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Special Education Assessments
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Guidelines: Before a child can receive special education or related services under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the child must be identified as being disabled and given an educational needs assessment. If you believe your child might be eligible for a special education service, you'll want to know the types of assessments used in the educational setting and the procedures involved.
Types of Assessments
- Group Assessments
- One of the most common school-based assessments is called " sweep-screening ." This is a quick and routine screening of all children for hearing and vision problems.
- Other group assessments in the school setting are called " norm-referenced tests ." These tests include both achievement tests and ability tests and are designed to compare individuals and a group norm. They have limitations, however, and may be less likely to identify a disability than if they're used with other assessment instruments.
- Group testing also occurs every day in the classroom, where a student's competency is measured against that of other class members and the teacher is able to observe the student's performance in person.
- Individual Assessments
- Individual assessments include medical or health assessments performed by a physician or other qualified professional. They can consist of general physical examinations or specialized exams of hearing, vision, or other abilities.
- Children with potential academic problems might be given other types of validated tests, which contain identifiable norms and a measure of reliability. These tests are typically administered by psychologists or other educational diagnosticians. They can include individual IQ scoring (purportedly measuring intelligence in relation to age), achievement (purportedly measuring performance), and ability (purportedly measuring potential).
- Children with a particular behavioral disability, such as speech, may be given specialty tests.
- Parental Consent to an Assessment
- Before any evaluation (other than a sweep-screening) can be done, the parent must consent to it.
- The parent must receive written notice of the proposed test, the evaluation procedure to be used, and the procedural safeguards available under the IDEA.
- The notice must be understandable to the parent (for example, in the parent's native language), and the parent must sign or otherwise give written consent to the educational agency.
- Reevaluation
- Once a child has started to receive an individualized education program, the program must remain appropriate for the child. This is why IDEA requires that the child's program be reviewed at least annually and that the child be reevaluated at least every three years or more often if warranted or requested.
- When reevaluation is done to comply with IDEA requirements, parental consent is not required, although state law often requires consent for any testing.
Disclaimer
This publication and the information included in it are not intended to serve as a substitute for consultation with an attorney. Specific legal issues, concerns and conditions always require the advice of appropriate legal professionals.
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