Do we really have to do formal assessments every three years?

The short answer to this question is no. You do not have to formally assess a student every three years if that is what the IEP team decides. However (you knew it was coming), there is a need to examine the student's transition plans. Typing in no formal assessments is needed simply because you don't want to do the extra paperwork is unfair to the student. Please note that while I am not condoning additional paperwork (that will never happen), I am also not condoning exceptional laziness. I care about providing appropriate testing and have recently encountered that someone I used to work with listed no formal assessment needed for every student who had a triennial. However, I will now contain my frustration and move along.

As I mentioned, we must consider the student's needs and desires. For instance, if I have a student planning to go into postsecondary education, will they want and need accommodations? If so, they need to make sure the college finds them eligible. Yes, once a student graduates or ages out of high school, IDEA is a thing of the past, and other laws provide different protections. IDEA can now be thought of as "back in the day," a comment I have learned to hate a little less. I apologize for digressing. To get back on track, a student who will need to show eligibility to have and use accommodations at a postsecondary level will need to show recent testing. What counts as recent testing is determined by the institution of higher education. It is usually up to about three years, but nothing is absolute. As Wadlington et al. (2017) state, it will behoove the student to have more recent testing.

If a student plans to go directly into employment, they may also need testing, although the IEP team will determine if the type of employment will require accommodations. Some employers may require vocational or on-the-job training, which may require accommodations. As in postsecondary education, some employers or testing agencies, such as the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE), require a specific timeline showing a diagnosis, which in this case is five years. Some students may decide to take this path after two or three years out of high school, which may mean that their diagnosis is no longer confirmed, and they will not be able to request any needed and reasonable accommodations listed by the employer and covered under ADA.

Finally, although I feel that many students will benefit from formal testing, some will not, and some will not need to be tested in every choice listed, although some options are not negligible. However, the gist of this post is to understand your student or child and determine if formal testing would benefit the student based on their transition needs.

https://www.ase.com/ada-accommodations-documentation-policy

Wadlington, C., DeOrnellas, K., & Scott, S. R. (2017). Developing effective transition reports for secondary students: A nationwide survey of college and university disability support personnel. Exceptionality, 25(3), 207–215.

As always, please leave a comment.

Neal Lieberman

Doctoral Student