September 2012 FAQs

September 1st, 2012  

Q: On my Summary of Services page, I need to include a category of service that is not listed in the database. What do I do?
A: In most instances, you will not need to add what is not already listed. Most services your school provides will fall under a special education academic or behavior service or one of the common related services. If the team feels the need to specify a service outside of what is listed, fill in the “Other” field on the Summary of Services page. However, you can clarify services in the Additional Comments field. This might include clarifying that the “Reading” minutes will be focused on pre-academics or that the “Writing” minutes include 30 minutes in general ed 5 days a week and 30 minutes in sped 4 days a week. Please do not use the summary of services to match with a student’s class schedule.

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Q: I have a student that uses the Dragon Speak program. What areas of the IEP do I need to include that information?
A: Dragon Speak can be used as an assistive technology accommodation. You will include a description of the student’s strengths and needs related to this accommodation in the PLAAFP. You will mark the “Yes” box next to the assistive technology question in the Special Factors section of the IEP.  You will include Dragon Speak in the Program Modification/Accommodations page with a description of when and how it is to be used. Finally, if it is being used as an accommodation for testing, mark the box for “Using a computer without spell or grammar checker.”

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Q: Which day is the first day of an evaluation timeline?
A: The date the parent writes on the consent to evaluate is the first day of the timeline, i.e. if the meeting is at 5:00 pm on August 15, the first day to count is August 15. However, if the parent did not sign the consent at the meeting and returned it to you at a later date, the timeline begins on the date that the district (school) received the consent. Either way, write the received date at the bottom of the consent form and include that date in the database.

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Q: What is the purpose of turning in my paperwork from a meeting within two weeks? I have so much to do.
A: There are two main reasons for this. The first and most important reason is that if it isn’t turned into Central Office in two weeks, it likely hasn’t been provided to parents within two weeks. Parents have a right to this information within a reasonable amount of time. Secondly, Central Office needs time to review and file the paperwork and must have the most current paperwork always in the file in the event that records are requested from another district.

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Q: Are the educational needs statement fields on the ESER supposed to be in any particular order?
A: Yes! Once the evaluation process is complete and the IEP team reviewed the evaluation data, the team must identify and prioritize the educational needs. At the meeting, the team will list the needs in priority order and the recommendations to meet those needs. The team may discuss and determine that there are too many needs to address with a one year IEP and will choose to work on the first few needs for the upcoming IEP year. If that happens, you must provide an explanation of that discussion in the PLAAFP so that it is clear that these needs were not forgotten.

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April 2012 FAQs

April 1st, 2012  

Q:  I keep getting reminded that I need to include more on the PLAAFPs. Where do I find the info I am being asked to include?
A: Information for all areas of the PLAAFP needs to be gathered from a variety of sources. You will get a lot of the information from your ESER, if the evaluation was held recently. If not, some of that information may still be relevant, but you will also need to get information from a variety of other sources, i.e. SBA or HSGQE scores, your IEP team members, curriculum based measures and classroom assessments, IEP progress reports, etc.

Please review December’s newsletter and ask your program coordinator if you have any questions!! And remember:  At each annual review, the PLAAFP must be updated with the student’s current information! 

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Q: What is the 45-day timeline from consent to ESER?
R: The day that parents sign consent for any evaluation, a 45-school day timeline begins. The team has 45 school days from the date consent is signed to the date of the determination of eligibility. The 45 schools days must be counted carefully from the date of consent to the date of the meeting to determine eligibility (ESER). Remember to count only school days. **Note: Ideally all individual evaluation reports will be completed and available to the team, including the parent, prior to the meeting—around the 30 day mark of the timeline.

There have been several situations in the past few weeks where the timeline has been miscalculated result ing in timelines that are past due. Be sure to count and recount!

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Q: Why does it feel like the paperwork that I turn in is being “nit-picked”?
R: The paperwork that is kept in the district office is a student’s official educational record. The file must be maintained with a high level of professionalism. Documents contained therein cannot have spelling errors, incorrect dates, white-out, crossed out dates and words, etc. If you think about it, as educators, would we accept work from our students that had those kinds of errors?

Here are some things to be extra watchful of in regards to the signature cover page:

–  Ensure that you have the correct student’s cover page at your IEP meeting.
–  Once you print it, check that ALL dates at the top of the page are correct and match the meeting date.
–  Check that you have secured the parent signature on all applicable lines and boxes.

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Change to Consent for Eval Form: Vision & Hearing

February 15th, 2012  

The Consent for Evaluation form has been updated to add the words “(formal assessment)” after Hearing and Vision.  While vision and hearing screenings are part of the three-year process and should be documented on the Nurse’s Report, these regular screenings do not require parental consent.  Those categories should be checked on the consent form only if the student will be given a formal assessment of their vision or hearing—beyond the regular screening that all students get.  The Description of Tests and Procedures that prints along with the consent form has been updated as well.

Keep in mind that the categories that are checked on the Consent for Evaluation form should align with the assessments that are actually completed during the evaluation process. If the team decides at a later date that additional areas need to be evaluated, you must have the parent sign an additional consent to test to include those areas.  In the same vein, avoid checking extra areas on the consent form.  If an area is included on the Consent for Evaluation, there should be a subsequent evaluation of that area.

Snapshot of Evaluation checkboxes in IEP database

One final note on the Consent for Evaluation—

On the referral screen in the SpEd database, there are two dates in the Consent for Evaluation section.  The first date (Date Consent for Testing Sent to Parent) is the date that will print out at the top of the form.  Please remember to update this field before printing a new Consent for Evaluation when you are preparing for a three-year evaluation.  We frequently get forms that have a printed date from the previous three-year.

Snapshot of consent dates in IEP database

The second date is the date that you receive the signed consent form from the parent.  This is the date that begins the 45-day count in which the ESER process must be completed. In most cases this will be the date when the parent signed the form.  If there is a significant lag between the time the form was signed and the time that you actually received the form, then you should complete the “For District Use Only” section at the bottom of the form and note the date that you received the form.

Parents want to revoke consent for special education services?

November 28th, 2011  

There are many reasons a parent may decide to revoke consent for their child’s special education services. What do you do or say when a parent approaches you? What is the process?’

1. Encourage the parent to speak with the case manager or principal regarding their concerns and wishes. Perhaps there was a breakdown in communication that can be resolved to ensure the student continues receiving needed services.

2. Case manager will print the “Revocation of Consent for Special Services” form from the Filemaker Sped Launcher Database.

3. Case manager and/or principal will review the bulleted points on the form, ensuring the parent understands the full picture of his/her decision. Ask parent to think on it a couple of days, and if age appropriate, to speak to the child about the decision.

4. Obtain parental signature on the form. Provide copies to parent, school file, and original to district office file. Provide the parent with Prior Written Notice (PWN).  See sample revocation PWNs here and here.

Schools are encouraged to talk with their parents about the pros and cons of revoking consent for provision of special education services. Holding an IEP team meeting would allow parents to voice concerns and allow the school team an opportunity to respond to the request for revocation. At any point in the process, the school or the parent can contact the school’s Pupil Services Program Coordinator for assistance and/or more information.