The meeting with P's classroom teacher and the early years co-ordinator has come and gone. Monitoring my own performance, I'd have to say I'm finally learning. I did push my agenda yesterday, probably got too involved with my own thoughts at times, but at crucial points where I would normally feel uncomfortable about being "pushy", I didn't back down. I don't think I've changed the face of the education lanscape, and with the benefit of hindsight realised I missed some opportunities to make more concrete demands, but I do believe I have made some fundamental alterations to their understanding of what P needs to be included and extended at school. I was still strongly receiving the message that it mustn't be "extra" work for his sake, so that he is not stigmatised, but I feel fairly sure that this was their strategy for avoiding extra preparation on the teacher's part, as was the ever so nonchalant suggestion that feedback on some of what was discussed could be fitted into the school report (thus avoiding these apparently dreadfully onerous face-to-face meetings).
Q and I have had a crazy few days and so have not had a chance to debrief properly. He did, however, tell me he thought I had "thrown" the co-ordinator. Once upon a time I would have been disconcerted by the thought that my attempts to share information and work together had caused someone discomfort. This time, I felt like that was a little independent confirmation that I had shifted the agenda a bit. It is a big learning curve that the staff there are not really willing to embark upon, so I hope that my persistence has gotten through to them just a bit.
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