Understanding the IEP Process: The Referral
First Things First, Check Your Mindset
If you’re new to the IEP process, or even if you’ve been through it before, I believe everyone can agree that this can be a huge learning curve for parents. In the right circumstances, you have a school and parent team (a dynamic duo of sorts) that come together with the common goal of supporting a child so that the child can be successful in their educational journey.
That being said, while intentions are typically good, the execution of the Special Education process (from referral to IEP development and beyond) can often get a bit off-track. The reasons for this are numerous (and could be their own blog posts, or 2 or 3…). However, as parents it is imperative to enter this space with the mindset of:
Assuming positive and helpful intent from the school, while remaining vigilant and focused on advocating for your child’s best interest.
Anyone who knows me, has heard me say the phrase “two things can be true at once”. It’s a favorite of mine! And I think it applies incredibly well here. In this instance, those “two things” are:
1. The school team wants to support your child because it is both their duty and their reason for the profession they are in.
2. The school or district’s perspective on what “appropriate” supports look like in action can become a bit misguided along the way. (Again, for a variety of reasons).
Thus, my statement above regarding the mindset I believe all parents should adopt when entering the journey of special education for their child. With that established, let’s get into today’s blog post!
What is a Special Education Referral?
If your child is already in their school years, the entry into Special Education will most likely begin with a referral for an evaluation- completed by their local school district. Now, as with anything else, there are always alternative paths to special education or related services (identification during early intervention services, sudden physical or medical disablement, etc.).
For the sake of today’s post, we are going to focus on the path of a child who is already in their school years, currently learning in a general education classroom with their same-aged peers.
In this scenario, a referral for evaluation is made. While this sounds formal, and maybe a bit intimidating, it is typically just a written request that is submitted to the district’s special education department. The structure of this request varies depending on the requestor.
Who Can Refer for Evaluation, and How?
1. TEACHERS: If a teacher is initiating the referral, schools often require them to submit answers to questions regarding their observed concerns, and submit data on the child’s present levels of performance (how they are currently operating in the classroom and school setting). This helps frame-up the “why” for the referral.
Many schools also require teachers to have previously met with the parents to inform them of the documented concerns and the school’s intent to refer. While this is not legally “required” it is certainly a best practice that I would love to see ALL educators adopt.
2. PARENTS: The other option is for a parent to request an evaluation. This is a right that all parents have, but often are not aware of. Let me be clear:
If you have concerns and suspect a disability that is impacting your child’s access to their education, you have every right to request a comprehensive psycho-educational evaluation.
Typically, to request an evaluation all you need to do is send an email to your school’s principal or leader with language such as:
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Dear (Name of Principal):
I am the parent of ______________, whose date of birth is _____________ and who is a student in the ___________ grade.
Because my child has not been doing well in school, I am requesting that s/he be evaluated to determine his/her eligibility for services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and/or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
I am particularly concerned about (List all areas you see producing problems at school that you wish to be considered, such as failing grades, inattentiveness, distractibility, inability to follow directions, problems completing school work, disorganization, behavior or social problems, etc.).
I would like to schedule this evaluation as soon as possible to determine the impact of ______________'s difficulties on his/her ability to learn or benefit from his/her educational program. Prior to the evaluation, I would like to know more about:
the tests to be given,
the testing process,
the date the evaluation will begin,
the name of the evaluator, and
the name(s) of the person(s) who will observe Christian under classroom conditions.
I understand that under state regulations, I am a member of the multidisciplinary team (MDT). I will be happy to provide information about my child's history, strengths and needs to other members of the team.
I hereby give my consent for a comprehensive psycho-educational evaluation to be conducted. I understand that under state regulations, the evaluation and Evaluation Report must be provided to me within 60 school days from the day of my consent.
I believe that, by working together, we can help _____________ experience success in school. If you have any questions about this request, please contact me during the day at (daytime phone number).
Thank you for your collaboration,
As you can tell in the sample letter above, I recommend including language regarding providing consent directly in your request. I suggest this because there is a timeline on initial evaluations. Meaning, the school district has 90 days (by federal law, however some states have even shorter timelines) to complete the evaluation and hold a meeting to review results. and determine eligibility. This 90-day “clock” begins once parental consent is obtained.
By expressing intentional consent in your request, this demonstrates to the school that you are expecting the 90-day clock to begin immediately, unless they inform you that they require additional consent documentation.
The Growing Barrier(s) to Evaluations
When a family requests a comprehensive evaluation, they may be met with some “barriers”. In this section, my goal is to properly inform you of these barrier’s legitimacy (or lack-there-of), and arm you with the confidence to continue moving forward with your request.
Barrier 1: RTI/MTSS Interventions
The Background: In recent decades, the concept of RTI (Response to Intervention) and MTSS (Multi-tiered Support Systems) has emerged. These systems (as with most things in education) emerged with good intent, but have quickly become wildly nuanced in application.
Many families ask me what the intent or origin of these supports are.
The short answer? A response to increase levels of support to all students, and satisfy a school district’s legal obligations under the Child Find expectation of IDEA.
RTI/MTSS is a structure of general education intervention supports designed to provide students with additional layers of support and more intensive instructional strategies, while collecting data to determine if there is a suspected disability that would require an evaluation.
Sounds great in theory, right?
The unfortunate reality is, while these structured interventions have enhanced the academic experience of non-disabled students, it has also subsequently led to a “wait to fail” model for many children with undiagnosed disabilities. Particularly in the realm of Specific Learning Disabilities (think dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, etc). These students have sat in these tiered intervention supports for prolonged periods of time (I’m talking sometimes years…), without an evaluation in sight.
The next question you might be asking yourself is….but WHY?!
Again, the quick answer? To be blunt… systemic issues with funding and staffing. Particularly in recent years, schools received an influx of money during Covid that was applied to Title 1 support staff and interventionits. The interventionists are the educators leading the RTI/MTSS programming.
You know what did not receive massive increases in budget? Special Education Departments. IDEA continues to be improperly funded by the federal government, and the perpetual cycle of “follow the money” continues.
______________________________
Your Rights: Regardless of whether your child is currently receiving interventions or not, if you have a valid reason to suspect a disability and request an evaluation, the school needs to evaluate.
Two things can be true at once- a child CAN continue in general education interventions AND the special education evaluation process can begin.
These support systems are not mutually exclusive.
So parents, I beg of you. Please do not allow language of “let’s first try some RTI/MTSS” dissuade you from pushing forward with an evaluation if you truly suspect a disability!
Barrier 2: “Staffing” or “Availability” Shortages Of Proper Evaluators
Next up, staffing shortages. I have had many families hear language of “our district only has (x) psychologists and a long list of evals to complete, so the evaluation might take a while”. This often then leads into a conversation of RTI/MTSS as a replacement option (reread the section above if needed!)
At the end of the day, I urge you to not allow these concerns dissuade you. Staffing and budgetary concerns are not a burden that families need to or are expected to concern themselves with. Balancing staffing and budgets are the roles of the district administration, not you!
Additionally, once consent is signed, the district has a 90-day time clock to complete the evaluation under federal law (IDEA), this is not something they can drag on outside of that time window.
Your Next Steps
Once evaluation has been requested, and parental consent has been provided- you’re off to the races! The “clock” will start, and the district will begin their internal processes of completing all requested evaluations.
Your next step will be at the eligibility meeting which will occur once all evaluations are complete.
Eligibility Determination is our next blog post … Stay Tuned!
