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By JoAnn Collins
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Are you the parent of a young
child
that is concerned that your child may have a
disability? Have you been told by disability
educators that your child does not qualify for
special education services? This article will
discuss the criteria that school personnel must
use, by law to determine if a
child
is eligible for special education services.
In order for a
child to be found eligible they must
meet two criteria, according to the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): |
1. The
child must
have a disability, and
2. The
child must
have educational needs.
In order for special
education personnel to determine if a
child is
eligible, they must conduct a psychological evaluation
called a Case Study Evaluation (CSE) on the
child. Below
is a list of important things parents must know about
the CSE:
a. The parent must give
written consent for this to be done.
b. School personnel have
sixty days from when the parental consent is signed, to
finish evaluation.
c. More than one assessment
tool must be used; to gather all of the academic,
developmental, functional, information needed to
determine if the child
has a disability.
d. The
child must be
assessed in all areas of suspected disability.
e. They must use assessment
tools that provide important information that assists
them in determining the child's educational needs.
After the Case Study
Evaluation is complete an eligibility meeting is held.
The meeting is to go over the test results, and see if
the two criteria for eligibility are met. The parent is
to be an equal part of the team that determines if a
child has a
disability, and if they have educational needs. Parents
may bring information on their
child to help
the team make the decision.
If a
child has a
disability and educational needs, and does not receive
special education services, their lives may be
negatively affected. By knowing what criteria disability
educators are required to use by law, you can become an
effective advocate for your
child.
JoAnn Collins is the parent
of two adults with disabilities, has been an educational
advocate for over 15 years, an author, as well as a
speaker. JoAnn's recently released book: Disability
Deception; Lies Disability Educators Tell and How
Parents Can Beat Them at Their Own Game helps parents
develop skills to be an assertive and persistent
advocate for their
child. For more free articles, press release,
upcoming speaking engagements, go to
http://www.disabilitydeception.com Can be reached at
Phone Number 815-932-9263
More
Information...
You are
welcome to publish this article in its entirety,
electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as
you include my full signature file, and my Web site
address in hyperlink for other sites. Please send a
courtesy E-mail to
JoAnn@disabilitydeception.com
JoAnn Collins Copyright 2008
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