The School Board of Broward County, Florida Level: Pre K-12 Date: August 2015 PARENT REQUESTED EVALUATIONS Summary: This Technical Assistance Paper (TAP) is intended to assist Broward County Schools in responding to parent requests for an evaluation. The following narrative is organized around key questions that will help you navigate the variety of situations presented by parent requests for an evaluation. Contact: Felicia Starke or Diana Cruz Phone: 754-321-3400 Coordinators, Due Process Issued by Exceptional Student Education & Support Services www.browardschools.com 1701 NW 23 rd Avenue Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311 754-321-3400
Parent Requested Evaluations This Technical Assistance Paper (TAP) is intended to assist Broward County Schools in responding to parent requests for an evaluation. The following narrative is organized around key questions that will help you navigate the variety of situations presented by parent requests for an evaluation. As described in subparagraph (3)(a)3. of 6A-6.0331, if a parent requests that the school conduct an evaluation to determine the kindergarten through grade 12 student s or child s age three (3) to kindergarten entry age eligibility for special education and related services as a student with a disability, the school district must within thirty (30) calendar days, unless the parent and the school agree otherwise in writing: 1. Obtain consent for the evaluation; or 2. Provide the parent with written notice in accordance with Rule 6A-6.03311, F.A.C., explaining its refusal to conduct the evaluation. 1. What constitutes a request for an evaluation? Requests for evaluation to which school personnel must respond with written documentation (i.e., either a signed Consent for Evaluation or a Notice of Proposal/Refusal, depending on the outcome of subsequent discussion) may come from two sources: (1) a written request from parents/guardians clearly indicating that they are asking for an evaluation of their child; or (2) a verbal request from parents/guardians made during a CPS Team meeting in which their child s progress at school is being discussed. Informal or conversational requests, such as those made during a parent-teacher conference, or during a phone call between a teacher and parents, do not constitute formal requests for evaluation. However, a teacher or other school personnel may inform parents that to have their request honored, they would need to put the request in writing, or arrange to attend a CPS Team meeting at the school to discuss their concerns. 2. What should be the response if a parent requests an evaluation and the school has not yet initiated the CPS/RtI process? The first step is to meet with the parents. The request is usually due to a concern on the parents part for their child s educational progress. Some parents may think the only way to access help is through testing. The parents expressed concern should initiate the CPS/RtI process and the school s CPS team should become activated at this point. For this initial meeting, the team should bring all available data on the student, including the CUM folder and teacher records. The parents should be encouraged to bring any data, private evaluations, or other information that would assist in decision-making. At this initial meeting explain to the parents that Florida State Rules governing ESE mandate CPS/RtI activities in the form of tiered interventions and collection of progress monitoring data in the general education classroom prior to (or concurrent with) referral for evaluation. Explain that in all cases involving suspected learning, behavior, and/or language problems, RtI data are a required part of the eligibility determination and may not be bypassed or omitted (i.e., they are a part of the evaluation). TAP Parent Requested Evaluations 2 Revised August 10, 2015
After hearing the parent s concerns, the MTSS process should be explained with a focus on the following: The CPS team will gather and review data to develop interventions that address the concern(s) raised; be specific about the kinds of data to be gathered and the types of interventions that may be implemented. Using language that the parents can understand, explain the tiered approach to intervention, emphasizing that it takes sufficient time to evaluate whether interventions are working or whether other strategies may be needed to achieve success. In many cases, the use of appropriate interventions will sufficiently address the parents concern(s). The evaluation helps to determine if the student is eligible for special education and related services; however, three categories of disability (SLD, EBD, LI) require collection and use of RtI progress monitoring data as part of the eligibility determination. Parents of students receiving targeted and/or intensive interventions will be provided updates through conferences as determined by the CPS team. Updates should be provided according to the guidelines established in SP&P (Part 1. Section G). All meetings with parents, and decisions made at those meetings, must be documented in writing. In cases where the school decides not to conduct an evaluation, a Notice of Proposal/Refusal will serve as written documentation; in cases where the school complies with the parents request for an evaluation, a Consent for Evaluation will serve as written documentation. The following actions should be taken depending on the given scenario below: a. If the school has current data that are shared with the parents indicating there is no need for the requested evaluation: a Notice of Refusal (see attachment A) should be completed and provided to the parents. The data must be strong enough to address each parent concern and able to withstand the scrutiny of a due process hearing should the parent object to the refusal. Addressing the parents concerns does not necessarily mean they agree, but that school personnel feel the data support the decision to refuse the parent s request for evaluation. b. If the school does not have data to make a decision regarding the parent s request: an effort should be made to ensure that the parents fully understand the benefits of MTSS. If the parents agree to try interventions prior to obtaining consent, a Notice of Proposal/ Refusal form should be completed (see attachment B). Notice must include in the If other factors relevant to this decision section the following information: i. The date of the request for evaluation from the parent ii. Parent agreement to implement the interventions iii. A plan to reconvene and review the graphed intervention data Provide the parent with the Notice of Proposal/Refusal form and have the parent sign the bottom of the second page indicating the agreement to continue providing the interventions (see attachment B). c. If the parents insist on signing consent for evaluation AND the team does not have sufficient data to deny the request, OR if the school based team suspects the student may be a student with a disability: the parents should sign Consent for Evaluation. Inform the parents that the interventions and other necessary data will be gathered within 60 calendar TAP Parent Requested Evaluations 3 Revised August 10, 2015
days from the day signed consent is received by the school. When the suspected disability is SLD, EBD, or LI, the use of RtI progress monitoring data is a required element when determining eligibility. In the specific case of suspected SLD, the evaluation must adhere to the timeframe required by Rule 6A-6.0331, F.A.C., unless extended by mutual written agreement of the student s parent(s) or guardian(s) and a group of qualified professionals. This provision is intended to assist with decision-making when the progress monitoring data from interventions is still unclear as the 60-day timeline nears completion. Parents must be provided the Extend 60 Day Letter located in EasyIEP (see attachment C). 3. Who can assist schools with determining if the data the school have are sufficient to refuse the parents request for evaluation? The CPS team can access their school psychologist or other appropriate evaluation specialists to review the data if there is a question in this area. 4. What if the parent brings a copy of a private evaluation to the meeting in which another professional has concluded that the child has a disability? The District is required to consider all outside information provided by the parent (see School Board Policy 6004.1, which addresses private evaluations). The team s consideration can be documented on the written response provided to the parent (ie. notice of proposal/refusal, consent for evaluation) in the Other factors relevant to this decision section. The FLDOE has indicated that when the suspected disability is SLD, EBD, or LI, the use of RtI progress monitoring data is a required element when determining eligibility. 5. In the interest of time and convenience, should school personnel ask a parent to sign a Consent for Evaluation in case it is needed at a later time? No. Consent is not obtained in case it is needed in the future. TAP Parent Requested Evaluations 4 Revised August 10, 2015
Parent Requested Evaluations Flow Chart School Receives Parent Request for Evaluation Student is currently being monitored by CPS/RtI Team (Tier 2 or 3) Student is currently participating in General Education Curriculum and being successful (Tier 1) School Reviews Data Meet with parents and review all available data CPS/RtI team agrees to conduct a comprehensive evaluation CPS/RtI team determines that interventions in place need to be continued Generate Notice of Refusal for Comprehensive Evaluation Obtain Initial Consent for a Comprehensive Evalauation CPS/RtI team meets with parent(s), reviews data graphs and current interventions If the parent does not agree to implement the interventions then Obtain initial Consent for a Comprehensive Evaluation concurrently with the tiered interventions* Parent agrees to contnuing to collect data on the interventions Generate a Notice of Proposal/ Refusal Notice must document (within 20 school days) 1) Proposal to implement interventions 2) Refusal to Evaluate at this time 3) Other factors: Date of written request for evaluation Parent agreement for continuing interventions Date to reconvene and review data from intervention *In the case of a suspected learning/ language disability, the evaluation is the progress monitoring data collected from implementing tiered interventions. CPS/RtI team continues to collect progress monitoring data for the interventions Intervention successful Interventions unsuccessful at Tier 3 Notice of Refusal to Evaluate Obtain Initial Consent for a Comprehensive Evaluation