Special Education Eligibility & Evaluation

Topics:

Special Education
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Overview

Special Education Eligibility and Evaluation Standards - A guidance document describing the essential elements of the process by which students are identified and evaluated for special education under IDEA and state law.

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Breadth of the Guidance

The Standards are to be used in initial eligibility determinations, re-evaluations, and considerations of exit from special education for learners ages 3-21 (Iowa Administrative Code 281-41). They describe the process to determine whether a child has a disability and needs special education. They describe the collaborative process between general and special educators before, during and after the special education eligibility process. They are to be used for children who may have a disability and need for special education in any or all of the performance domains (academic, behavior, physical, health, hearing, vision, adaptive behavior, and communication).

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The Iowa Department of Education (Department) has the legal authority to “prescribe minimum requirements for children requiring special education to be admitted” to special education instructional programs. Iowa Code 256B.3(5)(2011). The Standards reflect authoritative interpretations of school laws and rules and thus compliance with and attainment of these Standards will be used by The Department to determine compliance with federal and state law.

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Standards

While listed as separate Standards, the ten Standards form a coherent whole and depend on each other for their meaning.

  1. Qualified professionals must be part of all decisions about a child’s special education eligibility.
  2. All special education decisions are based on sound data.
  3. When a public agency suspects that a child might have a disability that might require special education, the agency seeks parental consent for an initial evaluation.
  4. Children and parents receive procedural protections whenever special education eligibility is questioned, reviewed, or established.
  5. Evaluations are fair, thorough and comply with the requirements of special education law.
  6. To be eligible for special education, a child must have a “disability.”
  7. If a child’s low performance is due to lack of opportunity to learn or due to cultural or language difference, the child does not have a “disability.”
  8. A child’s disability must cause a need for special education before the child is eligible for special education.
  9. A child’s evaluation determines and describes the eligible individual’s special education needs.
  10. If a child is eligible for special education services, the child’s IEP team uses evaluation data to draft an IEP that addresses the needs identified in the evaluation.
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Parent Request for Initial Evaluation

The following explains that parents have the right to request an evaluation for special education at any time, and provides guidance for public agencies on appropriate responses.

There are often questions and concerns about the right of a parent to request an evaluation for special education services when the parent’s child is participating in general education interventions. The Department hereby restates longstanding positions on this general issue.

  1. Federal (34 C.F.R. § 300.226) and state (Iowa Administrative Code 281-41.312) law recognize the value of attempts to resolve educational difficulties prior to referral to special education. Since August 1995, the federal government has approved Iowa’s rule for general education interventions.
  2. Iowa’s rule on general education interventions specifically provides that that a parent may request an evaluation “at any time.” Iowa Administrative Code 281-41.312(4).
  3. Not every parent request for an initial evaluation needs to be granted. A full initial evaluation is required only if a child is suspected of having a disability. If a public agency does not suspect a child of having a disability, the agency need not conduct an initial evaluation. Letter to Williams, 20 IDELR 1210 (OSEP 1993). In that case, the parent is entitled to a prior written notice, including an explanation of why the public agency refuses to conduct the evaluation. Id.; see Iowa Administrative Code 281-41.503.

  4. If, at any time and for any reason, a public agency suspects a child of having a disability, the agency must seek consent to evaluate. According to the United States Department of Education,

    it would generally not be acceptable for an LEA to wait several months to conduct an evaluation or to seek parental consent for an initial evaluation if the public agency suspects the child to be a child with a disability.

    71 Fed. Reg. 46,637 (Aug. 14, 2006).

  5. Several parents have been advised that their children would not be evaluated because their children had not completed a required number of days in general education interventions or had not progressed through a requisite number of “tiers” or “levels.” This is inappropriate. The only relevant question is, “Is this child suspected of having a disability?” If the answer is “yes,” parental consent for an initial evaluation must be requested, regardless of the amount of time in general education interventions or the number of layers, levels, or tiers in which the child has been involved. As stated by the United States Department of Education concerning pre-referral interventions, “the LEA cannot refuse to conduct the evaluation or delay the evaluation until the alternative strategies have been tried if the LEA suspects the child has a disability.” Letter to Anonymous, 19 IDELR 498 (OSEP 1992).

Parent Request for Initial Evaluation

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Other Eligibility Resources

The following resources provide additional guidance regarding topics related to Special Education Eligibility and Evaluation for learners ages 3 to 21 in Iowa.

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