Ask what you can do at home to support the program. Regard your child's education as a cooperative effort. If you and the school cannot reach an agreement about your child's educational and developmental needs, ask to have another meeting with the school. Allow time for you and the school to gather more information. If, after a second meeting, there is still a conflict over your child's program, you may wish to ask for a state mediator or a due process hearing.
Many organizations have information to help guide parents through the special education process.
Your local school district's director of special education and his or her staff can help you obtain such information and can guide you through the process. Further resources are available from national organizations. Some of them have state and local chapters that can provide more locally based support. In addition, all states now have federally supported parent information and training centers. The following references were being processed for the ERIC database at the time this brochure went to press.