YOUR CHILD HAS BEEN REFERRED FOR SPECIAL ED - NOW WHAT?
It was determined that your child may benefit from special education assessment and/or services.
With your consent, the school team has 60 days to complete the assessment. This assessment helps the IEP (Individual Education Plan) team to determine whether your child meets criteria for one or more of the following special education eligibility categories:
- Specific Learning Disability
- Autism
- Speech Language Impairment
- Other Health Impairment
- Emotional Disturbance
- Intellectual Disability
- Deaf
- Hard of Hearing
- Visually Impaired
- Deaf Blindness
- Orthopedic Impairment
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Multiple Disabilities
In general, each category has criteria to help determine if your child has a disability and if this disability adversely impacts their education. If both portions of the eligibility criteria are met, the IEP team will use the assessment data and classroom performance data to help determine areas of need (deficit) in your student’s program that may require special education services. Areas of need means an area or skill in which a child is performing statistically well below his or her same aged peers. An area of need is not necessarily an area of weakness. All persons have strengths and weaknesses. An area of need is an area in which performance is well below same aged students.
The assessment process includes getting input from the parent, teachers and any appropriate outside providers. The assessment team may ask you to complete forms to assist with the completion of the assessment, if you have questions about anything you are being asked to complete, please contact the school psychologist.