The Infamous Independent Educational Evaluation

Have you ever walked into your child’s IEP meeting and when you are handed their assessment it seems so small and vague? More times than not District’s assessors do not provide a thorough and truly comprehensive evaluation. As a Parent, if you are not familiar with the format of these evaluations or what should be included in them, how are you to know what a good evaluation consists of? This  is a great example  of a comprehensive evaluation. It is crucial that evaluations be complete in order to provide you with the most information to draft the most personalized goals and IEP.

As a Parent you have the right to request an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE), at the District’s expense, if you do not agree with the their assessment. An Independent Educational Evaluation is an evaluation done by a person whom is not employed or has any relation with your School District. IEE’s are a crucial tool in the development of personalized education plans. These evaluations are detailed and contain as much information as possible about your child and his/her needs.

Reasons that a Parent can request an IEE are:

• You disagree with the District’s evaluation
• Incomplete assessments (assessment did not test all areas, there were tests that were missing,
• The assessments are inaccurate (information is not correct, wrong tests were administered)

If u r trying to get more appropriate or intensive services it is an IEE that u need. Your independent assessor can make recommendations that are more appropriate to your child rather than what the district may not be willing to offer in an IEP meeting. It never hurts to request an Independent Educational Evaluation from the school district. They will either say yes or file a due process to prove their evaluation is appropriate. If they file withdrawal your request. At that point u may want to privately fund an evaluation. But don’t forget to give the school district prior notice and share the report with the team. If set up correctly an advocate or special education attorney may be able to get your expense reimbursed.