Parents Day at SOS School

Yesterday was “Open Day” at the kids’ school. This is the day parents are supposed to come in and review the children’s work. Sly and I really didn’t have any intention of going, because while reviewing the work is all well and good, it’s also supposed to be the day you offer gratuities to the teachers for a job “well done” and that’s not something we condone. We’ve actually had teachers (not at this school, though) who told our kids to be sure that they brought their “parcel” to school the next day. “Or else, what?” I always wondered.

But at about 8:15 or so, my phone rings and it’s the school librarian. Thinking it’s a diabetes-related emergency I answer. It’s Alex. She is begging me to come to school and review her work. I’ve got to give it to her for her persistence, so we agree, we’ll be there later.

When I arrive, Alex drags me to her seat and shows me her exam papers. Nothing great about them, let me admit that up front. Alex was always a very good student, with terrific marks. At Soul Clinic she was always within the top 10 in her class. But since the diagnosis last year, her grades have suffered. On the board is a ranking sheet; Alex is 26 out of 27. Awful, and truly truly sad.

Auntie Cornelia comes over once she’s rid of the other parents and the first words out of her mouth are that she gets very angry at Alexandra, because she just knows that she can do better. Bingo! Time for the D discussion!


I explain to Auntie that I agree, Alex can do better, and she has done better in the past. I tell her about Alex being a wonderful student in her old school, always among the top 10. Loves to read, loves math, loves spelling, etc.

Then I tell her about diabetes (again) and how low or high blood sugars can affect Alex’s work and her concentration. I tell her that how in the U.S., children with diabetes are protected at school under a federal (504) law, because they are at a disadvantage due to their medical condition and that, by law, those children are given the opportunity to check their blood glucose before taking a test, and are allowed to adjust their sugar level if its not in range, either with glucose tabs for a low or an insulin injection for a high. I tell her that when Alex's blood glucose is low, she’ll be sleepy, and she might have a headache or a stomach ache, and may not be able to concentrate on the paper in front of her. I tell her that when Alex's sugar is high, she’ll be fidgety, perhaps thirsty or need to pee a lot, that she may have blurry eyesight and not even see the exam paper clearly.

I think a light bulb clicked on. Auntie Cornelia didn’t remember that we had discussed this all already; she also didn’t realize that Alex was only diagnosed last June. But now she sees and I hope she understands. She and I agree that we will work as a team. On the first day of the next term, Auntie will give me a copy of her syllabus, so I know what Alex is working on. When Alexandra is out of school with sickness – and I reinforced to her that Alex can’t be in school when she’s sick because her sugar levels can quickly turn bad – her homework will be made available so that she can see what she is missing. We also agreed that when Alexandra is going to take an exam, she will be permitted to check her sugar level prior to the test. I don’t think Alex will go high at school, given her fixed meals, but a low is a distinct possibility. I also told the teacher to feel free to ask Alex to check her sugar if she feels that Alex just isn’t "right."

Now, I’m not sure all of this is going to help, but I pray it will. Auntie Cornelia told me that she prays for Alex to “get better.” I again had to explain that this disease isn’t going to get better until a cure is found; that Alex will always have diabetes. All she can pray for is that we can manage it in a way that Alex will live a long “healthy” life. That’s my job and it’s more important to me than ensuring that Alex will be in the top 10 in her class. But if that happens as a side effect of better management, I’ll take it.

Oh, and I did manage to find an error in the grading of one of Alex’s test papers, so her score on that test has been revised upwards from a 48 to a 69. Not a vast improvement, but enough to move her up two notches to 24 on the ranking board. By the end of next term, diabetes willing, we’ll have her up in the top half of her class, at least. Wish us luck.