How Spina Bifida Affects School and What Parents Can Do to Help Their Child
Published on in Spina Bifida Family Connection
Published on in Spina Bifida Family Connection
Dr. Jane Schreiber, neuropsychologist at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, recently published an article in the Journal of Neurosurgery detailing the cognitive profile of children with myelomeningoceles. The article describes some of the common neurobehavioral issues and how early recognition and intervention can possibly impact a child’s overall outcome.
Here, we break down how spina bifida can affect a child’s performance in school, and how parents can help advocate for them.
Most children who had a myelomeningocele have an IQ in the average to low average range. Language is often a strength while executive functioning, reading comprehension, visuospatial skills and sequencing may present as challenges. Every child is unique and these strengths and challenges can vary depending on medical and environmental factors.
You are your child’s best advocate! You can advocate for your child by pursuing an individualized education program (IEP). This is an educational plan tailored to a student’s unique needs. It is a legal agreement that sets learning goals and describes what services and modifications the school will provide to reach these goals.
In order to be eligible, a child’s academic performance/ability to learn must be adversely affected by one of 13 outlined conditions. Children with spina bifida typically qualify for an IEP due to a “specific learning disability” or an “orthopedic impairment.”
After receiving an IEP evaluation request, legally the school must respond within a specific period of time. An IEP is created by a team that includes the child’s parent/guardian, the child’s general education teacher, a special education teacher, a school psychologist, and the student if appropriate. The IEP team reviews the IEP at least once per year. Consider bringing an educational advocate to the IEP meeting and ensure that both your child’s physical and learning needs are met.
An IEP can address the following:
As a patient in CHOP’s Spina Bifida Program, your child may be eligible for a personalized neuropsychologic evaluation at CHOP to better understand your child’s learning profile. Contact us for more information.
Reference: Foss S, Flanders TM, Heuer G, Schreiber JE. Neurobehavioral outcomes in patients with myelomeningocele. Neurosurg Focus. 2019;47(4):E6.
Contributed by: Jane Schreiber, PhD, ABPP-Cn, Danielle Nicholson, DO