[ Special Education Services ]
Developmental Evaluations
The Referral Process
What Happens If.....
As a parent/guardian, a teacher tells you he/she is concerned that your child is having difficulties in school and should be evaluated? Many thoughts may run through your mind. "What's wrong? Is he going to have trouble in school? Does he need extra help? How can I get extra help? What happens next?" We would like to explain the evaluation process within our Agency to help ease some of those fears and concerns.
If a teacher or parent/guardian has a concern, he/she contacts the school district to make a referral. The district obtains consent from the parent/guardian for an evaluation. If the parent/guardian does not consent, the evaluation will not take place. However, if the parent/guardian agrees, the Special Services Director receives permission to get things started. An appointment is set up to complete a psychological evaluation. These evaluations are completed by one of two psychologists working with our Agency that have extensive experience working with young children. When the family arrives for the evaluation, the child works with the psychologist and the parents/caregivers complete a social history. The social history is simply gathering background information about the child's family, birth information, health history, etc.
After the psychologist has completed the evaluation, the next step is for therapists to evaluate the child. If the referral is made due to speech concerns, our speech and language pathologist evaluates the child. Most often, this is done within the child's school environment. If that is not possible, or if the child does not attend school, we may ask the family to return to our building for testing. At this time, any other concerns are attended to. If, for example, there is a concern about writing, or fine motor skills, our occupational therapist will evaluate the child also.
For an evaluation to be complete, it needs to have four major parts:
- a psychological evaluation,
- a social history,
- a medical evaluation (which is obtained from the family physician) and
- an evaluation in the area (or areas) of concern (speech, fine motor, gross motor, or cognitive).
Once the report is finished, the parents/caregivers, school district, and health department receive a copy. At this point, parents/ caregivers are encouraged to contact our Agency with any questions or concerns they may have. We are willing to address any concerns about the report. Next, a CPSE (Committee for Preschool Special Education) meeting is scheduled at the school district. The above people will be invited, in addition to a member from our Agency to explain the findings within the report.
At that meeting, it will be decided, as a group, what help is necessary for the child to succeed. It will be determined at that time if the child does or does not need therapy. If it is determined that he needs to attend a special education preschool to further his gains over time, it will be determined then. All decisions are made as a group and the job of the CPSE is to determine what is necessary for the child and is most appropriate. Parents/caregivers are encouraged to voice their opinions and concerns.
Therapy or preschool starts after the school board meets to approve the decisions made by the CPSE. After that, the CPSE meets annually to review the child's plan and services. Changes are made accordingly and as a group.
The process is time consuming and rather involved, however, parents/caregivers should know that they may ask questions at any time and that the final purpose of any evaluation is to get children the services they need.
