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When a preschooler is struggling, how do we figure out whether they need special education?

Preschool evaluation isn’t simply K–12 evaluation with younger children. Before kindergarten, we’re looking at development differently—and that changes the questions we ask, the areas we evaluate, and how eligibility may be determined.

In Part 4 of the Evaluation Series, we continue to look at federal eligibilities by taking a closer look at preschool evaluation and determining eligibility, including the developmental framework used with young children and why the general education curriculum isn’t the starting point it is for K–12 eligibility.  And because eligibility requirements can vary from state to state, we’ll talk about why understanding your state’s rules and procedural safeguards matters when you’re navigating preschool evaluation.

Who Is This For?

Parents & Caregivers
If you’re wondering whether your preschooler may need an evaluation, what that evaluation should look like, or what happens when eligibility is considered, this is a place to start.

Parent Advocates & Attorneys
Build a stronger understanding of the developmental and eligibility considerations that apply before kindergarten.

Educators & Administrators
Understand how preschool evaluation differs from the K–12 eligibility process and why that distinction matters.

Evaluators
Take a closer look at assessment and eligibility considerations for preschool-aged children.

Speech-Language Pathologists & Related Service Providers
Understand how your area of expertise contributes to multidisciplinary preschool evaluation and eligibility decisions.

Students & Emerging Professionals
Build a practical foundation for understanding how eligibility is considered before a child enters the special education system.

Evaluation Series

Part 4: Preschool Evaluation & Eligibility

Before kindergarten, we aren’t asking exactly the same questions. Understanding what changes—and why—is an important part of understanding eligibility.

So, Does the Student Qualify?

You’ve gone through the referral process. You’ve considered what else might be affecting the student’s learning. You’ve completed the evaluation.

Now comes the big question: Does the student qualify for special education?

It isn’t as simple as finding a diagnosis or getting a particular test score. Eligibility is a team decision, and the team has to determine which eligibility category best explains why the student is not making adequate progress in the general education curriculum.

In this webinar, we take a closer look at that process and then begin the examination of the federal disabilities.  In this session, we discuss Other Health Impairment, Orthopedic Impairment, and Traumatic Brain Injury.

These three categories have something in common that makes them especially interesting: medical certification is part of the process. But that doesn’t mean a doctor’s signature automatically makes a student eligible for special education.

Who Is This For?

Parents & Caregivers
If your child has a medical diagnosis and you’re trying to understand what that means for special education, this webinar helps separate the medical piece from the educational eligibility decision.

Parent Advocates
Understand how eligibility decisions are actually made—and why a diagnosis and special education eligibility aren’t necessarily the same thing.

Attorneys
Explore the relationship between medical documentation, evaluation data, state requirements, and the team’s eligibility decision.

Educators & Administrators
Get a clearer picture of how medical conditions connect to educational needs and when they may—or may not—result in special education eligibility.

Evaluators & Related Service Providers
Take a closer look at the eligibility process and the distinct roles of medical providers and multidisciplinary evaluation teams.

Students
Build a practical understanding of three eligibility categories that have some very specific requirements.

Part of the Evaluation Series

The testing is finished. Now the team has to figure out what it all means.

Beyond the Test Scores

So, the testing is finally happening. Now what?

It can be tempting to think that a special education evaluation is mostly about giving tests and looking at the scores. But the scores are only one piece of the picture.

In Part 3 of the Evaluation Process Series, we get into what happens when the formal assessment begins—and why understanding a student means looking beyond the numbers.

The goal isn’t simply to find a score that fits a category. It’s to put the information together, ask the right questions, and understand what the student needs in order to make educational progress.

And sometimes, you go into an evaluation looking for one thing and discover something else that is much more important.

Who Is This For?

Parents & Caregivers
If you’re looking at an evaluation report and wondering what all those tests and scores actually mean, this webinar helps put the testing process into perspective.

Parent Advocates
Understand what should be happening behind the scores—and why the evaluation can’t be reduced to a collection of test results.

Attorneys
Get a clearer picture of how assessment information is gathered and interpreted within a school-based evaluation.

Educators & Administrators
Understand how formal assessment fits into the larger evaluation process and educational decision-making.

 Evaluators & Related Service Providers

Take a closer look at how assessment results are selected, interpreted, and brought together to answer educational questions.

Students
Build a practical understanding of how different professionals and sources of information contribute to a comprehensive evaluation.

Part 3 of the Evaluation Process Series

The numbers matter. They just aren’t the whole story.

What Else Could Be Going On?

When a child is struggling in school, it’s easy to jump straight to the question: “Does this child have a disability?”

But before a special education evaluation can answer that question, there’s another one that has to come first:

What else could be affecting this child’s learning?

In Part 2 of the Evaluation Process Series, we take a closer look at the things that can affect a student’s performance—and why they matter when deciding whether a special education evaluation will give us meaningful information.

Sometimes the answer really is a disability. Sometimes there’s something else going on. And sometimes there are several things happening at once.

Who Is This For?

Parents & Caregivers
If your child is struggling at school, understanding what schools are supposed to consider before testing can help you make sense of the process.

Parent Advocates
A closer look at the questions that should be asked before an evaluation can help you understand how evaluation decisions are being made.

Attorneys
Understanding the role of rule-out factors provides important context when reviewing evaluations and eligibility decisions.

Educators & Administrators
Learn why a student’s struggles can’t always be understood by looking at academic performance alone.

Evaluators & Related Service Providers
Explore the reasoning behind considering the student’s broader educational history and circumstances before interpreting assessment data.

Students
Build a clearer understanding of how factors outside of a disability can affect learning and evaluation results.

Part 2 of the Evaluation Process Series

Before we ask “What does the testing tell us?”, we have to ask “What else might be affecting what we’re seeing?”