The data behind an IEP progress report, and how to ask for it
This request asks for the probes, charts, work samples and scoring behind a line on the progress report. The data sits in your child’s education record, which makes it yours to ask for whenever a report leaves you guessing. You can send it today: paste it into an email, replace what sits in brackets, and write down the day the school received it; the table below says which day starts each clock.
What the rule says
“… How the child’s progress toward meeting the annual goals … will be measured; and … When periodic reports on the progress the child is making toward meeting the annual goals … will be provided”
34 CFR 300.320(a)(3)
The IEP itself says how the school knows, and that method is the thing to ask for.
When to send it
- The words “making progress” are the entire finding on this quarter’s report, with no number attached.
- Every goal on the report card came back at the same percentage as last quarter.
- The annual review is coming and you have nothing to compare this year’s goals against.
What happens after you send it
| What is being counted | By when | How it is counted |
|---|---|---|
| The charts reach you | Set by your state | Your state may set a shorter records window than IDEA’s outside limit.34 CFR 300.613(a) |
| Records inspection | 45 days | IDEA caps record access at 45 days, and sooner when an IEP meeting is coming.34 CFR 300.613(a) |
What the letter has to contain
The goal, by number
Asking for all the data returns a binder. One goal number returns the page you need.
Every annual goal in the plan is written as a measurable one. 34 CFR 300.320(a)(2)(i)
The measurement method
Percentages with no probe behind them are opinions in decimal form, and they travel year to year.
How progress toward each annual goal gets measured is written into the plan. 34 CFR 300.320(a)(3)(i)
Copies, not a viewing
Reading a chart in the office at pickup leaves you nothing to bring to the next meeting.
Parents may have copies where an inspection alone would defeat the right. 34 CFR 300.613(b)(2)
An explanation in writing
A chart without its scoring rule is a picture. Ask what the numbers were counting.
Parents may ask the agency to explain and interpret the records. 34 CFR 300.613(b)(1)
The letter
Replace everything in brackets. The rest sends as it stands.
- To
- The provider who collects the goal data, plus the principal
- Subject
- Progress data behind goal [goal number] for [Child’s first name]
Dear [Provider name], I received [Child’s first name]’s progress report of [report date] and would like the records underneath it. For goal [goal number or short name], please send: • The probes, charts, rubrics or work samples collected this reporting period, with their dates • The scoring rule used to turn those into the percentage printed on the report • The service notes for [the service tied to this goal] • The baseline the goal was written from Copies rather than a viewing, please, so I can bring them to the next team meeting. If any of it is easier to explain than to read, I am glad to hear the explanation in writing alongside the records. With thanks, [Your name] [Phone] [Email] [Date of this request]
If no answer comes back
Two edges run from the day this landed: the state records window and the forty-fifth day; ask again when the first passes.
- Send the request again with the words education records in the subject line.
- Copy the district records custodian, whose log of requests is separate from the school’s.
- Say plainly that the annual review is near and the data belongs in front of it.
A no owes you prior written notice: the decision, the reason for it, and the records behind it (34 CFR 300.503).
This is a template, not legal advice: it does not replace your state’s procedures, or advice from someone qualified to read your file.
Have the pages you are writing about read back to you, free.
The review reads every page you upload, names the wording that is vague or missing, and gives you its page number.
Review my IEP — freeFree, no card. It reads your pages and contacts no one.
Where this comes from
- How progress is measured (34 CFR 300.320)Where the quotation lives.
- Access to education records (34 CFR 300.613)What copies you may have.
- U.S. Department of Education: student privacyThe wider records right.
- Prior written notice (34 CFR 300.503)What a no owes you.
Response deadlines are set state by state, and the state pages carry each number with its rule.