ABSTRACT
Students with intellectual disabilities (ID) and their families participate in assessment at multiple junctures of their time within schools. For families, school-based evaluations frequently provide long-awaited diagnostic clarity, access to intervention, and information for planning the next steps. Formal assessment begins with preschool-aged children with ID and other developmental delays and continues through childhood and young adulthood to help plan for their post-school lives. Research consistently upholds family involvement for individuals with ID as an invaluable contributor to improved outcomes for students. Strong family-school partnerships between the homes and schools of students with ID are associated with higher rates of academic achievement, higher overall quality of life, lower levels of stress, and decreased likelihood of participating in due process or mediation. Unfortunately, families frequently characterize their contact with the assessment process as frustrating, demeaning, and stressful, indicating that current processes may overlook or even damage collaborative partnerships between school-based staff and families. School-based professionals who are involved in the assessment process can mediate these stressful experiences for families and caregivers. As families of children with ID perceive higher levels of collaboration with assessors, they also describe assessment results as more helpful and report less stress associated with the assessment process. This chapter will review practice frameworks that are tailored to improving school–family partnership within the context of the assessment of students with intellectual disabilities.
