parents contested this conclusion by insisting that Chien should be labeled as learning disabled (LD) due to his discrepancy in IQ and math aptitude. As a result, it was concluded that the boy suffers from both the LD and the OCD. His Individual Educational Program (IEP) included push in math services and 30 minutes per day services with teacher of behavioral disorders students. This special education continued through elementary and into middle school.
Evaluation
Chien’s behavior worsened every year, along with his mathematical skills. In other subjects his abilities were high above usual. School personnel wanted to transfer Chien to special math classes, but his parents insisted that he remained in the general classes. In seventh grade Chien was assigned to Mr. Williams’ basic math class. The special education teacher went to speak to Mr. Williams, to explain the peculiarities of the child, but the latter refused to take into account his characteristics by relying on the fact that his illness was invented. There was a conflict between Mr. Williams and Chien, after which the parents appealed to the district special education director. During the emergency IEP meeting it was decided to reevaluate Chien’s mathematical abilities, pull him off Mr. Williamson and place him in special education math class until the evaluation would be completed. It was also decided to schedule the meeting with Chien’s content teachers. (Understood.org, 2014).
Alternative solutions
It was necessary to organize a Chien’s weekly visit to a school psychologist to conduct his personal case. It should be noted, that people suffering from the OCD are often unpredictable and can be dangerous for other members of society, so it is necessary to put a psychologist in charge of this person and who will monitor his mental state. Thus, guided by correct and legitimate strategies to solve the problem, the teachers failed the attempt to help Chien due to the lack of initiative and interest. (Healthcommunities.com, 2016).
The wrong approach to solve this problem was chosen by parents too. By all indications, the boy had an acute form of the OCD with a continuous course of the disease and periodic intensification of symptoms. Besides, it is a serious anomaly such as this disease affects mainly the adults of 25-35 years. The LD, could lead to the appearance of the dyscalculia, a disease which makes it difficult for a person to study arithmetic. Therefore, it was necessary to hospitalize Chien, for better diagnostics and determination of the nature of this disease and the possible presence of dyscalculia. Nowadays, the modern treatment of the OCD must necessarily involve a comprehensive approach: a combination of a psychotherapy with medication. Chien’s parents disregarded these facts, which provoked a sharp worsening of the disease. Teachers in this case, have shown their negligence, by not being interested in the essence of the problem and by non informing the social services about the parents’ neglect of a proper diagnosis and treatment. The actions on both sides have been inconsequent and nonconstructive. For a start, the boy is needed to be fully examined by a pediatrician, a psychotherapist and undergo a series of tests to competent doctors who treat the OCD. Parents need to agree to the medical treatment if it is necessary. After that, parents need to receive a specific consultation about the special needs and opportunities for Chien. After consultation, they need to contact the school administration to address the further instructions about the boy. It is necessary to make a series of tests in all subjects to determine his capabilities.
Principle of Practice
A number of children suffering from the learning disability catastrophically grows every year. There is a number of psychological, physical, emotional and social factors which influence the formation of this disease. In the case of Chien, school need to leave him the right to attend general classes in all the subjects where he has good results, and assign him a special education math class. In this case, the school must, first of all, provide a school psychologist for the permanent boy’s care and for the conduct of his case. Chien must pass a series of tests to determine the level of his knowledge, there should be made an Individual Educational Plan (IEP) for him that takes into account his specific features. This plan should be aimed at addressing the boy’s existing blanks of knowledge and at the development of his existing knowledge. The school and teachers should be involved and interested in the fate of the boy, rather than remain on the sidelines, only then the legal strategy will be successful.
Currently, there are many examples of a good practice to address problems such as this one. Family and educational institutions, as major child education institutions are responsible for the physical, emotional and mental development of a child. In cooperation, these two institutions can achieve good results for solving Chien’s problem. In this case, the boy’s parents and school personnel must work together for the welfare of the child. Chien should be examined once again, both physically and mentally. The school teachers must provide Chien additional tests in all subjects, including math. In the case of non-compliance of knowledge, the boy must attend special educational classes. In addition, the child must be under the constant supervision of a school psychologist. All of these strategies are not new, but they are very productive. Thanks to this practice, many children and adolescents who suffer from this disorder, have improved their school results and have adapted to a normal life in society. (OCD, B., 2016).
References
Understood.org, (2014). “Understanding Your Child’s Trouble With Math”. Retrieved 13 February 2016, from https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/math-issues/understanding-your-childs-trouble-with-math
Healthcommunities.com, (2016). “OCD Risk Factors & Causes - Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder”. HealthCommunities.com. Retrieved 13 February 2016, from http://www.healthcommunities.com/obsessive-compulsive-disorder/risk-factors-causes.shtml
OCD, B. (2016). “OCD in Children | Compulsive Behavior in Children | Beyond OCD”. Beyondocd.org. Retrieved 13 February 2016, from http://beyondocd.org/information-for-parents/helping-a-child-who-has-ocd
