LEAs Must Share All Relevant Evaluative Information with Parents

Julie Weatherly featured an article in a journal titled In Case, Volume 48, Numbers 4-6; and in Volume 49, Numbers 1-2. The title of the article is Avoiding Legal Disputes in Special Education: 21 Training Points for Administrators. No-No #19 is failing to share all relevant evaluative information with parents as the failure to do so could be considered a procedural violation and might constitute a denial of a free and public education. At times, LEAs may be hesitant to share all information for fear of upsetting parents; however, all information must be shared to allow the parents to participate as equal and informed members in the development of an IEP. Although parents must be aware of all relevant evaluation data, there is no requirement for the LEA to provide the evaluation report in advance to parents. The US Department of Education commented in the 2006 IDEA that the Act "does not establish a timeline for providing a copy of the evaluation report or the documentation of determination of eligiibity to the parents and we do not believe that a specific timeline should be included in the regulations because this is a matter that is best left to state and local discretion."