First things first: Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers in the Smarten Up family! We may be a day late, but one day is not nearly enough to celebrate the transformative power of mothers. That power (and responsibility) is also written into law—this week’s blog post outlines the legal rights of parents in making choices for their children’s education.
The IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) exists to give students with disabilities access to a free and appropriate public education. The federal law includes legal rights (referred to as “safeguards”) that families should understand as they apply to their child’s education. Here are some of the specific rights parents have under this federal law, organized into four major categories:
Participation
Under IDEA, parents have the right to fully participate in all decision-making about their child’s educational program. It is, of course, wise to consider input from all school professionals. However, all decisions about a child’s education need to be signed off on by the parent. This includes every step from evaluation, to diagnosis, to the child’s placement in an educational setting. Teachers and other school professionals will, of course, give their recommendations, but the parent has final say.
Information
Parents have the right to access all of their child’s records at any time. They may also request any necessary corrections be made so that all information on file with the school is accurate and complete. Any information which needs updating, or which the parent feels is misleading in any way must be updated by the school in a reasonable time frame.
Confidentiality
In most cases, parents have the right to choose who has access to their child’s educational records. Schools may not disclose information about an individual child without the parent’s consent, with a few exceptions. This information includes personal information, like their name and address, as well as academic and medical information like disability diagnosis. Parents also have the right to know how their child’s school shares, stores, and disposes of students’ records. Specific policies regarding the handling of records vary from state to state.
Consent
As stated above, the parent must give consent for any formal supports to be put in place by the school. This includes big changes like the child’s classroom placement, as well as small changes, like writing “preferential seating” into their IEP. Nothing can be formally implemented without the parents’ permission!
School’s Rights to Keep in Mind
While the law under IDEA rightfully gives parents lots of control over their child’s education, the school has some rights to keep in mind as well.
Schools may hold IEP meetings without a parent present if significant effort has been made to reach a parent and there has been no response.
Parent consent only refers to formal decisions that affect the child’s instruction and/or setting. Teachers may (and should!) implement strategies for your child on a more informal basis, which you may or may not be aware of. These are regular parts of a teacher’s instructional agenda and do not usually require parent involvement.
In very extreme cases, when the safety or health of the child or someone else is in jeopardy, schools have the right to disclose information to medical professionals in the event that the parent cannot be reached.
If you have any concerns about the supports or services your child is receiving in school, talk to a teacher. A positive and communicative relationship between parent and teacher is one of the most important pillars to a student’s success!