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IEP
Individualized Education Program (IEP) — An Overview
You asked to have your child evaluated for special education services. Now it's time for the IEP meeting, but you're not sure what to expect. What's in an IEP? How can you prepare for the meeting?
What is an IEP?
The IEP, Individualized Education Program, is a written document that's developed for each public school child who's eligible for special education. The IEP is created through a team effort and reviewed at least once a year.
Before an IEP can be written, your child must be eligible for special education. By federal law, a multidisciplinary team must determine that (1) she's a child with a disability and (2) she requires special education and related services to benefit from the general education program.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a federal law, requires certain information to be included in the IEP but doesn't specify how the IEP should look. Because states and local school systems may include additional information, forms differ from state to state and may vary between school systems within a state. You can find out about your state laws and regulations through our state level resources.
IEP Team Members
The members of the multidisciplinary team who write your child's IEP include:
- You, the parents, who have valuable insights and information about her strengths and needs and ideas for enhancing her education
- General education teacher(s) who can share information about classroom expectations and your child's performance
- A special education teacher who has training and experience in educating children with disabilities and in working with other educators to plan accommodations
- An individual who can interpret the results of your child's evaluation and use results to help plan an appropriate instructional program
- A representative of the school system who knows about special education services and has the authority to commit resources
- Individuals with knowledge or special expertise about your child that are invited by you and/or the school district
- Representatives from transition services agencies, when such services are being discussed.
- Your child, when appropriate, and whenever transition is discussed
Contents of the IEP
The IEP is a document that's designed to meet your child's unique educational needs. It's not a contract, but it does guarantee the necessary supports and services that are agreed upon and written for your child.
At the least, the IEP must contain these pieces of information:
Present Levels of Educational Performance
Information about your child's strengths and needs is presented by teachers, parents, and the school staff who evaluated her. Comments will be made about how your child is doing in the classroom. Observations and results of state and district-wide tests and the special education evaluation, including individually administered standardized tests, are reviewed. Besides academic needs, any other areas of concern that have been identified, such as language development, behavior, or social skills, should be discussed, as well.
Goals
The next step is to write measurable goals that she can reasonably accomplish in one year. Goals are based on what was discussed and documented in present levels of educational performance and focus on her needs that result from the disability. Goals should help her be involved and progress in the general curriculum and may be academic, social, behavioral, self-help, or address other educational needs. Goals are not written to maintain skills or help her achieve above grade level.
The requirement for objectives and benchmarks — with which to measure progress toward goals — was eliminated from IEP requirements with the 2004 reauthorization of (IDEA). However, the law now states that the child’s IEP must include “a description of how the child’s progress toward the annual goals … will be measured and when periodic reports on the progress the child is making toward annual goals will be provided” — for example, at the same time report cards are issued for all students.
Special Education and Related Services
Once the IEP is written, the team has to decide how to put it into action. The school district is obligated to provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE). So the IEP team considers the way — to the maximum extent appropriate for both — to educate your child alongside kids without a disability. Special education is a set of services, rather than a specific place for your child to go. The services your child needs to reach the goals and objectives and how they'll be delivered are identified. For most kids, the general education classroom will be the preferred setting, but a range of options is available, including special day classes.
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About the Contributor
Jan Baumel, M.S., Licensed Educational Psychologist, spent 35 years in education as a teacher, school psychologist, and special education administrator before joining Schwab Learning. Today she is a consultant to local school districts and university field supervisor for student teachers. Read more articles by Jan Baumel, M.S.. |
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