LP> Dear Ann,
LP> Our 12 year-old son fit the behavioral pattern of the lad in your
LP> column.  We, too, had smashed furniture and multiple suspensions from
LP> school.  "Don" had a near genius IQ but did poorly in school, which
LP> posed a mystery.  One of his teachers said, "This is not a behavioral
LP> problem.  Your son is mentally ill."  We took him for a psychiatric
LP> evaluation, and, of course, she was right.  That was the day the 
LP> healing
LP> began.  We will be forever grateful to the teacher.
LP> ---cut---
LP> I don't know about the rest of the teachers in this echo, but if the
LP> above described teacher had been in my district, the parents at the 
LP> best
LP> probably would have ignored her advice & at the worst, would have
LP> complained about her to her principal.  I suppose some parents might
LP> have sued.
    Many might have sued, and probably won, if the remark ended up in writing 
in the kid's file.
LP> compare
LP> what I had observed about a student's behavior in class to the list 
LP> of
LP> symptoms of that disorder.  She further added that to do was to make 
LP> a
LP> diagnosis which would create liability for the district to pay for 
LP> the
LP> child's treatment.  I argued with her on the basis that a) I am not a
LP> doctor & thus am not offering a medical diagnosis  
    Forget it, Leona.
    "Unauthorized practice of law" is what that would be called if some 
nonlawyer gave legal advice.  That you're not a doctor only puts you in a 
(much) worse position!
--- Simplex BBS (v1.07.00Beta [DOS])
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