1 (IEP) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM (IEP) The IEP:  legal document  developed within 30 days of eligibility  teaching instrument  road map for students  instrument for school/home

2 THE IEP TEAM MEMBERS Parent(s) Student (if appropriate) Regular education teacher (at least one) Service provider(s) Special education teacher(s) Agency representative Evaluation personnel Others with knowledge or special expertise

3 IEP COMMITTEE RESPONSIBILITIES The IEP committee determines:  Special education and/or related services;  Supplemental aids and services;  Program modifications /accommodations; and  Support for school personnel.

4 RESPONSIBILITIES (continued) The IEP committee is also responsible for ensuring the child:  Advances appropriately toward attaining the annual goal(s);  Is involved and progresses in the general curriculum and participates in extracurricular and/or non-academic activities; and  Is educated and participates with nondisabled children.

5 EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2003 (IEP) Parent Participation Parents will be given the opportunity to participate in a meeting to develop or revise, whichever is appropriate, their child’s IEP. A list of who will be in attendance by name and position. Substitutions by position for persons named to be in attendance will be permitted. Document at least two (2) separate (different) methods such as notices, letters, telephone calls, and home or other visits that were provided to parents in order to involve parents in a meeting to develop the IEP.

6 PRIOR BEST PRACTICES PRIOR TO IEP MEETING Decide who will be in attendance. Mutually agree upon time, date, and place. Send notice in a timely manner. Document attempts made to invite the parents. Inform participants of roles and responsibilities. Prepare an agenda. Set ground rules.

7 Follow the agenda. Define the purpose of the meeting. Use jargon free language. Introduce committee members and their roles and responsibilities. Build on the ideas of others. Encourage the involvement of the parents/student. Use procedures that lead to decisions made by consensus. Develop an appropriate IEP.

8 CONTINUUM OF PLACEMENT  Each district must ensure that a continuum of alternative placements is available to meet the needs of children with disabilities for the provisions of special education and/or related services.  Efforts made to provide supplementary aids and services in the regular education environment should be first and foremost. The efforts cannot be mere token gestures by the LEAs.  LEAs are not required to modify the general curriculum beyond recognition.

9 CONTINUUM OF PLACEMENT (continued)  LEAs are not obligated to place every child with a disability in regular education without regard for whether the regular classroom provides an appropriate education.  If the LEA determines that “full-time” education in the regular classroom cannot be achieved satisfactorily, the student with disabilities must be placed in the regular classroom by the LEA to the maximum extent appropriate.

10 PLACEMENT OPTIONS SERVICE DELIVERY  Regular Classroom with Consultative Services  Itinerant Instruction in the Regular Classroom  Co-Teaching with the Regular Educator  Resource Room Instructional Support  Part-Time Special Class  Full-Time Special Class  Community-Based Services  Special School  Residential Facilities  Home/Hospital

11 WRITTEN PRIOR NOTICE... Parents are given written notice of the school district’s intent to provide a FAPE for a child receiving special education and/or related services. Notice of Committee Meeting form, refer to Attachment T Notice of Committee Meeting form, refer to Attachment T A copy of the procedural safeguards available to the parent(s) must be given upon: A copy of the procedural safeguards available to the parent(s) must be given upon: Initial referral for evaluation; Initial referral for evaluation; Each notification of an IEP meeting; Each notification of an IEP meeting; Reevaluation; Reevaluation; Change in placement due to a disciplinary action(s); and Change in placement due to a disciplinary action(s); and Receipt of a request for a due process hearing. Receipt of a request for a due process hearing.

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13 PRESENT LEVEL(S) OF PERFORMANCE Requires that the IEP for each child with a disability includes a statement of the child’s present levels of educational performance, including:  How the child’s disability affects the child’s involvement and progress in the general curriculum; or  For preschool children, as appropriate, how the disability affects the child’s participation in age-appropriate activities.

14 PRESENT LEVEL(S) (continued)  Address the source(s) of information for which the statements are based and specific to the child.  Write descriptive statements that are complete and accurate.  AREA COLUMN: List the actual subjects and/or behavioral needs.

15 PRESENT LEVEL(S) OF PERFORMANCE ( REFLECTION ) How does the student’s disability affect progress and involvement in the general curriculum? For example, in the case of a student with SLD (RC/MC), what are some of the areas affected [as a result of the disability] that inhibits mastering the general education objectives?

16 PRESENT LEVEL(S) OF PERFORMANCE (REFLECTION) The most important feature of the Present Level(s) of Performance is its emphasis on functionality and educational relevance. The curriculum needs of the student should be defined. It is not appropriate to provide test scores as the ‘sole’ example of performance level.

17 (PRESENT LEVEL(S) OF PERFORMANCE) SOURCES OF INFORMATION (PRESENT LEVEL(S) OF PERFORMANCE)  Comprehensive assessment (if initial);  Curriculum Based Assessment (CBA);  Reevaluation;  Therapists’ reports/evaluations;  Student input;  Parent(s) input; and  Teacher input.

18 CURRICULUM-BASED ASSESSMENT (CBA) A method of identifying the skills a student has and has not acquired within the context of the objectives being taught in class. CBA provides a correlation between objectives and student performance. CBA effective implementation: proficiency level(s) determined from curriculum; assessment occurs over time; and instructional decisions result from the CBA.

19 CURRICULUM The curriculum refers to the general education curriculum adopted by the state and the school district. Mississippi Curriculum Framework Mississippi Benchmarks Mississippi Extended Curriculum not: The curriculum is not:-materials; -methodology; or -settings.

20 REMEMBER There is no such thing as a special education curriculum! Students with disabilities should have access to the same curriculum as non-disabled peers, even students with severe/profound mental retardation. These students will access an extension of the framework through the Mississippi Extended Curriculum. When learning does not occur, it is the instruction that should be changed.

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22 ACCOMMODATIONS and MODIFICATIONS accommodation An accommodation is any technique that alters the academic setting or environment and enables a student to demonstrate what he/she knows. modification A modification is any technique that alters the work or activity required, which is different from what is required of other students in the same class.

23 SUPPLEMENTARY AIDS AND SERVICES Examples: Taped text Itinerant TeachingTutoring Highlighted NotesPeer Tutoring Special Study SheetsAT Services Teacher assistant Instructional Modifications Co-teaching Itinerant teaching

24 SUPPORT FOR PERSONNEL The ultimate focus is to provide a FAPE, including beginning implementation of aids/services; duration; and frequency of services provided to school personnel.Examples: Provide information regarding the disability. Provide information regarding the disability. Provide training for regular education personnel. Provide training for regular education personnel. Collaborate with special education and/or related service providers. Collaborate with special education and/or related service providers. Co-teaching. Co-teaching. Use an assistant in the regular education setting. Use an assistant in the regular education setting.

25 Explanation of Nonparticipation An explanation of the extent, if any, to which the child will not participate with nondisabled children in the regular class and in extracurricular and other nonacademic activities. Must record why participation is not appropriate.

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27 MEASURABLE ANNUAL GOALS  Annual goals must relate to the present level(s) of performance.  Annual goals should be challenging, yet reasonable.  Annual goals should be selected from the state standards, competencies, and/or extended curriculum.  The number of goals depends on the student’s needs.

28 MEASURABLE ANNUAL GOALS (continued)  Annual goals must be measurable and must relate to the child being involved and progressing in the general curriculum.  Annual goals must be considered “achievable” within the school year. Annual goals must be broken down into STIOs and/or benchmarks.

29 ANNUAL GOALS-REVIEW Annual goals should be:  Written with high expectations;  Measurable;  Functional;  Meaningful;  Descriptive;  Observable; and  Comprehensive.

30 SHORT TERM INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES / BENCHMARKS Benchmarks (Major Milestones) Benchmarks (Major Milestones) Measurable General statement represents milestones to goal Represent progress toward the goal Short Term Objectives Short Term Objectives Measurable Specific sequential steps toward the goal Specify the behavior to be performed Represent progress toward the goal

31 THE STRANGER TEST (Kaplan 1990) your a stranger  Are your goals and objectives written so that someone who didn’t write them (a stranger) could use them to develop an appropriate instructional plan? THE ‘SO WHAT’ TEST  The ‘so what’ test embodies validity.  Are your goals and objectives written to be educationally relevant?

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33 NEEDED TRANSITION SERVICES-AGE 14  A statement of transition service needs for the student age 14 (or younger, if determined appropriate by the IEP team).  The statement must focus on the student’s courses of study, (i.e., participation in advanced-placement courses or vocational educational program). DESIRED POST-SCHOOL OUTCOME STATEMENT MUST BE UPDATED ANNUALLY.

34 NEEDED TRANSITION SERVICES-AGE 16  A statement of needed transition services for the student age 16, (or younger, if determined appropriate by the IEP team), including interagency responsibilities or any needed linkage.

35 NEEDED TRANSITION SERVICES-AGE 16 (continued) Transition services include a coordinated set of activities or objectives in the areas of:  Instruction;  Related Services;  Community Experiences;  Adult Living/Employment Skills; daily living skillsfunctional evaluation  Acquisition of daily living skills and a functional evaluation (if appropriate).

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37 STATEWIDE TESTING must All students in grades 2-8 must be assessed. not State or district-wide assessment If the IEP team determines a student will not participate in a State or district-wide assessment… the IEP team must include a statement of: Why that assessment is not appropriate…and (A) Why that assessment is not appropriate…and How the student will be assessed… (B) How the student will be assessed…

38 (ACCOMMODATIONS and MODIFICATIONS) STATEWIDE TESTING (ACCOMMODATIONS and MODIFICATIONS) A statement of any individual modifications in the administration of State or district-wide assessments of student achievement that are needed in order for the student to participate in the assessment. Accommodations needed for the student to participate in a State or district-wide assessment must be listed on the IEP as an accommodation or modification.

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40 GRADUATION OPTIONS Decision regarding taking the Subject Area Tests / Functional Literacy Exam (until phased out) required for high school diploma must be discussed. By age 14 or prior to entering 9th grade, graduation options must be discussed. Options include: Regular high school diploma; Mississippi Occupational Diploma (MOD); or Certificate of Life Skills.

41 SPECIAL FACTORS TO CONSIDER The IEP team must consider what the law calls “special factors” when developing an IEP. These factors are: BrailleInstruction Braille Instruction Limited English proficiency Limited English proficiency Language/Communication Needs Language/Communication Needs Assistive Technology Assistive Technology Behavior Behavior In considering these special factors, if the IEP team determines that a student needs a particular device or service in order to receive a FAPE, the IEP team must include a statement to that effect in the child’s IEP.

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43 EXTENDED SCHOOL YEAR CRITERIA The following criteria are used to determine a student’s need for ESY:  Regression – Recoupment (R-R)  Critical Point of Instruction (CPI)  Extenuating Circumstances

44 ESY DECISION-MAKING  Does the student need ESY to receive FAPE? make decisions January 15 th and April 15 th.  IEP teams will make decisions regarding the student’s need for ESY between January 15 th and April 15 th.

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47 PARENTS MUST BE GIVEN A COPY OF THEIR CHILD’S IEP AT NO COST FOLLOWING AN IEP MEETING.

48 WHEN SHOULD YOU REVISE THE IEP?  Student is not progressing  Results of a reevaluation  Parent(s) or service provider requests revision  Need for an evaluation  behavior  assistive technology Don’t forget to NOTIFY parents prior to the revision of an IEP! Don’t forget to NOTIFY parents prior to the revision of an IEP!

49 REVISE ONLY THE AREAS IN NEED OF REVISION  Send Written Prior Notice for review/revision;  Send copy of Procedural Safeguards;  Use different color ink;  Date and initial the changed section(s);  Keep good documentation;  List members present for revision; and  Projected date for Review/Revision remains the same.

50 “PRIORITIES” “A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove…But the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.” -Unknown Author