Betsy Posted February 26 Posted February 26 We are approaching our first reevaluation 3 years after my son's initial evaluation at school, which was followed by an outside IEE paid for by the district. The district initially found minimal issues and said my son didn't qualify. What do I need to ask for in reassessment to assure that we're able to compare current tests to the IEE? How do you document in the PLOP The successes of the student with *accommodations and specialized instruction* in place, and still justify the need for services? Do students have to remain below the 18th percentile in some areas in order to qualify for an IEP? Without the accommodations and support, he'd fall apart. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
JSD24 Posted February 26 Posted February 26 If your child stops qualifying for an IEP & specialized instruction, the disability diagnosis doesn't go away so he'd still qualify for accommodations under Section 504. I took an online dyslexia training that was given by Sally Shaywitz (she wrote the book on dyslexia) and she said that extra time for tests is something that a dyslexic may always need. She cited people in college and medical school who continued to need - and more importantly receive - accommodations long after their eligibility for an IEP ended. (This was a free class on Coursera. You might want to look into taking it.) So to address your upcoming concern, we need to see what the school does with the triennial eval coming due. They have 2 choices. (1) They can do a reeval that shows your child continues to need an IEP & the specialized instruction they have. Also possible that a reeval shows that the IEP isn't needed and you request an IEE that shows it is needed. (2) They can do an RR - records review. With a records review, the student would continue to qualify for an IEP. To exit a student from an IEP, evaluations are needed so a RR is a sign that the IEP will stay in place. The best thing for you to do is collect data. Keep a log of the issues you see. It might consist of how long homework takes and how much support you provide to him at home. Does he need help understanding instructions? Can he independently do a math word problem or does he need help with reading the problem? If he has to read a book for a book report, does he decode it independently or does he need an audiobook? Also, talk to him. Ask him what he feels would happen if something in his IEP was to go away. Does he rely on talk to text to write the book report? Does he need the pull-out for reading instruction or are they covering things he already knows (he might still need special instruction if he says 'no' but it could be the instruction needs to be different)? There doesn't seem to be a rubric where at XX percentile, the student no longer needs an IEP. Access is key. He should be able to access grade level material that needs to be read w/o extra help. This should be when the IEP goes away but the accommodations should stay. Lastly, audiobooks are an accommodation. This could be something he'll grow to not need or it could be something he'll need long term. (Which way this goes depends on the severity of the dyslexia.) There are phone apps that translate a photo of text into speech. If he needs this sort of help long term, he should be taught how to independently access this sort of accommodation. My thought is that prescription labels and instructions on food packaging or ingredient lists will be things he needs to read and understand. Driving directions, bus & plane schedules and signs are things that adults need to be able to comprehend. If he can access these independently, he might not need the IEP.
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