Jennie Bourgeois

The Parent Educational Advocacy Training Center (PEATC) is pleased to announce the development of an Individualized Education Program (IEP) Checklist iPhone application.

YOU TUBE TUTORIAL:
http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=OtBA0F7tWSo

The IEP is an individualized program designed to support the educational needs of school aged students with disabilities.

This new IEP app helps parents of students with special needs become better-informed advocates by making IEP information easier to access.

The IEP app is offered free of charge in both English and Spanish.   To download the IEP Checklist app, visit the Apple iTunes store, and type IEP Checklist in the search box.

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Blog post from – Guideposts to Special Education written by Angela Keef

So, we know that developing the IEP (Individual Education Program) is one of the most important steps in the special ed process, but how do we develop an appropriate one? Many school districts and special ed teachers struggle with this step. Many parents get frustrated at this point in the process because of “the cookie cutter” IEP approach…the one size fits all IEP. Special education is supposed to be individualized instruction in order to meet the unique needs of the child, yet many parents find themselves signing off on the same IEP year after year.

The fine folks at Wrightslaw have written a great book, called “From Emotions to Advocacy”. It is an excellent resource, and I recommend that everyone involved with special education…either a parent or teacher or advocate, read this book and learn from it. One of the things they talk about, in chapter 12, is writing SMART IEPs. S=Specific, M=Measurable, A=Action words, R=realistic and relevant, and T=Time limited.

IEP goals and objectives need to be specific in nature and measurable. How are we going to measure progress if we don’t know specifically what we are going to work on and how we are going to assess it? Many IEP goals are very vague and open…..as a parent you need to avoid that. An IEP needs to include Action Words….that means it should reflect what the school and the child will actually be able to do…nice strong verbs that describe the desired outcome. Goals and objectives also need to be realistic…can the child realistically work toward that goal and reach it during the current school year. In order to be relevant, the goals need to connect to the real world and to the current curriculum in the classroom, and move the child from their current level of performance to the desired level of performance. IEPs also need to be time limited…objectives need to be completed within a time frame…the first quarter, semester, half a year, the full year.

With these types of goals, the school team can be held accountable for their actions and their implementation. A parent can ask for measurement or assessment of each goal…how far has the child come? If the child has met an objective, then that item can be taken off of the IEP and a new objective can be put in to replace it. Using this method, if a child is making progress, then IEPs should be different each year. If the child is not making progress toward the goals, then the IEP and programming needs to be reviewed. A child with the most significant disabilities should be able to show progress in some area, even if it is a small amount of progress. If assessment reveals no progress is being made at all, go back to the drawing board and rework the IEP. The programming is most likely inappropriate if there isn’t any progress being made.

Questions?? Let me know!

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Posted from Bright’s Blog

In Marple Newton School District v. Rafael N. ex rel R.N., 48 IDELR 184 (E.D. Pa 2007), a court concluded that an IEP was deficient because there were no “measurable postsecondary goals related to training, education, employment, and independent living skills for a Spanish-speaking mild to moderately retarded 17-year-old special education student with untreatable epilepsy. With regard to the IEP, the court stated the “goals are vague and do not capitalize on the student’s strengths or specific interests.” Furthermore, the student’s IEP “states generic goals that have remained static from year to year. There were no vocational or independent learning outcomes in the community component of the IEP, there was no component to prepare the student for medical self-monitoring, and the IEP did not “take into account the student’s strengths or preferences.”

IEP teams need to be mindful when creating transition plans and ensure that each one is individualized and meaningful.

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What does federal IDEA law say about Supplementary Aids & Services?

Supplementary Aids & Services are about more than what service a child will be provided. These IEP services can include what adults will do and should be listed on the IEP document.

Here is a description of IDEA’s Supplementary Aids & Services.

Please note: Supplementary Aids and Services are NOT the same as Related Services.

Supplementary aids and services means aids, services, and other supports that are provided in regular education classes, other education-related settings, and in extracurricular and nonacademic settings, to enable children with disabilities to be educated with nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate in accordance with §300.114 through §300.116.” (34 CFR 300.42)

The purpose of providing supplementary aids and services is to support students with disabilities as active partici¬pants with nondisabled peers as well as to enable their access to the general curriculum. To that end, supplementary aids and services include modification to the general curriculum and [a child with a disability is not removed from education in age-appropriate regular classrooms solely because of needed modification in the general curriculum]. (34 CFR 300.116 (e))

There are an infinite number of possible supplementary aids and services to be considered and implemented by Individualized Education Program (IEP) teams.

Court decisions have required school districts to make a concerted and good faith effort to use supplementary aids and services to address behavioral issues in the regular classroom. The provision of positive behavioral interventions, strategies, and supports is designed to foster increased participation of children with disabilities in regular education environments or other less restrictive environments, not to serve as a basis for placing children with disabilities in more restrictive settings.

It is important that IEP teams contemplate educational placement in the regular education classroom not only as it currently exists, but also as it might be modified through the provision of supplementary aids and services.

Examples of Supplementary Aids and Services

IEP teams may find it helpful to think about supplementary aids and services in four categories:

Collaborative,
Instructional,
Physical,
and Social-Behavioral (Etscheidt & Bartlett, 1999).

Examples include:
Providing instruction on functional skills in the context of the typical routines in the regular classroom;
Changing method of presentation;
Using reader services;
Providing research-based supplementary materials;
Providing instructional adaptations (e.g., preteaching, repeating directions, extra examples and nonexamples);
Furniture arrangement in environments;
Specific seating arrangements;
Individualized desk, chair, etc.;
Adaptive equipment;
Adjustments to sensory input (e.g., light, sound);
Environmental Aids (e.g., classroom acoustics, heating, ventilation); Structural Aids (e.g., wheelchair accessibility, trays, grab bars); Social skills instruction;
Counseling supports;
Peer supports (e.g., facilitating friendships);
Individualized behavior support plans;
Modification of rules and expectations;
Cooperative learning strategies.

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What language is included in IDEA about Related Services?

IDEA § 300.34 Related services.

(a) General. Related services means transportation and such developmental, corrective, and other supportive services as are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education, and includes speech-language pathology and audiology services, interpreting services, psychological services, physical and occupational therapy, recreation, including therapeutic recreation, early identification and assessment of disabilities in children, counseling services, including rehabilitation counseling, orientation and mobility services, and medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes. Related services also include school health services and school nurse services, social work services in schools, and parent counseling and training.

(b) Exception; services that apply to children with surgically implanted devices, including cochlear implants.

(1) Related services do not include a medical device that is surgically implanted, the optimization of that device’s functioning (e.g., mapping), maintenance of that device, or the replacement of that device.

(2) Nothing in paragraph (b)(1) of this section—

(i) Limits the right of a child with a surgically implanted device (e.g., cochlear implant) to receive related services (as listed in paragraph (a) of this section) that are determined by the IEP Team to be necessary for the child to receive FAPE.

(ii) Limits the responsibility of a public agency to appropriately monitor and maintain medical devices that are needed to maintain the health and safety of the child, including breathing, nutrition, or operation of other bodily functions, while the child is transported to and from school or is at school; or

(iii) Prevents the routine checking of an external component of a surgically implanted device to make sure it is functioning properly, as required in §300.113(b).

(c) Individual related services terms defined. The terms used in this definition are defined as follows:

(1) Audiology includes—
(i) Identification of children with hearing loss;
(ii) Determination of the range, nature, and degree of hearing loss, including referral for medical or other professional attention for the habilitation of hearing;
(iii) Provision of habilitative activities, such as language habilitation, auditory training, speech reading (lip-reading), hearing evaluation, and speech conservation;
(iv) Creation and administration of programs for prevention of hearing loss;
(v) Counseling and guidance of children, parents, and teachers regarding hearing loss; and
(vi) Determination of children’s needs for group and individual amplification, selecting and fitting an appropriate aid, and evaluating the effectiveness of amplification.

(2) Counseling services means services provided by qualified social workers, psychologists, guidance counselors, or other qualified personnel.

(3) Early identification and assessment of disabilities in children means the implementation of a formal plan for identifying a disability as early as possible in a child’s life.

(4) Interpreting services includes—
(i) The following, when used with respect to children who are deaf or hard of hearing: Oral transliteration services, cued language transliteration services, sign language transliteration and interpreting services, and transcription services, such as communication access real-time translation (CART), C-Print, and TypeWell; and
(ii) Special interpreting services for children who are deaf-blind.

(5) Medical services means services provided by a licensed physician to determine a child’s medically related disability that results in the child’s need for special education and related services.

(6) Occupational therapy —
(i) Means services provided by a qualified occupational therapist; and
(ii) Includes—
(A) Improving, developing, or restoring functions impaired or lost through illness, injury, or deprivation;
(B) Improving ability to perform tasks for independent functioning if functions are impaired or lost; and
(C) Preventing, through early intervention, initial or further impairment or loss of function.

(7) Orientation and mobility services —
(i) Means services provided to blind or visually impaired children by qualified personnel to enable those students to attain systematic orientation to and safe movement within their environments in school, home, and community; and
(ii) Includes teaching children the following, as appropriate:
(A) Spatial and environmental concepts and use of information received by the senses (such as sound, temperature and vibrations) to establish, maintain, or regain orientation and line of travel (e.g., using sound at a traffic light to cross the street);
(B) To use the long cane or a service animal to supplement visual travel skills or as a tool for safely negotiating the environment for children with no available travel vision;
(C) To understand and use remaining vision and distance low vision aids; and
(D) Other concepts, techniques, and tools.

(8)(i) Parent counseling and training means assisting parents in understanding the special needs of their child;
(ii) Providing parents with information about child development; and
(iii) Helping parents to acquire the necessary skills that will allow them to support the implementation of their child’s IEP or IFSP.

(9) Physical therapy means services provided by a qualified physical therapist.

(10) Psychological services includes—
(i) Administering psychological and educational tests, and other assessment procedures;
(ii) Interpreting assessment results;
(iii) Obtaining, integrating, and interpreting information about child behavior and conditions relating to learning;
(iv) Consulting with other staff members in planning school programs to meet the special educational needs of children as indicated by psychological tests, interviews, direct observation, and behavioral evaluations;
(v) Planning and managing a program of psychological services, including psychological counseling for children and parents; and
(vi) Assisting in developing positive behavioral intervention strategies.

(11) Recreation includes—
(i) Assessment of leisure function;
(ii) Therapeutic recreation services;
(iii) Recreation programs in schools and community agencies; and
(iv) Leisure education.

(12) Rehabilitation counseling services means services provided by qualified personnel in individual or group sessions that focus specifically on career development, employment preparation, achieving independence, and integration in the workplace and community of a student with a disability. The term also includes vocational rehabilitation services provided to a student with a disability by vocational rehabilitation programs funded under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.

(13) School health services and school nurse services means health services that are designed to enable a child with a disability to receive FAPE as described in the child’s IEP. School nurse services are services provided by a qualified school nurse. School health services are services that may be provided by either a qualified school nurse or other qualified person.

(14) Social work services in schools includes—
(i) Preparing a social or developmental history on a child with a disability;
(ii) Group and individual counseling with the child and family;
(iii) Working in partnership with parents and others on those problems in a child’s living situation (home, school, and community) that affect the child’s adjustment in school;
(iv) Mobilizing school and community resources to enable the child to learn as effectively as possible in his or her educational program; and
(v) Assisting in developing positive behavioral intervention strategies.

(15) Speech-language pathology services includes—
(i) Identification of children with speech or language impairments;
(ii) Diagnosis and appraisal of specific speech or language impairments;
(iii) Referral for medical or other professional attention necessary for the habilitation of speech or language impairments;
(iv) Provision of speech and language services for the habilitation or prevention of communicative impairments; and
(v) Counseling and guidance of parents, children, and teachers regarding speech and language impairments.

(16) Transportation includes—
(i) Travel to and from school and between schools;
(ii) Travel in and around school buildings; and
(iii) Specialized equipment (such as special or adapted buses, lifts, and ramps), if required to provide special transportation for a child with a disability.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1401(26))

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While there are some similarities about these laws, there are some very important differences to consider as well.

IDEA -

• ensures a free and appropriate education (FAPE) for children with disabilities who fall within one of the specificed categories.
• covers ages 3-21
• provides individual, supplemental support services in addition to the general curriculum to ensure access and is provided free of charge to the parents
• requires a written IEP specifying the services to be delivered, requires transition planning for those age 16 and older and requires a behavioral intervention plan for any child with a disability that has a behavioral issue
• defines Appropriate Education as – a program that is reasonably calculated to provide benefit to the student.
• provides additional funding to states and local districts to provide special education services

504 –

• civil rights law that protects individuals with disabilities in any agency, school or institution that received federal funds.  provides individuals with disabilities an opportunity to participate with their peers to the fullest extent possible.
• covers all persons with a disability from discrimination
• eliminates barriers that prevent individuals from participating in programs and services.
• does not require an IEP, but does require a documented plan for reasonable accommodations to be provided to the child with a disability in order for them to fully participate in the general curriculum.
• defines Appropriate Education as – comparable to the one provided to general education students.
• does not provide any additional funding to states or local school districts and IDEA funding cannot be used to serve 504 students.

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Here is a link to a great special education blog written by Angela Keef, a special education advocate.  Definitely go and check out the great information she has posted about the IEP process.

http://spedconsultant.blogspot.com/

Here is a link to Angela’s home page.

http://theeducationconsultant.com/Home_Page.html

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Here are some tips on how to conduct an IEP meeting.

• Have a time for introductions and allow everyone to state their role as an IEP team member.

• Establish the overall purpose for the meeting and review the agenda and allocated time frame for this meeting.

• Have a notepad or white board designated to record any issues or topics that may arise during the course of the discussions that are not specifically on the agenda so that they can be addressed later.

• Inform all team members that they have the right to request additional time or a follow-up meeting if necessary.

• Inform parents that they can have copies of all evaluation reports and records from the IEP meet.

• Systematically discuss each element listed in the IEP; team discusses the  questions and concerns that are addressed in the IEP.

• Discuss the student’s present level of performance and future goals for the student.

• Establish goals, objectives and the benchmarks for achieving those goals

• Discuss how progress towards the goals will be measured and reported.

• Determine if there are any assessments or evaluations that are required or recommended for the student.

• If the student is 14 years old or older, address the transition needs and services for the student.

• Establish the Summary of Educational Services that specifies the services required by the student in order for them to meet their  goals and objectives

• Determine the most appropriate curriculum and environment to meet the student’s learning needs.

• Team states areas of agreement and discusses any areas that are not in agreement.

• eet individual learning needs?

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Preparation is key to a success and smooth IEP meeting.  Try to address these issues before the meeting and hopefully it will reduce the amount of surprises that may occur at the meeting.

1. Understand the roles of each member of the IEP team.

• Facilitator – this is the person who ensures everyone on the team is able to equally participate and helps to keep the meeting moving forward and following the agenda.
• Recorder – this person makes sure that everything discussed and decided in the meeting is accurately recorded and documented.  This individual may also be responsible for recording information decided in the meeting onto the IEP forms.
• Timekeeper – this person gently reminds the team members of the time remaining for the scheduled meeting at appropriate times.

2. Have a complete meeting agenda prepared beforehand for all team members to review prior to the meeting.  The agenda needs to include the following items.

• List of participants names, role and/or relationship to the student
• Summary and discussion of evaluative data collected since the last IEP meeting
• Discussion of the student’s present level of performance.
• What goals and objectives or benchmarks need to be addressed for this student.
• Determine how the stated goals and objectives will be measured and reported.
• Discussion of the student’s current and/or future placement.
• Establish stated time frame for the meeting. ( Usually 1 hour to 1.5 hours)

3. If  the team will be working together to brainstorm ideas, options and/or solutions arrange to have a white board or other mechanism to jot down the ideas being discussed by the team.

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Regulations: Part 300 / E / 300.501

Sec. 300.501 Opportunity to examine records; parent participation in meetings.

(a) Opportunity to examine records. The parents of a child with a disability must be afforded, in accordance with the procedures of Sec. Sec. 300.613 through 300.621, an opportunity to inspect and review all education records with respect to–

(1) The identification, evaluation, and educational placement of the child; and

(2) The provision of FAPE to the child.

(b) Parent participation in meetings.

(1) The parents of a child with a disability must be afforded an opportunity to participate in meetings with respect to–

(i) The identification, evaluation, and educational placement of the child; and

(ii) The provision of FAPE to the child.

(2) Each public agency must provide notice consistent with Sec. 300.322(a)(1) and (b)(1) to ensure that parents of children with disabilities have the opportunity to participate in meetings described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section.

(3) A meeting does not include informal or unscheduled conversations involving public agency personnel and conversations on issues such as teaching methodology, lesson plans, or coordination of service provision. A meeting also does not include preparatory activities that public agency personnel engage in to develop a proposal or response to a parent proposal that will be discussed at a later meeting.

(c) Parent involvement in placement decisions.

(1) Each public agency must ensure that a parent of each child with a disability is a member of any group that makes decisions on the educational placement of the parent’s child.

(2) In implementing the requirements of paragraph (c)(1) of this section, the public agency must use procedures consistent with the procedures described in Sec. 300.322(a) through (b)(1).

(3) If neither parent can participate in a meeting in which a decision is to be made relating to the educational placement of their child, the public agency must use other methods to ensure their participation, including individual or conference telephone calls, or video conferencing.

(4) A placement decision may be made by a group without the involvement of a parent, if the public agency is unable to obtain the parent’s participation in the decision. In this case, the public agency must have a record of its attempt to ensure their involvement.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1414(e), 1415(b)(1))

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