Guide · Evaluation United States
Requesting a school evaluation under IDEA
If you think your child may need special education, you do not have to wait for the school to raise it. Under IDEA, a parent can ask for an initial evaluation. The process has one detail that trips up most families, and it is worth knowing before you start: the clock does not begin when you ask; it begins when you sign consent.
Key points
- Either a parent or the public agency may initiate a request for an initial evaluation.
- The request may be verbal or in writing, but writing it down is what gives you a date.
- The evaluation cannot start without parental consent.
- The evaluation must be conducted within 60 days of receiving parental consent, or within the timeframe your STATE has established, if it has set one.
- An evaluation is not a diagnosis, and it does not automatically mean an IEP.
Who can ask, and how
IDEA is explicit that either a parent of a child or a public agency may initiate a request for an initial evaluation to determine whether the child is a child with a disability. You do not need the school to agree first, and you do not need a medical diagnosis to ask.
The request itself may be verbal or in writing. In practice, putting it in writing and keeping a dated copy is what turns a conversation into a record: it establishes when you asked, which matters if the process stalls.
The detail that matters: consent starts the clock
Many families assume the deadline runs from the day they asked. It does not. The regulation ties the timeframe to the day the agency RECEIVES parental consent for the evaluation.
Between your request and your consent there is a step that has no fixed federal deadline of its own: the school proposes an evaluation and gives you the consent form. If weeks pass without that form arriving, the 60-day clock has not started, and following up on the form is more useful than counting days.
The 60 days, precisely
- The federal default
- The initial evaluation must be conducted within 60 days of receiving parental consent for the evaluation. These are calendar days, not school days, under the federal rule.
- Where your state comes in
- The 60-day default applies only if your State has not established its own timeframe. Where a State has set one, that State timeframe governs instead. This is the single most common place where general advice about "60 days" turns out not to describe your situation; check your own state's rule.
- Two exceptions
- The timeframe does not apply if a parent repeatedly fails or refuses to produce the child for the evaluation, or if the child enrolls in another public agency's school after the timeframe began and before a determination was made; in that case the new agency must make sufficient progress and the parties must agree on a completion date.
Making the request
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Address your request to the school principal and to the district's special education office, and date it.
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Say plainly that you are requesting an initial evaluation under IDEA to determine whether your child is a child with a disability.
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Describe what you are seeing in concrete, dated terms: what happens, in which situations, and what has already been tried.
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Ask for the evaluation consent form and note the date you sign and return it: that is the date the timeframe runs from.
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Ask which timeframe applies in your state, and get the answer in writing.
When to get support
- If your written request goes unanswered and no consent form arrives.
- If the evaluation is completed but you disagree with its conclusions.
- If you are told a diagnosis is required before the school will evaluate.
- Your state's parent training and information center exists for exactly these questions, and it is free.
Who to turn to
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Speech-Language Pathologist
Speech-Language Pathologist: evaluation and treatment of speech, language and communication. (Provider listed in NPPES.)
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Occupational Therapist
Occupational Therapist: autonomy, motor and daily-living skills. (Provider listed in NPPES.)
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Psychologist
Psychologist: assessment and support. (Provider listed in NPPES; NPPES does not prove pediatric caseload or specialty.)
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Audiologist
Audiologist: hearing assessment and care. (Provider listed in NPPES.)
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Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician
Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician: physician focused on child development and behavior. (Provider listed in NPPES.)
Guidance for United States. As a guide, in the usual order. AtyKids guides; it makes no diagnosis.
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Official sources
- U.S. Department of Education · IDEA · Sec. 300.301 Initial evaluations
- U.S. Department of Education · IDEA · Section 1414: Evaluations, eligibility determinations, IEPs
- U.S. Department of Education · A Guide to the Individualized Education Program
Information reviewed on August 20, 2026.
Practical AtyKids guidance, distinct from official information. When in doubt, refer to the official source and to the professionals following your child.
AtyKids supports the adult, without ever making a diagnosis or replacing professionals.