Special Education Monitoring

Parent Input

The California Department of Education, Special Education Division (CDE-SED) annually reviews Local Educational Agency (LEA) performance and compliance data related to implementation of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requirements in accordance with the IDEA Section 616(e) and Title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) sections 300.600–604, and 34 CFR sections 300.646–300.647. The purpose is to ensure that the LEAs, including charter schools, County Offices of Education (COE), and Special Education Local Plan Areas (SELPAs), are providing appropriate supervision and monitoring for special education programs and services.

An LEA is selected for Intensive Monitoring if the LEA does not meet established targets for performance and compliance indicators under the IDEA and the California Special Education Part B State Performance Plan (SPP) and Annual Performance Reports (APR). You can explore information about local school districts by using the California School Dashboard. This resource provides parents and educators with meaningful information on school and district progress.

There are many monitoring activities within a review based on the need of the LEA, one required component of the review is considering parent input. Through the Seeds of Partnership, CDE-SED utilizes a parent survey to gather input from parents of students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) in LEAs selected for an Intensive Review. LEAs will have access to parent survey response data for their review as part of the Compliance and Improvement Monitoring (CIM) Process.

Parent Survey

The parent survey is designed to provide LEAs and the CDE with information on parents' experience of their child receiving special education services over the past year and how well schools are supporting parents' involvement in this process. Information gathered will be helpful in identifying areas of strength and areas that may need improvement within the school district. The survey is intended for parents or guardians of students from California school districts, involved in the current year monitoring activities. The survey window is open April–May.

We encourage you to complete only one survey per student, per school year. Responses are anonymous, please do not share confidential information in the comments sections.

The information you share is subject to a Public Records Act request, accessible to your local school district, and will not be handled or filed as a formal complaint. To file a formal complaint with CDE, please visit the CDE SED Complaint Process web page or call the Procedural Safeguards and Referral Services toll-free Help Line at 800-926-0648.

At this time, there are no active Intensive Reviews currently collecting parent surveys. This means the survey time period has not yet started or has just concluded for this school year or review cycle.

Encuestas para padres/tutores en español

Districts

Districts participating in a CDE SED Intensive Review may access the Monitoring Parent Input Information System Log In.