11 Jun How to Advocate for Your Child When the School Won’t Listen
What to Do if Your School Won’t Listen to Your Concerns?
Struggling to get your child’s school to listen to concerns about learning difficulties? Learn how to advocate effectively, and discover why external testing from Global Education Testing provides the irrefutable evidence schools can’t ignore.
As a parent, advocating for your child’s learning needs can feel like an uphill battle, especially when schools (both public and private) are reluctant to listen or take action. Whether it’s due to a lack of resources, a misguided sense of failure, or outright misunderstandings about learning difficulties, many schools are unequipped to recognize or support children with conditions like dyslexia or auditory processing disorders.
In some cases, particularly in faith-based or smaller schools, there can even be polarized beliefs that these challenges are somehow a reflection of a child’s spiritual life. At Global Education Testing, we’ve even seen schools attribute learning difficulties to a supposed failure in connecting with God! The child was labelled a deliquent, chastised, and given even more reading and prayer tasks. The child was Dyslexic…
This resistance to acknowledging learning difficulties is not just a problem in niche or faith-based schools; it happens in international schools and some private schools as well, where limited understanding of modern psychological assessments leads to dismissive attitudes toward real cognitive challenges.
Many schools don’t want to acknowledge these issues because it forces them to confront the fact that they may not have the resources or expertise to provide the necessary accommodations. And at times, school counselors (often well-meaning but underqualified) may have already made their own initial diagnoses and are eager to defend their assessments, even when they are wrong. This insistence on being “right” often stems from a misplaced arrogance, where the counselor’s opinion is treated as fact, despite not having the same rigorous training as a licensed educational psychologist.
Why Schools Push Back
One of the biggest reasons schools push back is resource-related. A proper diagnosis from a qualified educational psychologist would often require a school to implement costly interventions or accommodations like extra time on exams, specialized instruction, or the hiring of additional support staff. Some administrators see this as a failure on the school’s part and prefer to avoid the acknowledgment entirely. This leads to parents hearing things like “Your child just needs to try harder,” or “It’s a behavioral issue.” Such misdiagnoses delay the help that children require.
In more extreme cases, certain schools hold inflexible beliefs that refuse to consider a child’s cognitive challenges as anything more than poor behavior, lack of discipline, or (as mentioned earlier) a failure of faith. This kind of thinking can be especially prevalent in smaller religious schools, where faith-based explanations sometimes overshadow evidence based approaches to learning.
The pushback can also stem from schools not wanting to admit their own lack of expertise. If an official diagnosis is given and accommodations are recommended, the school may be forced to provide services that they are not equipped to handle. This can put them in a difficult position, and rather than face that challenge, they may try to minimize the issue.
How to Get Your School to Listen to Your Concerns About Learning Difficulties
- Request a formal meeting with your child’s teacher and school administrators
- Bring documented evidence of your concerns (e.g., test scores, work samples)
- Secure an external evaluation from a licensed educational psychologist
- Present the evaluation results and recommendations to the school
- Be clear and persistent in outlining your child’s specific needs
- Request the school provide written responses to your concerns
- Involve higher educational authorities if the school continues to resist
- Seek legal advice or advocacy if necessary
- Stay calm, but firm, during all communications
- Keep detailed records of all interactions with the school
The Power of External Testing
When schools refuse to listen, the most effective step you can take as a parent is to seek external testing. Getting your child properly evaluated by a licensed educational psychologist not only provides clarity about their needs but also gives you irrefutable evidence that schools cannot ignore.
Comprehensive evaluations from professionals trained in comparative health systems like the USA, UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand hold international credibility and are accepted by exam boards, ensuring that your child gets the accommodations they need.
At Global Education Testing, we specialize in conducting these in-depth evaluations anywhere in the World, ensuring that the evidence is clear, detailed, and irrefutable. Schools often push back when parents rely on school counselors or internal screenings, as these assessments lack the depth and professional backing that a licensed educational psychologist can provide. By pursuing external testing, you arm yourself with expert data that schools must take seriously.
Overcoming School Resistance
In many cases, schools will resist external assessments, dismissing them in favor of their internal evaluations. However, legally, many schools are obligated to consider outside reports. In the U.S., for example, schools must comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which mandates that parents can request an external evaluation if they disagree with the school’s findings. Similarly, in other countries, schools are often required to take into account private evaluations, though the level of compliance can vary by region.
If a school continues to resist even in the face of strong evidence, parents may have to escalate the issue by appealing to higher educational authorities or seeking legal counsel. But in many cases, the presentation of an external professional report conducted by a qualified educational psychologist from a Tier 1 country forces schools to reconsider their stance.
This approach puts you in a much stronger position to demand the accommodations your child is entitled to, whether that’s extra time on exams, tailored lesson plans, or specialized educational support.
A Stronger Advocacy
Advocating for your child when the school refuses to listen is exhausting, but it’s essential. The more evidence you have, the stronger your position will be. By obtaining a comprehensive external evaluation from Global Education Testing, you empower yourself with clear data, expert recommendations, and the backing of Tier 1 educational psychologists. This kind of report doesn’t just help you advocate more effectively; it gives you the paperwork needed to ensure your child gets the support they need to succeed.
It’s time to take the power back. Schools may resist, but with the right data and professional support, you can ensure that your child’s learning needs are acknowledged and addressed in the best possible way.
Alexander Bentley-Sutherland is the CEO of Global Education Testing, the leading provider of Learning Development Testing tailored specifically for the International and Private School community worldwide.