| Specific Learning Disabilities |  | MN Rule 3525.1341
Eligibility Criteria
A pupil has a specific learning disability and is in need of special education and related services when the pupil meets the criteria in items A, B, and C. Information about each item must be sought from the parent and must be included as part of the evaluation data. The evaluation data must confirm that the disabling effects of the pupil’s disability occur in a variety of settings.
A. The pupil must demonstrate severe underachievement in response to usual classroom instruction. The performance measures used to verify this finding must be both representative of the pupil’s curriculum and useful for developing instructional goals and objectives. The following evaluation procedures are required at a minimum to verify this finding:
(1) evidence of low achievement from, for example, cumulative record reviews, classwork samples, anecdotal teacher records, formal and informal tests, curriculum based evaluation results, and results from instructional support programs such as Chapter 1 and Assurance of Mastery; and
(2) at least one team member other than the pupil’s regular teacher shall observe the pupil’s academic performance in the regular classroom setting. In the case of a child served through an Early Childhood Special Education program or who is out of school, a team member shall observe the child in an environment appropriate for a child of that age.
B. The pupil must demonstrate a severe discrepancy between general intellectual ability and achievement in one or more of the following areas: oral expression, listening comprehension, written expression, basic reading skills, reading comprehension, mathematical calculation, or mathematical reasoning. The demonstration of a severe discrepancy shall not be based solely on the use of standardized tests. The team shall consider these standardized test results as only one component of the eligibility criteria. The instruments used to assess the pupil’s general intellectual ability and achievement must be individually administered and interpreted by an appropriately licensed person using standardized procedures. For initial placement, the severe discrepancy must be equal to or greater than 1.75 standard deviations below the mean of the distribution of difference scores for the general population of individuals at the pupil’s chronological age level.
C. The team must agree that it has sufficient evaluation data that verify the following conclusions:
(1) the pupil has an information processing condition that is manifested by behaviors such as: inadequate or lack of expected acquisition of information, lack of organizational skills, for example, following written and oral directions; spatial arrangements; correct use of developmental order in relating events; transfer of information onto paper; visual and auditory memory; verbal and nonverbal expression; and motor control for written tasks such as pencil and paper assignments, drawing, and copying;
(2) the disabling effects of the pupil’s information processing condition occur in a variety of settings; and
(3) the pupil’s underachievement is not primarily the result of: visual, hearing, or motor impairment; developmental cognitive disabilities; emotional and behavioral disorders; environmental, cultural, or economic influences; or a history of inconsistent educational programming.
Contact Elementary:
Jan Parkman 293-8923 ext. 109 Janis.Parkman@spps.org
Mary Kelly 293-8923 ext. 110 Mary.Kelly@spps.org
Contact Secondary:
Larry Manchester 293-8923 ext.104 Laurence.manchester@spps.org
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