IEPs and Private Evaluations

Submitted by an LD OnLine user on

Hi,

My daughter had a private S/L evaluation done a few weeks ago. I would like to request a child study team to look over the results and possibly write an IEP. Can I do this? Are they under any obligation to accept the test results or does she have to be evaluated by the school’s SLP in order to have an IEP put in place? Also, do I make the request through her teacher or should I call the school’s guidance counselor? Thanks!

Submitted by scifinut on Sun, 10/08/2006 - 3:02 PM

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Yes, you can request that they look over the testing but the school will request that they have a chance to test her themselves.

A written letter to the principal requesting testing under IDEA is what you would need to start with. http://www.wrightslaw.com has lots of information on the process, how to deal with the system, documentation, etc.

Submitted by Drae on Thu, 10/12/2006 - 4:56 AM

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Thank you! I wonder if it would be best if I just requested an evaluation and then tossed in the results of the private evaluation when everything was reviewed…

Submitted by scifinut on Thu, 10/12/2006 - 12:58 PM

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That would probably be a good way to handle it. It is appropriate to submit private testing results during the evaluation process. You will need to do that at the beginning so that the SLP for the school doesn’t use the same tests that were used by your private SLP. This would invalidate the results.

Submitted by maryellen on Sat, 11/25/2006 - 11:02 AM

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I am interested what brought you to seek an independent eval? My daughter was recently tested by the school district for Speech and the results I’m not too sure about. Long story short she was evaluated for articulation when she has CAPD. The Therapist did not do the test that the PhD Audiologist recommended. Does private insurance cover speech evaluations? Is the school district responsible for independent eval if you do not agree with thier results? Thanks.

Submitted by scifinut on Mon, 11/27/2006 - 4:15 AM

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It sounds like the school didn’t even do the appropriate testing. You can write a letter disagreeing with the test and the results and request an Independent Eduational Evaluation, which the district is responsible to pay for. http://www.studentadvocacycenter.org/sampleletters/ - this site has a number of good sample letters that just need to be modified to fit your state.

The reason we requested an IEE was that the testing for my dd was not thorough enough. When she failed to gain anything after a year they wanted to blame it all on her having Bipolar and ADHD. It took months of letter writing and meetings to get the IEE but it was SO worth it. Professional testing revealed severe difficulties in a variety of areas that required interventions. Once these interventions were in place and she was getting appropriate services, she started to make progress.

Good luck!

Submitted by maryellen on Fri, 12/08/2006 - 10:45 AM

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Thank you for your suggestion. I have written one letter already, but really like the sample letters to give me an outline to follow (I have a tendency to ramble). I wante to let you know that when going through the family history with DD’s Neuropsychologist, she said she would question a diagnosis of bipoloar at a young age (our niece was diagnosed bipolar at age 9). Good luck to you too.

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