CVI and the IEP Teri Turgeon Education Director Community Programs Perkins School for the Blind

Let’s talk IEP’s…  The first phase of the IEP process is “eligibility determination”  The second part of the IEP process is the IEP development.  The last part of the IEP process is placement.

IEP’s…  In order to be found eligible, a child must have a disability AND that disability impacts access to the general education curriculum  uide.pdf uide.pdf

Assessment Drives Instruction  According to Massachusetts Regulations, the required assessments are in ALL areas of suspected disability 603 CMR 28.04(2)(a)(b)

So in the case of CVI: what assessments?  Functional Vision Evaluation  Learning Media Assessment  Low Vision Evaluation  Christine Roman’s CVI Range  Orientation and Mobility Evaluation  Cognitive Ability and functioning  Other related services (PT, OT)

Things to remember as you work alongside families…  According to IDEA: the evaluations procedures must be conducted in the child’s native language or other mode of communication, so that accurate information is provided about the child’s needs. 34 CFR

Who is a member of that child’s IEP team?  IDEA says that the following are members of the team:  Parents, one regular education teacher, one special education teacher, a representative from the public agency (who is qualified to provide the provision of specially designed instruction) and someone knowledgeable about public resources, someone who can interpret test results, others who have expertise and the child when appropriate.

What happens if a child is found not eligible?  If the student is found not eligible, then the team may consider a 504 plan instead  A 504 does not have as many oversights as an IEP and is just accommodations  No reimbursement under Circuit Breaker for 504’s

Components of the IEP  Each IEP contains an area for parents to state concerns  Student strengths and key evaluation results  Vision statement, written by the team

The IEP is like a funnel-it is only as good as what gets poured in  What goes in?  Disability type  Impact of the disability  Present levels of performance  Strengths + Needs = Goals

Present Levels (PLEP A and B)  IDEA requires that each IEP must include a statement of the child’s present levels of academic achievement (reading, writing etc.) and functional performance(routine activities of everyday living)  Where do “present levels” come from? They come from observations, testing, teachers and parents

Accommodations:  Within the PLEP, there should be a discussion and documentation on accommodations  What might be some accommodations we should consider when thinking of CVI?

Color  State the best color for visual functioning and clarify for the team the need for simple one of two colors  State the need for color at near and far  State the need for color highlighting

Visual Complexity  Dimming lights  Close visual presentation  Simple, not complex presentations and background

Auditory Complexity  Describe how to reduce competing audio stimuli  One sense at a time  Quiet environment  Quiet materials

Positioning Body  Solid seating  Feet on floor (grounded)  Supporting a child’s core

Movement  State why student needs movement  State why materials should have characteristics of movement

Latency  State the need for wait time  Describe how long is typical

Visual Fields  Describe which visual field is best  Present familiar tasks to the best field first and then when ready present to the weaker side

Light  Describe the need to control lighting  Describe the ways light can be used to support learning, i.e. lightbox

Distance  Describe the best distance for learning  Describe way to support distance viewing, i.e color and movement

Novelty  Describe the need for familiar materials and similar to what the child knows

Visual Motor  Describe need to allow child to look away  Interventions and accommodations should be present all the time and throughout the child’s day

Example of Phase 1 Goal Building stable visual function Jon will increase use of vision in functional academics, self help and leisure. Objectives that address color: Jon will visually attend to the red cup as it is brought to his mouth during snack time, with his visual attention to the cup increasing, in both duration and frequency. Objectives that address movement: Jon will visually attend to leisure activities that are red and movement qualities.

Example of Phase 2 Goal Integrating vision with function Mary will integrate vision with gross and fine motor tasks. Objective that addresses complexity: Mary will look for and reach for a single color object presented in an array of no more than 3 objects that are placed on a high contrast background.

Example of Phase 3 Goal Using Vision for Learning Alice will refine her visual skills in near and distance activities. Objective for distance viewing: Alice will visually locate and identify functional indoor landmarks at distances of 20 feet and will travel with decreasing assistance to those landmarks.

Things to consider:  Service delivery is a team decision  Direct and Consult services are recommended at Phase 1 and 2 and consult at Phase 3  An In-service is recommended as well as cross-training of all (including parents)