Charlene Levitan was determined that her youngest daughter Penny would attend the same high school as her older children. But the enrolment involved a "detailed negotiation process", which is still under way.
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Penny, 12, has Down syndrome and is settling into year 7 at the same mainstream school as her older siblings.
"We always wanted her to attend the same school as her siblings but it's not so straightforward when a child has a disability," Dr Levitan said. "We needed to ask questions such as whether the school could provide her with an adequate learning environment and we had to convince the school it was the best place for her to be from an educational and social perspective. It's been a detailed negotiation process which is ongoing."
The eastern suburbs academic believes schools need more support to accommodate children with milder disabilities who have the potential to thrive in the mainstream system.
"In my experience teachers are not well equipped to manage children with disabilities although that does vary to some degree," she said.
"It comes to two criteria: One is commitment and belief the child can meet their potential and the other is training. Teachers on the whole are crying out for support."
Research by lobby group, Children with Disability Australia, found two-thirds of parents believed their children did not receive adequate assistance for their disability at school.
A survey by the Australian Education Union released in March revealed almost 80 per cent of principals reported not having enough resources to meet the needs of children with a disability.
Dr Levitan hopes the introduction of a free program offering skills in behaviour management for children with disabilities will make a difference for both teachers and parents.
"It's of benefit to everybody," she said. "To the teachers, to the parents and to the child with special needs."
The program, Stepping Stones Triple P, is being implemented in Queensland, NSW and Victoria with the aim of helping teachers and parents manage challenging behaviour associated with developmental disabilities such as autism, Asperger's syndrome and Down syndrome.
Aimed at children aged two to 12, the early intervention program is part of a research project funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
One hundred professionals, including mainstream and special education teachers and school counsellors, have been trained to deliver the two-year program across the state.
Stewart EinfeldProfessor of the Centre for Disability Research and Policy, and senior scientist with the Brain and Mind Centre at Sydney University, is heading the project in NSW, where 80,000 children have a disability.
"We know from our previous research that even for families with children with severe behavioural and emotional problems, only 10 per cent of them got access to expert help," he said.
"Some families may not be aware of what assistance is available. Sometimes they are unable to get access to services. Often they are just so stressed they might not use services which are available."
The research project aims to assess the impact of the program in terms of its effectiveness and the number of people it reaches.
