Eligibility reevaluation question
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Anonymous
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My son's eligibility meeting is next week. I spoke with the school psychologist yesterday and she said he is due for testing but if he tests too high he will no longer be eligible for services. His report grades are good but he has always failed his SOLs in reading and math and has IEP goals for math and reading. He is in a special reading class this year.
He has not been tested in 4 years so I wanted to have him evaluated but don't want him to lose his IEP. The psychologist thinks he will test high and not qualify and warned me I would be risking losing services. Should I gamble his IEP by having him tested? We can't afford outside testing right now so that is not an option for our family. |
Anonymous
| If you have an option why would you take a chance? I don't get what good you think would come of testing. If you are sure you want testing, do it privately and then share only what will benefit your child. |
Anonymous
| Are they offering to not have him tested, and simply confirm that he continues to be eligibile? If they suspect that he might not be eligible, then it's unethical for them to make that recommendation. |
Anonymous
| If you still feel he needs services why risk it? You don't need an eval to tell you he needs services. If you lose the IEP is almost impossible to get it back. |
Anonymous
| Does he have a diagnosed disability? Clearly he has educational impact. I don't get why the psych thinks he would lose the Iep unless he does not have a diagnosis. |
Anonymous
I'm sorry, but your school is subtly bullying you into not having him evaluated. The reason is more likely to be that the school psychologist knows that your son is not progressing and that standardized testing will clearly show that than the other way 'round. The clue is that he is failing his SOLs in both reading and math. It could be that he really knows the material and is just a terrible test-taker (what the school would like you to think) OR it could be that your child doesn't have grade level skills. One way to assess is to ask "what percent of the kids at this school in my child's grade are passing the SOL?" NCLB tests like SOLs typically have VERY low benchmarks; I'd be willing to bet at least 50% of your child's grade scores "proficient" or better and it is likely even higher. What the school psych said is illegal. There is no such thing as "too high" to receive an IEP or services. IDEA law and the regulations and interpretations surrounding it CLEARLY state that a child can't be turned down for an IEP just because they have straight As or are achieving at grade level. The discrepancy model of identification provides that if there is a significant discrepancy (usually 1 1/2 standard deviations or 15 points) between ability (i.e., IQ) and achievement, and there is educational impact (which doesn't have to be grades), and special instruction is required, then a child qualifies. The law also says that a child must be evaluated as if the mitigating measures (accommodations and specialized instruction) were not in place. So, if Johnny has had an IEP and special reading instruction for 3 years and he is just now reaching "average" or "on grade level", then it is not appropriate to take away the IEP -- one has to consider that the student only got their with the mitigating measures. And one has to consider the achievement against ability. If Johnny is now scoring at the 50th percentile on the Woodcock-Johnson, but his IQ is at the 90th percentile, then there is still a large discrepancy and it is still evidence of need for special ed. The law says that kids should be re-evaluated at least every 3 years unless both you and the school agree it is unnecessary. See here for a very good explanation -- http://www.wrightslaw.com/blog/?p=7146 Read more at Wrightslaw, and I think you will see that the school is feeding you a line. If it were me, I would get this kind of manipulation on record. Write the school psych an email and say, something like, "Thank you for talking with me about Johnny's re-evaluation. I have thought a lot about your advice to skip re-evaluation testing because Johnny might test "too high" and his services would be taken away. I understand that re-evaluation should be done every 3 years, and as part of that re-evaluation I would like to have standardized testing done (insert what you want here). I am concerned that Johnny has been receiving special instruction for X number of years, and he is still not able to pass SOLs. I think we need to re-evaluate in order to have the right information to decide what instruction and services are necessary." I'm not sure about in re-evaluation, but in initial evaluation the school must ask for your consent to assess; in any case, I would close with something like, "please let me know when you have scheduled the assessments. I would also like to know the name of the assessments the school proposes. Please contact me with any necessary forms if I must sign a consent to assess." You have a right to an independent educational evaluation if you do not agree with the school's testing (either if you don't agree with the results or if you don't think they did the right/enough tests). Schools pull this kind of stuff all the time...... Knowledge is power and without full assessment you are in the dark. |
Anonymous
| I would give the psychologist the benefit of the doubt unlike the pp. Your child clearly has educational impact and needs specially designed instruction to access the curriculum based on what you are stating. The larger question is does your child have a diagnosed disability? If he/ she does not, that is the reason I would not agree to test. |
Anonymous
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My DD had an IEP and the school psych and s
ped teachers both told me a similar thing. They told me this, however, three months before the reveal planning was due. We were not sure what to think so we took her to be tested privately and sure enough she wouldn't have qualified. There was no discrepancy between achievement and IQ. The truth was the school knew she needed the special instruction to continue to make grade appropriate gains but she no longer qualified as having a specific learning disability. It may have been unethical but it was certainly advice given in my child's best interest. |
Anonymous
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This is awesome advice from a previous poster....and I totally agree.
If it were me, I would get this kind of manipulation on record. Write the school psych an email and say, something like, "Thank you for talking with me about Johnny's re-evaluation. I have thought a lot about your advice to skip re-evaluation testing because Johnny might test "too high" and his services would be taken away. I understand that re-evaluation should be done every 3 years, and as part of that re-evaluation I would like to have standardized testing done (insert what you want here). I am concerned that Johnny has been receiving special instruction for X number of years, and he is still not able to pass SOLs. I think we need to re-evaluate in order to have the right information to decide what instruction and services are necessary." |
Anonymous
This statement alone is enough for me to discount any advice this poster gives. That and it makes no sense to avoid testing just to avoid a diagnosed diability. |
Anonymous
Are you 16:29? You sound like it. If you have any experience and knowledge of the IEP process, you'd know that there doesn't need to be a discrepancy between IQ and achievement. You should stop giving advice. |
Anonymous
| I would wait another year as they do have a good point. Our child is low average in many areas for therapy. It is clear talking to him, he still needs supports but if we retest he will clearly not meet the threshold for our insurance to continue paying. We minimally test, most of which are higher and we know he will not do well on to ensure he continues to get the help he needs. Evaluations to me are for baselines and to set therapy goals/figure out what a child's needs are. You know your child's needs and are getting help. The school is clearly trying to provide the help. Sometimes it is best to leave good alone. |
Anonymous
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Op you are being fed bs. The use of the term "test high" is an indicator of bs. There is no testing high on eligibility tests. Your child could be a Einstein and still be eligible for an IEP.
The grades on report cards have no bearing on whether your child has an iep or not. This is from a mom with an almost straight A student who has had an IEP for 9 years. Your child clearly has some issues that require the IEP. Even if they test your child and find him ineligible, you can fight it. If you disagree with the eligibility finding, then you can request an Independent Educational Evaluation and the school district will have to pay for it. The pp who are warning you not to test do not understand your rights. You should have your dc tested if you think it is needed and it sounds like it is. DO NOT TRUST THE SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST. |
Anonymous
+1 |
Anonymous
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I'm surprised by the number of posters above who do not understand op's rights in the special ed IEP process. You are giving op poor advice.
Op, you need to learn more about your rights and let the school psychologist know you do want to have your child tested and that if needed you will bring an advocate to make sure they interpret the test results correctly. Also, the testing done by the schools is not usually as thorough as the testing that will be done by a private provider via the IEE. Let the psychologist know you understand the process and he/she may stop gaming you. |