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Volume  2,  Issue  1  

2018  

Allies	
  for	
  Education	
  2018,	
  1,	
  2	
  
https://journals.library.csuci.edu/ojs/index.php/afe	
  

  
Invisible  Disability,  Visible  Implications:  Eleanor’s  
Story  

Talya	
  Drescher	
  
Assistant	
  Professor	
  of	
  Special	
  Education	
  
CSU	
  Channel	
  Islands	
  
	
  

I	
  have	
  what	
  one	
  might	
  call	
  a	
  complicated	
  relationship	
  with	
  public	
  school	
  education.	
  	
  In	
  addition	
  to	
  being	
  
the	
  mother	
  and	
  aunt	
  of	
  school-­‐aged	
  children	
  with	
  many	
  friends	
  of	
  similarly	
  aged	
  children,	
  I	
  am	
  a	
  former	
  
special	
  education	
  teacher	
  and	
  current	
  instructor	
  of	
  future	
  teachers.	
  	
  My	
  knowledge	
  and	
  experience	
  in	
  
the	
  realm	
  of	
  special	
  education	
  sometimes	
  complicate	
  the	
  roles	
  of	
  parent,	
  friend	
  and	
  teacher	
  educator	
  
when	
  it	
  comes	
  to	
  the	
  education	
  of	
  children	
  I	
  know	
  because	
  in	
  conversation	
  and	
  practice	
  I	
  wear	
  many	
  
education	
  related	
  hats.	
  	
  I	
  hope	
  that	
  by	
  sharing	
  a	
  little	
  bit	
  of	
  the	
  following	
  story,	
  parents	
  of	
  children	
  like	
  
the	
  one	
  I	
  will	
  describe	
  will	
  find	
  some	
  comfort	
  in	
  knowing	
  they	
  and	
  their	
  children	
  are	
  not	
  alone.	
  	
  As	
  a	
  
teacher	
  educator,	
  my	
  wish	
  is	
  that	
  this	
  story	
  will	
  be	
  taken	
  into	
  consideration	
  as	
  teachers	
  prepare	
  
classrooms	
  and	
  routines	
  for	
  the	
  coming	
  year.	
  

Without	
  divulging	
  the	
  identity	
  of	
  my	
  children,	
  family	
  and	
  friends,	
  and	
  with	
  the	
  permission	
  of	
  the	
  family,	
  I	
  
would	
  like	
  to	
  share	
  the	
  story	
  of	
  one	
  child	
  in	
  my	
  sphere	
  because	
  I	
  do	
  not	
  think	
  that	
  her	
  story	
  and	
  
struggles	
  are	
  unique.	
  	
  In	
  fact,	
  I	
  believe	
  that	
  at	
  the	
  close	
  of	
  this	
  article,	
  many	
  of	
  you	
  will	
  be	
  able	
  to	
  relate	
  
in	
  some	
  way;	
  whether	
  it	
  is	
  because	
  you	
  have	
  a	
  child	
  with	
  similar	
  learning	
  needs,	
  a	
  school	
  with	
  the	
  same	
  
practices	
  or	
  just	
  a	
  feeling	
  of	
  helplessness	
  that	
  this	
  family	
  felt	
  as	
  they	
  attempt	
  to	
  navigate	
  the	
  school	
  
system.	
  	
  I’ll	
  call	
  this	
  young	
  child	
  Eleanor.	
  	
  She	
  is	
  very	
  close	
  to	
  my	
  own	
  children.	
  	
  She	
  is	
  a	
  special	
  little	
  
seven-­‐year-­‐old	
  girl	
  who	
  is	
  very	
  curious,	
  loving,	
  sensitive,	
  sometimes	
  mischievous,	
  and	
  bright.	
  	
  She	
  likes	
  
to	
  play,	
  use	
  tools	
  to	
  measure	
  things	
  in	
  the	
  classroom,	
  organize	
  her	
  desk	
  area,	
  assume	
  the	
  job	
  of	
  light	
  
monitor	
  and	
  line	
  leader	
  (if	
  she’s	
  lucky!)	
  and	
  help	
  children	
  on	
  the	
  yard	
  who	
  she	
  believes	
  are	
  lonely.	
  	
  From	
  
time	
  to	
  time,	
  she	
  also	
  does	
  not	
  pay	
  attention	
  in	
  class,	
  lets	
  naughty	
  words	
  slip	
  and	
  often	
  forgets	
  to	
  bring	
  
home	
  her	
  homework	
  folder	
  and	
  important	
  notifications.	
  	
  	
  

I	
  have	
  known	
  for	
  a	
  while	
  that	
  Eleanor	
  has	
  a	
  learning	
  disability,	
  specifically	
  in	
  the	
  area	
  of	
  auditory	
  
processing.	
  	
  Due	
  to	
  Eleanor’s	
  ability	
  to	
  compensate	
  utilizing	
  her	
  strength	
  in	
  visual	
  processing,	
  her	
  
academics	
  are	
  all	
  considered	
  appropriate,	
  or	
  technically,	
  in	
  the	
  “average	
  ranges.”	
  	
  Because	
  my	
  
professional	
  role	
  is	
  in	
  the	
  area	
  of	
  special	
  education,	
  I	
  also	
  know	
  that	
  based	
  on	
  the	
  assessments	
  we	
  tend	
  
to	
  give,	
  when	
  she	
  is	
  assessed	
  at	
  this	
  age,	
  she	
  will	
  likely	
  not	
  qualify	
  for	
  services	
  due	
  to	
  her	
  achievements;	
  
at	
  least	
  not	
  for	
  another	
  year	
  or	
  two.	
  	
  	
  



Invisible  Disability,  Visible  Implications:  Eleanor’s  Story  
Talya	
  Drescher	
  

Allies	
  for	
  Education	
  2018,	
  2,	
  1	
  
https://journals.library.csuci.edu/ojs/index.php/afe	
  
	
  

Eleanor’s	
  auditory	
  processing	
  disability	
  falls	
  under	
  the	
  umbrella	
  of	
  “learning	
  disability”	
  and	
  means	
  that	
  
someone	
  does	
  not	
  process	
  what	
  they	
  hear	
  efficiently.	
  	
  It	
  does	
  not	
  mean	
  that	
  they	
  have	
  sub-­‐average	
  
intelligence.	
  	
  In	
  fact,	
  the	
  opposite	
  is	
  often	
  true.	
  	
  In	
  Eleanor’s	
  case,	
  the	
  best	
  way	
  to	
  describe	
  this	
  is	
  
through	
  an	
  anecdote.	
  One	
  day	
  when	
  I	
  went	
  to	
  pick	
  up	
  my	
  child	
  from	
  summer	
  camp,	
  the	
  children	
  were	
  
playing	
  “Steal	
  the	
  Bacon.”	
  When	
  their	
  assigned	
  number	
  was	
  called,	
  players	
  competed	
  to	
  get	
  to	
  the	
  
“bacon”	
  first	
  and	
  return	
  to	
  their	
  seat.	
  	
  Eleanor,	
  who	
  was	
  also	
  attending	
  camp,	
  was	
  labeled	
  number	
  four.	
  
I	
  watched	
  a	
  few	
  rounds	
  of	
  the	
  game	
  until	
  “Four!”	
  was	
  called.	
  	
  Eleanor	
  was	
  paying	
  close	
  attention	
  as	
  
evidenced	
  by	
  her	
  sitting	
  straight,	
  leaning	
  forward	
  to	
  hear	
  the	
  caller,	
  and	
  smiling	
  in	
  anticipation,	
  but	
  
when	
  “Four!”	
  was	
  yelled,	
  it	
  was	
  a	
  good	
  couple	
  of	
  seconds	
  before	
  her	
  brain	
  processed	
  it.	
  	
  By	
  the	
  time	
  she	
  
processed	
  that	
  she	
  needed	
  to	
  get	
  up	
  and	
  aim	
  for	
  the	
  bacon,	
  the	
  other	
  child	
  already	
  had	
  the	
  item.	
  	
  This	
  
was	
  the	
  first	
  time	
  I	
  could	
  see	
  her	
  learning	
  disability	
  although	
  I	
  had	
  suspected	
  for	
  quite	
  some	
  time.	
  	
  I	
  
could	
  see	
  the	
  delay	
  in	
  her	
  ability	
  to	
  process	
  what	
  she	
  had	
  heard.	
  	
  

Learning	
  disabilities	
  are	
  called	
  “hidden	
  disabilities”	
  because	
  we	
  cannot	
  see	
  them.	
  	
  In	
  younger	
  children,	
  
particularly	
  those	
  with	
  mild	
  hidden	
  disabilities,	
  diagnosis	
  is	
  often	
  elusive	
  as	
  the	
  disability	
  does	
  not	
  
necessarily	
  grossly	
  affect	
  their	
  academic	
  achievement.	
  Since	
  we	
  cannot	
  see	
  the	
  disability,	
  they	
  often	
  go	
  
undiagnosed	
  for	
  quite	
  some	
  time.	
  	
  What	
  happens	
  during	
  that	
  time	
  socially	
  is	
  of	
  concern	
  to	
  me.	
  I	
  know	
  
from	
  the	
  literature	
  that	
  children	
  with	
  learning	
  disabilities	
  are	
  often	
  at	
  a	
  social	
  disadvantage	
  when	
  
compared	
  to	
  non-­‐learning	
  disabled	
  peers	
  (Estell	
  et	
  al.,	
  2008;	
  Kavale	
  &	
  Mostert,	
  2004;	
  Nowicki,	
  2012;	
  
Nowicki	
  et	
  al.,	
  2014;	
  Vaughn,	
  Elbaum,	
  &	
  Boardman,	
  2001).	
  	
  	
  After	
  the	
  “Steal	
  the	
  Bacon”	
  incident,	
  I	
  
started	
  to	
  notice	
  that	
  Eleanor	
  was	
  often	
  excluded	
  from	
  group	
  sports.	
  	
  During	
  pick	
  up	
  time,	
  I	
  had	
  to	
  walk	
  
through	
  throngs	
  of	
  kids	
  playing	
  sports	
  and	
  observed	
  that,	
  when	
  the	
  coach	
  told	
  the	
  team	
  which	
  way	
  to	
  go	
  
or	
  which	
  maneuver	
  to	
  make,	
  it	
  took	
  Eleanor	
  longer	
  to	
  process	
  the	
  directions.	
  	
  As	
  a	
  result,	
  she	
  started	
  to	
  
get	
  picked	
  last	
  for	
  teams,	
  and	
  during	
  family	
  and	
  friend	
  gatherings,	
  I	
  could	
  hear	
  her	
  complain	
  that	
  nobody	
  
wanted	
  her	
  on	
  their	
  team.	
  	
  Eleanor’s	
  auditory	
  processing	
  delay	
  had	
  put	
  her	
  at	
  a	
  disadvantage	
  on	
  the	
  
yard.	
  

Eleanor’s	
  learning	
  disability	
  also	
  has	
  non-­‐academic	
  implications	
  in	
  the	
  classroom.	
  Almost	
  two	
  years	
  ago,	
  
I	
  had	
  the	
  pleasure	
  of	
  volunteering	
  in	
  our	
  children’s	
  classroom.	
  	
  I	
  saw	
  that	
  the	
  teacher	
  had	
  a	
  clip	
  chart	
  for	
  
behavior.	
  When	
  I	
  asked	
  about	
  the	
  chart,	
  the	
  teacher	
  explained	
  that	
  children	
  tend	
  to	
  move	
  up	
  and	
  down	
  
the	
  chart	
  throughout	
  the	
  day;	
  a	
  child	
  clips	
  up	
  when	
  they	
  are	
  good	
  and	
  down	
  when	
  they	
  do	
  something	
  
naughty.	
  	
  I	
  heard	
  that	
  Eleanor	
  tended	
  to	
  come	
  home	
  with	
  a	
  naughty	
  report.	
  	
  Knowing	
  that	
  no	
  child	
  is	
  
perfect,	
  I	
  was	
  not	
  concerned	
  at	
  first,	
  but	
  the	
  constant	
  negative	
  reports	
  were	
  beginning	
  to	
  wear	
  on	
  
Eleanor	
  and	
  her	
  parents.	
  During	
  my	
  volunteer	
  time,	
  I	
  was	
  curious	
  to	
  see	
  what	
  was	
  happening.	
  	
  Kids	
  were	
  
indeed	
  moving	
  up	
  and	
  down	
  the	
  chart,	
  but	
  not	
  Eleanor.	
  	
  She	
  was	
  staying	
  in	
  the	
  “naughty”	
  region,	
  unable	
  
to	
  clip	
  up	
  the	
  chart	
  in	
  the	
  area	
  where	
  the	
  “good	
  kids”	
  ended	
  their	
  day.	
  	
  	
  

One	
  incident	
  in	
  particular	
  sums	
  up	
  Eleanor’s	
  inability	
  to	
  have	
  the	
  same	
  fluidity	
  of	
  movement	
  on	
  the	
  
behavioral	
  chart:	
  At	
  the	
  end	
  of	
  a	
  lesson,	
  the	
  children	
  were	
  told	
  to	
  finish	
  their	
  work	
  and	
  put	
  their	
  name	
  at	
  
the	
  top,	
  put	
  their	
  pencils	
  away,	
  push	
  in	
  their	
  chairs	
  and	
  come	
  to	
  the	
  rug	
  for	
  story	
  time.	
  	
  The	
  first	
  several	
  
children	
  who	
  sat	
  on	
  the	
  rug	
  were	
  told	
  to	
  “clip	
  up”	
  on	
  the	
  behavioral	
  chart.	
  	
  While	
  the	
  first	
  child	
  got	
  to	
  
the	
  rug,	
  Eleanor	
  had	
  just	
  processed	
  the	
  complete	
  set	
  of	
  directions	
  and	
  was	
  putting	
  her	
  name	
  on	
  her	
  
paper.	
  	
  She	
  did	
  not	
  do	
  anything	
  wrong,	
  nor	
  did	
  she	
  get	
  in	
  trouble	
  for	
  taking	
  a	
  long	
  time,	
  but	
  she	
  also	
  did	
  
not	
  have	
  the	
  opportunity	
  to	
  clip	
  up.	
  	
  Eleanor’s	
  daily	
  “naughty	
  reports”	
  were	
  not	
  necessarily	
  because	
  she	
  
was	
  behaving	
  worse	
  than	
  her	
  peers,	
  she	
  was	
  simply	
  missing	
  opportunities	
  to	
  clip	
  up.	
  	
  	
  



Invisible  Disability,  Visible  Implications:  Eleanor’s  Story  
Talya	
  Drescher	
  

Allies	
  for	
  Education	
  2018,	
  2,	
  1	
  
https://journals.library.csuci.edu/ojs/index.php/afe	
  
	
  

In	
  the	
  cases	
  of	
  the	
  behavioral	
  chart	
  and	
  on	
  the	
  playground,	
  Eleanor	
  was	
  left	
  to	
  feel	
  less	
  than	
  adequate	
  in	
  
relation	
  to	
  her	
  peers.	
  	
  The	
  chart	
  was	
  on	
  display	
  in	
  the	
  classroom	
  for	
  children	
  and	
  parents	
  to	
  see	
  just	
  as	
  
her	
  athletic	
  skills	
  were	
  on	
  display	
  on	
  the	
  yard.	
  	
  When	
  I	
  attended	
  school	
  events	
  or	
  birthday	
  parties,	
  I	
  
often	
  overheard	
  other	
  parents	
  talking	
  about	
  the	
  “behavioral	
  problems”	
  of	
  the	
  classroom—Eleanor	
  being	
  
one	
  of	
  those	
  problems.	
  	
  	
  

A	
  few	
  months	
  ago,	
  Eleanor	
  received	
  a	
  diagnosis	
  of	
  ADHD	
  (Attention	
  Deficit	
  Hyperactivity	
  Disorder)	
  from	
  
the	
  pediatrician	
  and	
  the	
  family	
  had	
  their	
  first	
  IEP	
  (Individualized	
  Education	
  Plan)	
  meeting	
  shortly	
  
thereafter.	
  	
  The	
  family	
  shared	
  the	
  reports	
  with	
  me	
  after	
  the	
  meeting	
  and	
  as	
  predicted,	
  Eleanor’s	
  
relatively	
  high	
  achievement	
  scores	
  did	
  not	
  qualify	
  her	
  as	
  a	
  student	
  with	
  a	
  learning	
  disability	
  (because	
  it	
  
does	
  not	
  “adversely	
  affect	
  her	
  academic	
  performance”)	
  although	
  it	
  was	
  clear	
  that	
  she	
  has	
  a	
  large	
  
discrepancy	
  between	
  her	
  auditory	
  and	
  visual	
  processing	
  abilities.	
  	
  I	
  contemplated	
  encouraging	
  Eleanor’s	
  
family	
  to	
  fight	
  the	
  good	
  fight	
  to	
  get	
  her	
  special	
  education	
  services	
  due	
  to	
  the	
  ADHD	
  diagnosis	
  but	
  it	
  was	
  
clear	
  that	
  the	
  battle	
  would	
  be	
  uphill	
  and	
  I	
  was	
  not	
  sure	
  that	
  the	
  services	
  she	
  would	
  have	
  been	
  granted	
  
would	
  actually	
  be	
  beneficial	
  in	
  the	
  short	
  run.	
  	
  Had	
  Eleanor	
  qualified	
  for	
  an	
  IEP,	
  she	
  would	
  have	
  likely	
  
been	
  pulled	
  out	
  of	
  her	
  class	
  for	
  part	
  of	
  the	
  school	
  day	
  for	
  academic	
  support	
  and/or	
  instruction.	
  	
  It	
  was	
  
clear	
  from	
  her	
  grades	
  and	
  testing	
  results	
  that	
  she	
  was	
  in	
  fact	
  making	
  academic	
  progress,	
  so	
  that	
  type	
  of	
  
support	
  did	
  not	
  seem	
  beneficial.	
  	
  Because	
  of	
  the	
  ADHD	
  diagnosis,	
  she	
  did,	
  however,	
  qualify	
  for	
  a	
  504	
  
plan	
  which	
  granted	
  her	
  the	
  ability	
  to	
  take	
  tests	
  in	
  a	
  small	
  group	
  setting	
  with	
  extra	
  time;	
  an	
  
accommodation	
  that	
  an	
  IEP	
  would	
  have	
  also	
  afforded.	
  	
  For	
  the	
  moment,	
  the	
  504	
  plan	
  suffices	
  and	
  the	
  
family	
  will	
  have	
  the	
  opportunity	
  to	
  revisit	
  the	
  IEP	
  if	
  needed	
  in	
  the	
  future.	
  

Luckily,	
  this	
  year	
  Eleanor	
  is	
  in	
  a	
  class	
  with	
  a	
  strong,	
  compassionate	
  teacher	
  and	
  is	
  happily	
  making	
  
academic	
  progress.	
  	
  I	
  do	
  know	
  that	
  it	
  is	
  probable	
  that	
  as	
  she	
  gets	
  older	
  and	
  school	
  becomes	
  more	
  
challenging	
  her	
  social	
  and	
  behavioral	
  challenges	
  are	
  likely	
  to	
  increase.	
  	
  I	
  suppose	
  we	
  will	
  have	
  to	
  wait	
  
and	
  see.	
  I	
  have	
  learned	
  that	
  as	
  a	
  mother	
  and	
  friend,	
  I	
  am	
  not	
  good	
  at	
  waiting	
  especially	
  because	
  in	
  this	
  
case	
  I	
  feel	
  like	
  we	
  are	
  waiting	
  for	
  Eleanor	
  to	
  fail	
  academically	
  and	
  socially.	
  

Watching	
  Eleanor	
  and	
  her	
  family	
  go	
  through	
  this	
  process	
  has	
  been	
  difficult,	
  partly	
  because	
  I	
  know	
  that	
  
we	
  do	
  not	
  always	
  have	
  systems	
  and	
  structures	
  in	
  place	
  for	
  children	
  who	
  match	
  Eleanor’s	
  profile.	
  	
  
Eleanor	
  and	
  children	
  like	
  her	
  are	
  smart,	
  interested	
  in	
  learning	
  and	
  desire	
  to	
  be	
  accepted	
  by	
  peers.	
  	
  I	
  
encourage	
  readers	
  to	
  reconsider	
  some	
  commonly	
  found	
  classroom	
  and	
  school	
  practices	
  such	
  as	
  public	
  
displays	
  of	
  behavior	
  and	
  academic	
  progress.	
  	
  In	
  Eleanor’s	
  case,	
  the	
  “clip	
  chart”	
  was	
  a	
  no-­‐win	
  situation	
  
ultimately	
  resulting	
  in	
  public	
  shaming;	
  I	
  can	
  assure	
  you,	
  she	
  is	
  not	
  alone.	
  	
  I	
  am	
  confident	
  that	
  in	
  every	
  
school,	
  a	
  number	
  of	
  “Eleanors”	
  are	
  affected	
  by	
  hidden	
  disabilities.	
  	
  Watching	
  Eleanor’s	
  story	
  unfold	
  has	
  
changed	
  the	
  way	
  I	
  view	
  teaching,	
  learning,	
  and	
  parenting.	
  	
  I	
  hope	
  that	
  as	
  a	
  result	
  of	
  sharing	
  this	
  story	
  
teachers	
  and	
  parents	
  will	
  gain	
  perspective	
  and	
  a	
  new	
  understanding	
  of	
  potential	
  implications	
  of	
  some	
  
more	
  routine	
  classroom	
  practices.	
  

About  the  Author  
Dr.	
  Talya	
  Drescher	
  is	
  an	
  Assistant	
  Professor	
  of	
  Special	
  Education	
  at	
  California	
  State	
  University,	
  Channel	
  
Islands.	
  She	
  has	
  over	
  a	
  decade	
  of	
  experience	
  as	
  a	
  K-­‐12	
  special	
  educator	
  in	
  Los	
  Angeles	
  area	
  public	
  
schools.	
  Her	
  areas	
  of	
  research	
  include	
  co-­‐teaching	
  in	
  pre-­‐service	
  programs	
  and	
  the	
  use	
  of	
  mixed	
  reality	
  
simulation	
  in	
  post-­‐secondary	
  education.	
  Contact	
  Dr.	
  Drescher	
  at	
  talya.drescher@csuci.edu	
  



Invisible  Disability,  Visible  Implications:  Eleanor’s  Story  
Talya	
  Drescher	
  

Allies	
  for	
  Education	
  2018,	
  2,	
  1	
  
https://journals.library.csuci.edu/ojs/index.php/afe	
  
	
  

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  D.	
  B.,	
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  M.	
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  students	
  with	
  and	
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learning	
  disabilities.	
  Journal	
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Nowicki,	
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Nowicki,	
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  exclusion	
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  with	
  
intellectual	
  or	
  learning	
  disabilities.	
  Journal	
  of	
  Intellectual	
  Disability	
  Research,	
  58(4),	
  346–357.	
  	
  

Vaughn,	
  S.,	
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  B.,	
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  Boardman,	
  A.	
  G.	
  (2001).	
  The	
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  learning	
  
disabilities:	
  implications	
  for	
  inclusion.	
  Exceptionality,	
  9(1),	
  47–65.	
  	
  


