Parents that disagree about what a school has done, intends to do, or refuses to do, must request a due process hearing, in writing, from the school system. Parents have the right to challenge any school decision affecting their child s education. Frequently, bright minority students with learning disabilities are misdiagnosed on the basis of a test and assigned to remedial education programs that do not provide needed services. Similarly, national origin minority students with limited-English proficiency are often placed in special education programs based on tests given in English. Under the IDEA schools must ask parents permission to evaluate a child for special education before any evaluation is done.
Parents also have the right to an outside evaluation .
Once an IEP is in place, parents must be given notice of any changes planned in a child s educational placement and are entitled to regular progress reports . Mediation opportunities must be made available, but may not be used to delay or deny a request for a hearing. If a parent wins at the due process hearing the school district must pay the parent s legal fees. If parents lose they can request mediation or appeal. The process for appeals varies from state to state.