Related Services
Related services are developmental, corrective, and other supportive services that are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education. The need for related services is considered during the students ARD/IEP meeting in the review and discussion of the student’s evaluation and ongoing assessment data. An ARD/IEP Committee’s decisions regarding the need for related services to support educational goals must be clearly identified in the student’s IEP and must be determined on an individual basis.
Services include (but are not limited to):
- speech-language therapy
- audiology services
- interpreting services
- psychological services
- physical therapy
- occupational therapy
- music therapy
- counseling services
- orientation and mobility services
- school health services
- in-home training
- parent training
Additional instructional services that are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education may include:
- Adapted PE
- Vision instruction
Services that apply to children with surgically implanted devices, including cochlear implants, are not considered a related service.
School-based therapies are supportive services that a student needs in order to learn. School-based therapies are not a substitute for more intensive medical-based therapies. Many students receiving school-based therapies also get private therapy outside of school. Medical-based therapies are delivered through private therapy centers, hospitals, or clinics to address issues related to the student’s disability. It is important to realize that the level of school-based services may not match that of those services provided in a medical model.