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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]My son's eligibility meeting is next week. I spoke with the school psychologist yesterday and she said he is due for testing but [b]if he tests too high he will no longer be eligible for services.[/b] 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. [/quote]

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.  [/quote]

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