Privately Developed Plan (PDP) Development

A Privately Developed Plan (PDP) is similar to an IEP (Individual Educational Program) that is done by a public school. The PDP identifies a student with special needs, and outlines a program that will meet those needs.

OAR 581-021-0029 is the Oregon Administrative Rule that applies to Homeschooling Children with Disabilities. Children eligible to homeschool with a PDP under that Rule include are those who meet eligibility criteria for a specific disability category under OAR 581-015-0051. These categories include:

• Autism Spectrum Disorder (OAR 581-015-2130(2))
• Communication Disorder (OAR 581-015-2135(2))
• Deaf blindness (OAR 581-015-2140(2))
• Emotional Disturbance (OAR 581-015-2145(2))
• Hearing Impairment (OAR 581-015-2150(2))
• Mental Retardation (OAR 581-015-2155(2))
• Orthopedic Impairment (OAR 581-015-2160(2))
• Other Health Impairment (OAR 581-015-2165(2))
• Specific Learning Disability (OAR 581-015-2170(3))
• Traumatic Brain Injury (OAR 581-015-2175(2))
• Vision Impairment (OAR 581-015-2180(2))

While an IEP may specify special services available to the child through the public school, services identified in a PDP are the responsibility of the parent to provide.

When you develop a Privately Developed Plan, the PDP team consists of you and the PDP developer, along with any additional professionals you would like to designate. These additional team members could be a tutor, an occupational therapist, a member of a homeschooling co-op, or any other person you think should be involved in your child’s education. Additional team members are not required.

A PDP can be written to outline your goals and targets for the child’s education during the year. It can be simple or very thorough. Typically a PDP states what the child’s skill levels are at the beginning of the academic year (September), gives some recommendations for accommodations to meet the child’s special needs, and names learning goals for the academic year. A more thorough PDP could list specific curriculum and activities, along with therapies and programs to assist learning and development.

Oregon statute requires assessment of homeschoolers to be done at the end of grades 3, 5, 8, and 10, typically by standardized testing, generally between April 15 and August 15. (There may be some circumstances where the assessment is required in other grades.) The PDP can recommend how the end-of-year assessment will be done. Examples:

• Standardized testing with accommodations (extra time, questions read out loud, learning aids, tests done over a period of days, etc.)
• Portfolio of work done through the year.
• Comparison of beginning-of-year work to end-of-year work.
• Journal of learning activities kept throughout the year.
• Observation of the child’s learning activities at the end of the year.

How OWLS Helps You Develop a PDP

We will send you a questionnaire asking for information about the child’s current situation and educational performance, the types of accommodations and programs you are currently using, the materials or programs you would like to be using this year, and the goals you have for the coming year. We will also ask you what type of assessment you would like to have done at the end of the year. We can communicate via email, messaging, and/or phone to discuss the details of this.

Based on the information we get from you, we will develop a first-draft PDP and send it to you. You can review this and let us know if there are any changes or additions. We’ll revise the PDP according to your needs, and send it back to you. This will be your Privately Developed Plan.

End-of-Year Assessment

At the end of the year – sometime between April 15 and August 15 – you can contact us again to schedule the assessment, according to the recommendation of the PDP. Or, you can have someone else do the assessment, as long as it is not a family member or member of your household. If OWLS does the assessment, we will provide you with a summary of test scores (if you have chosen standardize testing), or a Letter of Assessment Results stating that the child has achieved satisfactory progress in accordance with the PDP.

If your Education Service District requests “test results” for grades 3, 5, 8, or 10, you can send them the summary of test results, or the Letter of Assessment Results. You do not have to send them the PDP (although some ESDs may ask for it).

PDP Pricing

The cost of PDP Development ranges from $150 (most PDPs) to $500 depending on the complexity of the Plan. An updated PDP (modified from a previous year) will cost $100. The end-of-year assessment, if it is not the Standardized Test, is $50.