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Barre Town Supervisory
District Policy Manual
TITLE: Schedule A
CODE: IHBB-R1
Schedule A
Evaluation Criteria for Independent
Educational Evaluations Initiated by District or Parents at Public Expense
The following procedures and criteria apply
to all independent educational evaluations to be conducted at district
expense. Failure to comply with the criteria and/or procedures listed may
result in the district's refusal to fund an independent evaluation.
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Location: All evaluations shall be conducted within the State of Vermont
or within a 150-mile radius of the Barre Supervisory Union Office,
Barre, VT (the "designated area"). Under special circumstances for
example, where either scheduling or the uniqueness of the issue to be
evaluated render assessment within the designated area impracticable),
evaluations may be sought outside the designate area, with the prior
written approval of the Superintendent. The person seeking an evaluation
outside of the designated area shall show (a) that unique circumstances
require evaluation outside the designated area; (b) that the costs of
the evaluation are not excessive. Other criteria listed below shall
still apply, and reimbursement for approved associated expenses (meals,
room, travel) shall be limited to the current $10 per day supervisory
union rates for meals and $.32 per mile for travel. Travel other than by
car, and lodging (if approved by the Superintendent), shall be limited
to the allowable expenses for one adult and the child and shall be
arranged by the district.
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Qualifications of Evaluators:
A. Evaluators must have the following minimum qualifications:
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Have knowledge in the particular area for
which information is sought and meet applicable state licensing and/or
endorsement requirements;
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Be trained in administering the evaluation
procedure(s) and in scoring and interpreting the results, as required
by and in conformance with the instructions provided by the producer
of the evaluation procedure.
B. In addition, where eligibility in any of the following categories of
disability is concerned, the evaluator must be licensed in the
applicable field specifically indicated by the appropriate provision of
the VDE Rule 2362.1(1) [ or successor provisions]:
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Visual impairment: optometrist or
ophthalmologist;
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Hearing impairment: audiologist, otologist
or otolaryngologist;
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Speech impairment: speech-language
pathologist;
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Orthopedic impairment: physician;
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Chronic or acute health impairment:
physician;
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Serious emotional disturbance:
psychologist or psychiatrist;
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Voice impairment: otolaryngologist;
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Autism: physician;
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Traumatic brain injury: physician.
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Itemization or Description of Services: If an evaluation consists of the
administration of more than one test, the bill for the fee should be
itemized, including a description of each service performed, the
identity of each evaluator, and the hours spent by each individual
evaluator performing any portion of the evaluation.
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Permissible Evaluation Tools and Techniques:
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Independent evaluation costs are limited
to reasonable and necessary expenditures for necessary and appropriate
evaluation procedures. "Evaluation procedures" are defined as
observation of the student and other necessary and appropriate
diagnostic measures. They do not include time for evaluator research,
parent consultation, or other tasks not directly involving
administration of a diagnostic procedure.
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No area shall be evaluated nor shall any
evaluation procedure be carried out unless appropriate justification
can be given for it. No area should be the subject of an independent
educational evaluation unless the evaluation and planning team has had
an opportunity to consider whether there is reason to evaluate the
student in such area. VDE Rule 2362.2.4(1)
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Tests and other evaluation materials must
meet the special evaluation requirements set forth in VDE Rule
2362.2.5; and federal rules 34 C.F.R. 104.35(b) and 34 C.F.R. 300.532.
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The independent evaluator shall be
familiar with Vermont's criteria for eligibility under VDE Rule 2362
(1) (a)-(c) and (2) and categories of disability as outlined in VDE
Rule 2362.1(1) and (2), including the fact that the eligibility
determination is to be made by the evaluation and planning team, not
by an individual evaluator. The task of the independent evaluator is
to develop diagnostic relevant information about the child for
consideration by the evaluation and planning team, in determining
eligibility, not for the independent evaluator to determine
legibility. The evaluator's report may include diagnostic findings to
support or refute the existence of a disability in one or more
disability categories; that the student is or is not functioning
significantly below expected age or grade norms in one or more basic
skills; and that the student is or is not in need to specially
designed instruction to meet the unique needs of the child with
disabilities, as required by VDE Rule 2362 (1)(c).
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Tests should be selected and administered
so as best to ensure that if a test is administered to a child with
impaired sensory, manual, or speaking skills, the test results
accurately reflect the child's aptitude or achievement level or
whatever other factors the test purports to measure, rather than
reflecting the child's impaired sensory, manual or speaking skills
(unless those skills are the factors that the test purports to
measure).
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Assessment tools and strategies should
provide relevant information that directly assists person in
determining the educational needs of the child.
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Inclusion of Unusual Circumstances; Departure from Standard Assessment
Conditions: The independent evaluator shall note in his/her report any
unusual circumstances of the testing or evaluation session which may
have affected the results. If the assessment is not conducted under
standard conditions, this should include (but is not limited to) a
description of the extent to which it varied from standard conditions
(for example, the qualifications of the person administering the test,
or the method of test administration).
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Provision of Access to Raw Data: Evaluators must make available, upon
request, protocols and other underlying raw data on which their
evaluations are based in order for the evaluation and planning team
and/or IEP team to consider the weight of evaluation results.
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Observation: Where observation of the student in the classroom is deemed
necessary to duly conduct an evaluation, the Director of Special
Education shall contact the independent evaluator to make the
arrangements necessary to observe the child. The Director of Special
Education, in consultation with the evaluator, the teacher of the class
to be observed, and any other appropriate district personnel, shall
determine the length, location and timing of the observation, to
minimize disruption to the class and student. Where a parent's
independent evaluator requests an opportunity to observe, such evaluator
shall be given an opportunity to observe at least comparable to any
opportunities to observe accorded to the district's evaluator.
c:Mac
1st
Reading: 6/7/00
2nd
Reading/Date Adopted: 6/21/00
Date Revised:
Date Effective:
Legal Reference(s):
Cross References:
Date Distributed:
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