Executing an effective IEP meeting requires multiple elements, as various key stakeholders are involved within the process. As a special education program specialist I have daily opportunities to participate in an Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). Typically, my involvement is stemmed from high profile cases in which litigation is anticipated or has transpired within the past. My role is to represent the district and aid in the development of an appropriate offer of a free and appropriate public education (FAPE). In addition, I aid in the facilitation of IEP meetings that seek to education students with disabilities in the least restrictive environments (LRE). I provide detailed descriptions of various program options that are …show more content…
Parents had voiced their apprehensions to the current superintendent, which led to an underlying pressure for the current administrator to remove the student from the school setting. Although I fully acknowledge the parental concerns I recognize the notion that the existing BIP was not implemented fully and the behaviors had direct correlation to the student disability. Unfortunately, the administrator remained quiet during the IEP meeting and did not offer any input during the collaboration period. This generated a strain on the relationship between the school and home setting, as open communication is essential. It is imperative each member of the IEP team feel valued and respected. As the program specialist I stepped in and facilitated conversations which prompted essential discussions centered around the unique needs of the student. In addition, I executed probing questions that provided opportunities for the parent to share specific concerns. My experiences have illuminated the notion that parent must be provided with platforms to voice concerns, share challenges, and provide essential information pertaining to their child. An IEP meeting is a sacred time that allots parents the opportunity to take ownership of their child’s education as an advocate. During the IEP meetings it was determined that a triannual review be held early, therefore permitting the essential assessments to be conducted. These assessments will generate data with the intention of
The IEP team met today to conduct an annual review for Daniella Rayon. Two separate notifications were sent out to the parent/ student. SB 1108 was addressed and signed at the start of the meeting. The parent and student were both present.
The IEP meeting had the purpose of evaluating the child’s previous disability, and to determine if the child will continue to qualify for IEP services. The child’s disability was speech delay, according to Heward, he describes speech delays, when speech it is not understood by others (2006).
The IEP meeting took place at the Dominick's school. The leader of the meeting was Dominick's special education teacher who acted as the team coordinator. The major players in this meeting were the parents, special education teacher, general education teacher, and the middle school teacher as they are in preparation for Dominick's transition into middle school. In addition, the note taker, assistant principal, and the school psychologist were present.
IEP stands for an Individualized Education Program, it is a document, that was developed in conjunction with the parent/guardian, is an individually tailored statement describing an educational plan for each learner with exceptionalities There are five major points that are to address the present level of academic functioning personnel as present level of performance, annual goals and accompanying instructional objectives, educational services to be proved, the degree to which the pupil will be able to participate in general education programs, and plans for initiating services and length of services and length
(have they been instructed on how to work with the child on their IFSP or IEP goals?) How does this compare to recommended practices? Once Veronica and Anthony transferred their daughter to a new school district to get her the help she needed, they quickly started the process of getting her an IEP. During our interview the question “Can you tell me about the steps you took during the process” was asked.
“All children with disabilities must have an individualized education program (IEP), a free and appropriate public education, and be served in the least restrictive environment” (Esteves and Rao, 2008, p.1). Children whom have a leaning disability are looked at differently in society unfortunately, so we need to be there to help them learn that the negativity is not them. We need to help and support families and their children to understand we can help them be successful, it may take longer to get there, but what’s the rush after all we all learn on different paths and, levels. So why judge them if they need more time to process information, we can find avenues to assist them, which are parents like myself that have children in special education, it is just a classroom setting not a label that prevent them from being productive citizens, we need to be there resource as their educators, we not only educate the students, but we help educate the families to help their
Lentz (2012) states that there are no courses or written guides to support these professionals in leading, not just conducting, these critical meetings. The author believes that if special education administrators, school psychologists, speech therapists, and others who chair and lead IEP meetings were proficient in running a purposeful and meaningful meeting, they would develop IEPs that increase the probability of student success and achievement (Lentz, 2012). Lentz (2012) found that with a trained leader, the IEP can become a vision of hope and the definition of the future for students with disabilities. Parents and students can see this process as the vehicle to
These families may have moved to the United States from a foreign country and are unfamiliar with the education system or some may hold different values about education. Many families from different countries are not aware of the special education process and enter an IEP meeting expecting the usual parent-teacher conference and instead are overwhelmed by the large amount of professionals in one room. These parents could greatly benefit from receiving background information or watching a video explaining the process before attending their first IEP meeting (Lo, 2012).
In 1991 the Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act was replaced by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This law was passed to provide free and appropriate public education to every child with a disability. It requires that each child with a disability “have access to the program best suited to that child’s special needs which is as close as possible to a normal child’s educational program” (Martin, 1978). The Individualized education program (IEP) was developed to help provide a written record of students’ needs and procedures for each child that receives special education services. The IEP will list all the services to be provided, the student's performance level, academic performance, and
I am currently in my 11th year of teaching at Sun Valley High School. I have been very fortunate that we have not had many major legal issues at my school while I’ve worked here. Many of the issues that arise come from students with special education requirements. Most times it is due to a student with a low grade and the teachers not following the SDI’s to the full extent. The few major issues we’ve had in my school have dealing with drugs or violence have been associated with a student having an IEP. These students have manifestation hearings to determine if it was their disability that caused the behavior. I was slightly involved in one of these cases, and with the vague wording in their legal document; I was amazed at how the
This means that the school should notify the parents with enough time in advance that parents will be able to make it to the meeting. In addition to that, the school should schedule the meeting at a place that is agreed upon by all parties. If a member of the IEP team cannot make the IEP meeting, then the school has to find and use other methods to connect all participants to the IEP meeting. IDEA allows members of the IEP team such as parents to uses alternatives methods such as video and conference calls to ensure participation (300.322). IDEA only allows these alternatives if all parties agree on it.
An IEP (Individual Education Plan) is used, before a term starts the school will hold a meeting for any outside agencies, the parents and teachers of the child to meet and discuss the next best plan of education for the child. Discussing the child’s interests preferred learning methods, targets, flexibility and interagency working with the child.
IEP’s which are individualized educational plan are very important documents, they are used to meet a student’s educational needs. There are certain criteria a student must meet to be eligible for special education services. A team of people work together to create
The tone is serious and supportive at this time. The mother expressed her continued frustration from her last meeting that occurred at Anson middle school last year. Dr. Neiman had the opportunity to review the most recent Individualized Education Plan, from January 2017, with the team. We are focused on the educational model outlined by the department of public instruction guidelines. By law, these guidelines focus on benchmarks and short-term objectives; the challenge is making sure he is successful as a student. As it relates to speech, this student should be able to communicate. The main question/concern of Dr. Neiman’s is if the student’s current speech abilities and IEP goals are appropriate to allow him access to the classroom curriculum. If so, the student would not qualify for additional speech services.
This year our administration is allocating times during staff meetings and inservice days to work on teacher-led focus groups. Educators were encouraged to submit initiatives or ideas that they felt would be valuable in improving our school. I submitted a proposal for a focus group that would be responsible for determining a plan of action and curriculum for creating student-led IEP meetings. We also agreed that we would create a timeline that would specify what most students would be expected to be able to do at each grade level. My focus group was approved and has met six times throughout the first semester. Our team consists of our transition specialist and intervention specialists from all grade levels and a variety of disability ranges (mild to moderate, moderate to intense, emotional disturbances, and autism). As a group, we first created a vision for what we wanted the outcome of our project to be. We decided having students both write and lead their IEP meeting by their senior year would be the ultimate goal. By the next meeting, we agreed to find research that would suggest strategies for increasing student involvement as well as interview colleagues at local area schools to determine their experiences and school practices. When we reconvened, we created a timeline which specified which component of the IEP the student would write and present at his/her meeting in each grade level (see Appendix A). Our team wanted to gradually increase students’ responsibility but