For any student, regardless of their age, struggling in school takes a toll. It can take a while before a parent recognizes what’s happening and that a student’s challenges in school need more attention. Unfortunately, it can take years before a school acknowledges that a student needs academic or emotional support. Parents must be proactive. Follow your instincts and request that your child be evaluated (for free!) By your school district in all areas of suspected disability (it is your child’s legal right!) Some educators default to, “if your child wasn’t so lazy, he or she would be getting A’s, instead of delving deeper into what may be an underlying learning disability.” You want to discover whether or not there is a learning disability, sooner rather than later. Here’s why:
Prevent Hating School
If students struggle in school and it goes on for too long, it could lead to hating school and the entire concept of school and education. Think about it, if you had a job where you found everything difficult and felt like a failure, would you love your job? Would you love going to work every day? No! Sometimes, the reason students struggle is an easy fix. For example, writing things down in their planner or extra time with the teacher to go over the lesson. But, it may be bigger than that. There may be something bigger at play and you will only know that if you have your child evaluated. If your child’s struggles go ignored for too long, it will be much more difficult to keep your child engaged in their education if hating school becomes a deeply entrenched belief.
Help Students Further Their Education
The sooner a school provides the necessary assistance to a child, the sooner that child can continue to further his education. Whether a student finishes the required amount of school or wants to go on to higher education, getting assistance from the school as early as possible may make achieving goals much more likely. For some students, if they spend their entire time in school struggling through it, it is more likely that they will be dissuaded from pursuing further education and perhaps limiting their career options.
Avoid Behavioral Problems From Developing
For some students, the continual struggling in school they experience can lead to behavioral problems. Some students “act out” or “misbehave” in certain ways not because they are “bad” kids, but because they may be frustrated or they are trying to deflect their struggles with inappropriate behaviors. Behavior is not the problem – it is a symptom of a problem. Kids do not realize that they are acting out because they are feeling the pain in trying to learn, rather, it is sometimes just a reaction to the pain. Drawing attention to themselves through inappropriate behaviors is their cry for help. When a student receives the help he needs, it goes a long way toward eradicating inappropriate behaviors because the student learning needs are being met.
Learn Beneficial Skills
Some students require alternative educational paths; instead of learning the typical subjects you would in school, they learn more practical life skills that make moving through life easier. Whether a child needs help learning life skills, a trade, or more formal schooling in their future, the sooner they get the assistance they need, the sooner they can begin learning skills that benefit whatever future plans they have.
