Opinion ID: 613334
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Hawaii DOE Assessments

Text: Towards the end of Courtney's fourth grade year, Courtney's mother and grandfather requested a special education evaluation meeting with Hawaii DOE. At the meeting, Courtney's mother and grandfather requested that Hawaii DOE use the response to intervention model to determine whether Courtney had a specific learning disability. Although Hawaii DOE agreed to an in-depth achievement evaluation of Courtney's abilities, Hawaii DOE refused to use the response to intervention model. Hawaii DOE's in-depth achievement evaluation consisted of a classroom reading assessment report, conducted by a special education resource teacher for the school district, and a formal academic assessment, conducted by a psychological examiner. Both tests were conducted at the end of Courtney's fourth grade year. According to the classroom assessment report, Courtney struggles as a reader, [is] able to decode at about the [third to fourth] grade level but comprehends at about the [second to third] grade level. The report also noted that Courtney needed to improve her oral fluency skills, which were at the second to third grade level. The formal academic assessment indicated that Courtney's overall academic performance was consistent with the Average to Below Average range, and that her weakest skills related to reading and math fluency.