marytheres, I read the teacher's reply, and will post again when I've had time to think through what I might ask/do/say in reply to it.
In the meantime for those of you who asked would a school tell a child who can't see well to now wear there glasses - re what mon wrote:
It's like saying "if he breaks out in hives, we'll move him to the peanut free table". Or "if he doesn't make it to recess in time, we'll let him use his wheelchair"--yes, that's a real one I've seen to determine if a kid should walk or use a wheelchair. In reality, for the wheelchair case, the child needs to know he walks to the bathroom and in the classroom, and anything outside the classroom is in the wheelchair.
Things like this absolutely happened to our dd who has severe allergies - in spite of having documented diagnoses from her doctors we were constantly told things like "after we see this happen we can do ____". There was an amendment made to the ADA in, I think, 2008 (not sure of the date) that specifically states a person with a disability can't be denied accommodations because it *might* happen but hasn't happened yet. There might be something in the actual laws surrounding IDEA and the ADA (two separate things) that address whether or not a student can be required to request accommodations. Knowing whether or not it's specifically been addressed in the legal docs or addressed in a court case isn't something you'd typically want to bring up in a meeting unless you're backed into a corner by the school, but *knowing* it can help with advocating.
polarbear
