Navigating Special Education Evaluations for Specific Learning Disabilities Amid the Covid-19 Pandemic (PDF)

This brief describes practical steps that school psychologists and school districts can consider to assess students for a specific learning disability. It provides recommendations to adapt state policies on evaluations for specific learning disabilities in light of the pandemic, with ensuring that students get timely and thorough evaluations to develop educational programs that meet their needs. The brief discusses four challenges: 1) Interruptions to instruction, 2) Administering assessments under new circumstances,   3) Ruling out exclusionary factors 4) Addressing the backlog of evaluations under tight timelines.