Eligibility Criteria

General Information 

Following an assessment, the IEP team, including assessment personnel, shall make the decision as to whether or not the assessment results demonstrate that the degree of the student's impairment requires special education and/or related services (EDC §56320 & §3030) .  The IEP team shall consider all the relevant information available about the student. No single score or product of scores shall be used as the sole criterion for the decision of the IEP team as to the student's eligibility for special education. In making a determination for eligibility, a student shall not be determined to be an individual with exceptional needs if the determining factor is one of the following (EDC §56321(a)(2)) : 

• Lack of appropriate instruction in reading 
• Lack of appropriate instruction in mathematics 
• Due primarily to limited school experience or poor school attendance 
• Is a result of environmental, cultural differences, or economic disadvantages 
• Could be corrected through other interventions and supports offered within the general education program 
• Limited-English proficiency 

To receive special education and related services under Part B of IDEA (34 CFR §300.8), a child must be evaluated to determine both: 

• Whether they have a disability, and 
• Whether they, because of the disability, need special education and related services. 

The need for special education and related services is determined by the adverse impact of the disability on educational performance, despite consistently applied and documented general education accommodations to support a student’s academic progress, social-emotional functioning, and/or behavioral functioning. The term “educational performance” as used in the IDEA and its implementing regulations, is not limited to academic performance (Letter to Clark, Office of Special Education Programs March 8, 2007). Adverse impact on educational performance could be documented by the pervasive nature of any combination of the following: 

• The student is not making satisfactory progress toward grade-level standards. 
• There is an overall pattern of poor or failing grades present for an extended period of time on grade reports. 
• Quality and degree of task completion are significantly below the range of the class. 
• The student demonstrates a significant difference between ability and achievement on standardized and curriculum-based achievement tests. 
• The student demonstrates a pattern of missing instruction due to behavior challenges. 
• The student’s social-emotional functioning is interfering with the student’s ability to attend school, engage with peers, and/or complete schoolwork.   

Eligibility Categories 

Under the IDEA, a student with a disability refers to a student “evaluated in accordance with 34 CFR §300.304   through §300.311 as having an intellectual disability, a hearing impairment (including deafness), a speech or language impairment, a visual impairment (including blindness), a serious emotional disturbance (referred to in this part as “emotional disturbance”), an orthopedic impairment, autism, traumatic brain injury, an other health impairment, a specific learning disability, deaf-blindness, or multiple disabilities, and who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services.” 34 CFR §300.8(a)(1) The IDEA sets forth how states define who is eligible for special education, and these 13 categories are defined by the California Code of Regulations (5 CCR §3030) for determining eligibility in California. The list below reflects all 13 categories followed by corresponding definitions.   

• Specific Learning Disability (SLD) 
• Other Health Impairment (OHI) 
• Emotional Disturbance (ED) 
• Speech or Language Impairment (SLI) 
• Autism (AUT) 
• Intellectual Disability (ID) 
• Hard of Hearing (HH) 
• Deafness (DEAF) 
• Visual Impairment (VI) 
• Orthopedic Impairment (OI) 
• Deaf-Blindness (DB) 
• Multiple Disabilities (MD) 
• Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) 

Eligibility Summarized (perEDC §56320  and 5 CCR §3030). 

Specific Learning Disability (SLD) 

A specific learning disability means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken, or written, that may have manifested itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. A specific learning disability can include conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. These conditions are medically diagnosed and do not automatically make a student eligible for special education and related services. A medical diagnosis may trigger an evaluation to determine the corresponding impairment in psychological processes and the need for special education and related services in the school setting. The basic psychological processes include: 

• Attention 
• Visual processing 
• Auditory processing 
• Sensory-motor skills 
• Cognitive processing 

Specific learning disabilities do not include learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, intellectual disability, emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage. A severe discrepancy shall not be primarily the result of limited school experience or poor school attendance, or limited English proficiency, and it must have been documented that before, or as a part of, the referral process, the pupil was provided appropriate instruction and intervention in general education settings, delivered by qualified personnel. In determining whether a student has a specific learning disability, the public agency must ensure that the student is observed in the student’s learning environment. 

SLD Eligibility Models 

Within all models, both of the following items apply: 

• Disabilities do not include learning problems that are primarily the result of the visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, intellectual disability, emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage, and 
• The student is observed in the student’s learning environment. 

Discrepancy Model 

In determining whether a student has a specific learning disability, the public agency may consider whether a student has a severe discrepancy between intellectual ability and achievement in any of the following: 

• Oral expression 
• Listening comprehension 
• Written expression 
• Basic reading skill 
• Reading fluency skills 
• Reading comprehension 
• Mathematical calculation 
• Mathematical reasoning 

The decision as to whether a severe discrepancy exists shall take into account all relevant material that is available for the student. No single score, test, or procedure shall be used as the sole criterion for the decisions of the IEP team as to the student's eligibility for special education. In determining the existence of a severe discrepancy, the IEP team shall use the following procedures. When standardized tests are considered to be valid for a specific student, a severe discrepancy is demonstrated by: 

• Converting into common standard scores, using a mean of 100 and standard deviation of 15, the achievement test score and the intellectual ability test score to be compared, 
• Computing the difference between these common standard scores, and 
• Comparing the computed difference to the standard criterion, which is the product of 

1.5 multiplied by the standard deviation of the distribution of computed differences of students taking these achievement and ability tests. A computed difference that equals or exceeds this standard criterion, adjusted by one standard error of measurement, the adjustment not to exceed four common standard score points, indicates a severe discrepancy when such discrepancy is corroborated by other assessment data, which may include other tests, scales, instruments, observations, and work samples, as appropriate. If the standardized tests do not reveal a severe discrepancy, the IEP team may find that a severe discrepancy does exist (between cognitive ability and academic achievement), provided that the team documents in a written report that the severe discrepancy between ability and achievement exists as a result of a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes. The report shall include a statement of the area, the degree, and the basis and method used in determining the discrepancy. The report shall contain information considered by the team, which shall include, but not be limited to: 

• Data obtained from standardized assessment instruments 
• Information provided by the parent 
• Information provided by the student's present teacher 
• Evidence of the student's performance in the general and/or special education classroom obtained from observations, work samples, and group test scores 
• Consideration of the student's age, particularly for young students 
• Any additional relevant information 

A severe discrepancy shall not be primarily the result of limited school experience, poor school attendance, or limited English proficiency. Per Larry P. vs. Riles litigation, African American students in the state of California cannot be administered cognitive assessments. For additional information on Test Selection and Eligibility for African American Students as a result of the Larry P. vs Riles litigation, please see the corresponding section of this procedural guide titled, “Assessment, Test Selection, and Reports”. Response to Intervention Model (RtI) and Patterns of Strengths and Weaknesses Model (PSW) Regardless of whether a student shows a severe discrepancy, a student may be determined to have a specific learning disability if: The student does not achieve adequately for the student’s age or meet state-approved grade-level standards in one or more of the following areas when provided with learning experiences and instruction appropriate for the student's age or state-approved grade-level standards: 

• Oral expression 
• Listening comprehension 
• Written expression 
• Basic reading skill 
• Reading fluency skills 
• Reading comprehension 
• Mathematical calculation or 
• Mathematical reasoning 

-AND- 

Response to Intervention Model (RtI) - The student does not make sufficient progress in meeting age or state-approved grade-level standards in one or more of the areas identified above when using a process based on the student's response to scientific, research-based intervention; 

-OR- 

Patterns of Strengths and Weaknesses Model (PSW)- The student exhibits a pattern of strengths and weaknesses in performance, achievement, or both, relative to age, state-approved grade-level standards, or intellectual development, that is determined by the group to be relevant to the identification of a specific learning disability, using research/evidence-based assessments.

To ensure that underachievement in a student suspected of having a specific learning disability is not due to lack of appropriate instruction in reading or math or due to limited English proficiency, the group making the decision must consider the following: 

• Data that demonstrate that before, or as a part of, the referral process, the student was provided appropriate instruction in general education settings, delivered by qualified personnel; 

-AND- 

• Data-based documentation of repeated assessments of achievement at reasonable intervals, reflecting formal assessment of student progress during instruction, which was provided to the student's parents. 

Although the law allows LEAs/districts the option of using RTI and PSW procedures as part of the evaluation procedures for special education eligibility, a comprehensive assessment is still required to ensure that IEP team members have carefully evaluated and considered all relevant aspects of a student's performance and history. The comprehensive assessment must occur before determining that a student has a disability that impacts progress in the general curriculum, thus making them eligible for special education services. 

SLD Eligibility Related to Reading Fluency

Reading fluency is a defined criteria for the PSW and RTI models but not the discrepancy model, which identifies basic reading skills and reading comprehension. Reading fluency is recognized as a foundational reading skill and likely an integral part of basic reading skills. Additionally, a deficit in reading fluency is typically accompanied by a deficit in reading comprehension. Therefore reading fluency may meet the threshold for "basic reading skills" for the purposes of SLD eligibility under the discrepancy model.A 

Comparison Between SLD Models 

For an overview of each model for identifying SLD, please refer to the SELPA’s handout titled, Specific Learning Disability Models. 

Other Health Impairment (OHI) 

Other health impairment means having limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment that: 

• Is due to chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, Tourette syndrome, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome; 

-AND- 

• Adversely affects a student’s educational performance. 

OHI and ADHD 

If a student exhibits ADHD-like behaviors, the IEP team should attempt to differentiate indicators that would be more closely associated with conditions such as: 

• Substance abuse 
• Mood disorders (i.e.: anxiety/depression) 
• Conduct disorders 
• Oppositional defiant disorder 
• Malnutrition 

School-based assessments do not diagnose ADHD or any other medical/mental health disorder(s). Instead, they document the presence of behavior that may be symptomatic of ADHD or other conditions. If the school deems a medical diagnosis necessary to determine special education eligibility, the school would be liable to provide access to the medical diagnosis from the doctor along with the cost of the doctor’s visits. 

Emotional Disturbance (ED) 

Emotional disturbance means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a student’s educational performance: 

• An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors 
• An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers 
• Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances 
• A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression 
• A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems 
• Emotional disturbance includes schizophrenia 

The term does not apply to students who are socially maladjusted unless it is determined that they also have an emotional disturbance. 

School-based assessments do not diagnose mental health disorders. They document the presence of behavior that may be symptomatic of mental health disorders and how those symptoms impact educational performance. 

Due to the complexity of ED assessments, assessors may wish to provide differential eligibility criteria to rule in and/or rule out other areas of eligibility such as OHI, AUT, or SLD. ED assessments typically include both broadband and narrow-band assessments to help IEP team members pinpoint specific areas of need and target IEP Goals. A thorough ED evaluation should encompass all the components of an Educationally Related Mental Health Services (ERMHS) assessment and provide ample documentation to support students’ need for ERMHS services, which may include counseling or Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP). In very rare circumstances, a student who meets the eligibility criteria for ED may not additionally require ERMHS support, including a BIP. 

Speech or Language Impairment (SLI) 

A student has a language or speech disorder once it is determined that the student's disorder meets one or more of the following criteria: 

• Articulation disorder- The student displays reduced intelligibility or an inability to use the speech mechanism which significantly interferes with communication and attracts adverse attention. Significant interference in communication occurs when the student's production of single or multiple speech sounds on a developmental scale of articulation competency is below that expected for his or her chronological age or developmental level, which adversely affects educational performance. A student does not meet the criteria for an articulation disorder if the sole assessed disability is an abnormal swallowing pattern. 
• Abnormal voice- A student has an abnormal voice which is characterized by persistent, defective voice quality, pitch, or loudness. 
• Fluency disorders- A student has a fluency disorder when the flow of verbal expression including rate and rhythm adversely affects communication between the student and listener. 
• Language disorder- The student has an expressive or receptive language disorder when he or she meets one of the following criteria: 
  • The student scores at least 1.5 standard deviations below the mean, or below the 7th percentile, for his or her chronological age or developmental level on two or more standardized tests in one or more of the following areas of language development: morphology, syntax, semantics, or pragmatics. When standardized tests are considered to be invalid for the specific student, the expected language performance level shall be determined by alternative means as specified on the assessment plan, or 
  • The student scores at least 1.5 standard deviations below the mean or the score is below the 7th percentile for his or her chronological age or developmental level on one or more standardized tests in one of the areas listed in section A and displays inappropriate or inadequate usage of expressive or receptive language as measured by a representative spontaneous or elicited language sample of a minimum of 50 utterances. The language sample must be recorded or transcribed and analyzed, and the results included in the assessment report. If the student is unable to produce this sample, the language, speech, and hearing specialist shall document why a fifty-utterance sample was not obtainable and the contexts in which attempts were made to elicit the sample. When standardized tests are considered to be invalid for the specific student, the expected language performance level shall be determined by alternative means as specified in the assessment plan. 

Autism (AUT) 

Autism means a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, generally evident before age three, and adversely affecting a student’s educational performance. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory experiences. 

Autism does not apply if a student’s educational performance is adversely affected primarily because the student has an emotional disturbance. A student who manifests the characteristics of autism after age three could be identified as having autism if the criteria are satisfied. Autism can be medically diagnosed; however, a medical diagnosis does not automatically make a student eligible for special education and related services. 

A medical diagnosis may trigger a school-based evaluation to determine the corresponding need for special education and related services in the school setting. Conversely, a student does not require a medical diagnosis to meet the eligibility criteria for autism. 

School-based assessments do not diagnose autism. They document the presence of behavior that may be symptomatic of autism or autism spectrum disorders and how those behaviors impact a student’s learning performance. 

Assessors may wish to provide differential eligibility criteria to rule in and rule out other areas of eligibility such as OHI, ED, or SLD. Other areas of assessment for students with autism may include pragmatic language (speech) or a Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA), resulting in a BIP. 

Intellectual Disability (ID) 

Intellectual disability means significantly sub-average general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period that adversely affects a student’s educational performance. 

Hard of Hearing (HH) 

Hearing impairment means an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a student’s educational performance, but that is not included under the definition of deafness in this section. For more information on referral to the California School for the Deaf for additional assessment, please see the section titled, “State Special Schools and Services”. 

Deafness (DEAF) 

Deafness means a hearing impairment that is so severe that the student is impaired in processing linguistic information through hearing, with or without amplification, that adversely affects a student’s educational performance. For more information on referral to the California School for the Deaf for additional assessment, please see the section titled, “State Special Schools and Services”. 

Visual Impairment (VI) 

Visual impairment, including blindness, means an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a student’s educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness. For more information on referral to the California School for the Blind for additional assessment, please see the section titled, “State Special Schools and Services”. 

Orthopedic Impairment (OI) 

Orthopedic impairment means a severe orthopedic impairment that adversely affects a student’s educational performance. The term includes impairments caused by a congenital anomaly, impairments caused by disease (e.g., poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis), and impairments from other causes (e.g., cerebral palsy, amputations, and fractures or burns that cause contractures). 

Deaf-Blindness (DB) 

Deaf-blindness means concomitant hearing and visual impairments, the combination of which causes such severe communication and other developmental and educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for students with deafness or student with blindness. For more information on referral to the California School for the Blind for additional assessment, please see the section titled, “State Special Schools and Services”. 

Multiple Disabilities (MD) 

Multiple disabilities mean concomitant impairments, such as intellectual disability-blindness or intellectual disability-orthopedic impairment, the combination of which causes such severe educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the impairments. Multiple disabilities does not include deaf-blindness. 

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) 

Traumatic brain injury means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both, that adversely affects a student’s educational performance. Traumatic brain injury applies to open or closed head injuries resulting in impairments in one or more areas, such as cognition; language; memory; attention; reasoning; abstract thinking; judgment; problem-solving; sensory, perceptual, and motor abilities; psychosocial behavior; physical functions; information processing; and speech. 

Traumatic brain injury does not apply to brain injuries that are congenital or degenerative, or to brain injuries induced by birth trauma. Neither the IDEA nor California law expressly requires medical documentation of TBI before determining whether a student qualifies under the TBI eligibility category. 

If a parent provides the IEP team, either verbally or in writing, with information that a student has suffered a TBI, the IEP team should consider the information and determine whether the information suffices to prove the student suffers from a TBI or whether additional information is necessary. If the IEP team requires further information, such as a medical evaluation to determine whether the student is suffering from a TBI caused by external physical force or some other impairment, the district is required to provide the assessment at no cost to the parents, just as it would under any other disabling condition. 

Other Considerations with Regard to Eligibility: 

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) A student whose educational performance is adversely affected by a suspected or diagnosedattention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), may meet eligibility requirements under the following categories: 

• Other Health Impaired (OHI) when ADHD is a chronic, acute health problem that causes a limited and/or heightened alertness to the educational environment and adversely impacts educational performance. 
• Specific Learning Disability (SLD) with a significant discrepancy between ability and achievement and a deficit in attention which is one of the five basic psychological processes; or 
• Emotional Disturbance (ED) when the lack of attention is causing a severe emotional condition so pervasive that it adversely affects educational performance. 

It is suggested that the Assessment Team provide differential eligibility criteria (in assessment reports) to examine all three of the above criteria (SLD, ED, OHI) to rule in or rule out each category and assist the IEP team in documenting that these needs were fully explored. 

Medical Diagnosis: ADHD, Autism, Other Medical Conditions, and/or Mental Health Disorders 

Eligibility for special education differs from a medical diagnosis provided by an outside medical provider in the following ways: 

• Educational eligibility allows a student to access IDEA services and is determined by a school-based IEP team after assessments are conducted within the school setting. 
• Medical diagnosis is a process conducted by a doctor or team of doctors to determine whether a medical need exists, including a physical or a mental health disorder. 

There is no requirement for medical documentation from a doctor for a student to become eligible for or continue to receive special education services, unless the IEP team deems it necessary. 

If an IEP team suspects ADHD, autism, other medical conditions, and/or mental health disorders may be impacting a student’s learning, the team should conduct a school-based assessment to examine the ways in which the suspected disability is manifesting at school and impacting the student’s ability to learn. In some circumstances, an IEP team may determine that additional medical documentation is required. 

If the school deems a medical diagnosis necessary to determine special education eligibility, the school would be liable to provide access to the medical diagnosis from the doctor and incur responsibility for the costs of the doctor’s visits. 

In order to access special education services, a student must have an assessment for special education conducted to examine how the student’s learning is impacted by the disability. A doctor’s recommendation, report, prescription, or letter is not sufficient to determine eligibility, but must be taken into account by the IEP team. 

Eligibility for Related Services 

For a student to access related services (e.g., occupational therapy, counseling, transportation, adapted PE), they must have an evaluation conducted by the appropriately credentialed specialist. A written report must identify that the student qualifies for the related service and must outline areas of need. The IEP team must convene to discuss the assessment results. Based on the evaluator’s findings, the student’s needs will be outlined in the present levels to drive goals and services. The goals must include baseline data to indicate present levels of functioning specific to each goal area. Services and goals should be updated at each annual IEP and re-evaluated at each triennial IEP. Should a service provider wish to exit a student from a related service, they should complete a full reevaluation to provide the IEP team with documentation that the related service is no longer necessary. 

For information regarding eligibility for Educationally Related Mental Health Services (ERMHS), please refer to the El Dorado SELPA’s ERMHS Program Guidelines.  

If you have any questions regarding the guidance provided in this document, please contact your El Dorado SELPA's Program Specialist.