Wow! Thanks for sharing this. I was exactly planning on doing this - going to meetings, talking to the very weak connections in the district that I have, giving up my time many times over. Ultimately, I'd like to straighten this out for others that follow. I know that the public schools are to allow them to learn at their demonstrated level and not below, especially if the opportunity is there. I thought I read this somewhere. Anyway, I'll post what occurs and look forward to any other advice. It's been very helpful and calming, knowing there is support online.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I think it's important to throw the ball into their court IN WRITING and tell them you want answers IN WRITING. If you go to meetings and if everything is verbal, they can continue to ignore your (rational, logical) arguments, continue to say no, and continue to waste your time. If you tell them you want an answer in writing, it's THEIR time being used up. Plus, they're forced to create a written document that can come back to haunt them. So, they have to be more careful.
This approach forces them to justify their position. Obviously, they can't justify forcing a student to take a backward step, so you make it a lot harder for them and you increase your chances of getting what you want. And you make things easier for the next guy.
At least one person in this thread mentioned that schools are bureaucracies. Bureaucracies run on pieces of paper and take paper much more seriously than spoken communication.
I've won difficult situations (schools, employers, slimy landlords) by writing a direct, polite letter that quotes the law and/or common accepted practice.
Okay, just my 2 cents!
Val
