The Blame Game

Review and a Few Comments on:
Parents, Their Lawyer and an IEP: Teachers Can Survive When Parents Aren't Afraid to Take Legal Action Kellie Hayden 2007.

Kellie Hayden, Ohio educator and freelance journalist, advises teachers about how to cope with "aggressive parents" and/or "helicopter parents", who can make life stressful for teachers by keeping a "lawyer on speed dial".
Hayden's guidelines to assist teachers prepare for a "legal-action-free" school year include (1) being sure to read child's the IEP, (2) contacting the child's former teacher(s) who may be able to "offer tips on how to deal [with] the parents", and (3) becoming familiar with the Individuals w/ Disabilities Act. [Emphasis added]
The Hayden article, published on suite101.com, is no longer available at that website, as it was removed about a day after I posted a response on behalf of the Promise Foundation. Nevertheless, a cached version of the entire column can still be found at http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:W5nf2Y7bEkYJ:educationalissues.suite101.com/article.cfm/parents_their_lawyer_and_an_iep+special+education+avoid+litigation&cd=31&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

Promise Foundation's Response

Good advice, but . . . What about the student without a "helicopter parent" and/or the benefit of legal counsel?
Shouldn't the goal be to provide a free, appropriate, public education...as opposed to simply avoiding litigation?
Why is it necessary to feel sufficiently threatened before becoming motivated to do what needs to be done? All of this is very good advice, e.g. to "read" and understand the IEP "before the school year begins", and then to actually "follow the IEP" and "document, document, document". It is unfortunate when school officials justify a defensive posture as a starting point and necessary response to aggressive parents and the threat of being sued.
I suspect the increase in the number of "helicopter parents" may be due to a corresponding increase in the number of "Kevlar" educators and a siege mentality that has become far too common among school administrators.