Introduction

Introduction

"Improving educational results for children with disabilities is an essential element of our nation’s policy of ensuring equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living and economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities." (Congress, 1997, IDEA Reauthorization)

This publication provides a guide on the logical sequence of events to develop an individualized education program (IEP) and how information should/must be documented in the IEP. However, it can only serve to reinforce the new direction for IEPs if the members of the Committees on Special Education, parents and other school personnel embrace the concepts intended by Congress as outlined below.

A NEW DIRECTION FOR IEPS: "MAKING THE SHIFT – MAKING A DIFFERENCE"

The IEP is the cornerstone of the special education process for each individual student. It is the tool to document how one student’s special needs will be met within the context of an educational environment. The IEP development process and implementation needs to be premised on the research and experience that has shown that, to improve results for students with disabilities, schools must:

have high expectations for students with disabilities;
ensure their access in the general education curriculum to the maximum extent possible;
strengthen the role of parents;
ensure that families have meaningful opportunities to participate in the education of their children at school and at home;
ensure that special education is a service, rather than a place where students are sent;
provide appropriate special education services, aids and supports in the general education classroom, whenever appropriate;
ensure that all those who work with students with disabilities have the skills and knowledge necessary to help such students to meet developmental goals and, to the maximum extent possible, those challenging expectations that have been established for all children, and to prepare them to lead productive independent, adult lives, to the maximum extent possible;
provide high quality research-based instruction and supports to all students who are experiencing learning difficulties to reduce the need to label children as disabled in order to address their learning needs; and
focus resources on teaching and learning.

DEVELOPING IEPS LINKED TO THE STANDARDS

"The New York State Standards apply to all students, regardless of their experiential background, capabilities, developmental learning differences, interests or ambitions. There are multiple pathways to learn effectively, participate meaningfully and work towards attaining the curricular standards. Students with diverse needs may need accommodations and/or adaptations of instructional strategies and materials to enhance their learning and/or adjust their learning capabilities." (Learning Standards for English-Language Arts, New York State Education Department, March 1996).

The New York State Learning Standards include learning standards, performance indicators and sample tasks a student is expected to know or demonstrate at different levels (alternate, elementary, intermediate and commencement). Standards should serve as the basis for developing instructional curriculum.

This means that members of a Committee on Special Education will need to consider both the standards as well as the school-based instructional curriculum, which should be aligned to the standards. They will need to know the expectations of the general education classroom for the corresponding age of the student both in terms of what learning is expected (general curriculum) as well as how the students are expected to access/demonstrate that learning. This information will assist the Committee to determine if the student needs adaptations, accommodations, or modifications to the general curriculum for all or part of his/her learning. This is one reason it is important for the general education teacher(s) to participate in the Committee meetings and for the school district representative to be knowledgeable of the general education curriculum.

To develop IEPs that are linked to the standards, the Committee should:

Review the content as well as the expectations for how the student will learn or demonstrate knowledge and skill in the content areas.
Identify the strengths and challenges for the student in relation to those expectations in the present levels of performance section of the IEP.
Identify how a student’s needs are linked to the general curriculum (e.g., learning to use a switch device is linked to communication or reading).
Identify goals and short-term instructional objectives or benchmarks that are individualized for the student, and yet linked to the general curriculum. A student’s goals and objectives on an IEP should not be a re-statement of a standard or a curriculum goal, but rather a statement that reflects the necessary learning that will lead to attaining a standard. For example, a student may have goals to acquire essential learning strategies that will help him or her better meet the expectations around how to learn the content.
Identify adaptations, accommodations, or modifications to the general curriculum as needed by the student.

THE IEP AS THE CORNERSTONE OF THE SPECIAL EDUCATION PROCESS

The IEP is a strategic planning document that should be far reaching in its impact. An IEP identifies a student’s unique needs and how the school will strategically address those needs. IEPs identify how specially designed instruction will be provided in the context of supporting students in general education programs and in reaching the same learning standards as nondisabled students. IEPs guide how the resources of a school will be configured. IEPs identify how students will be incrementally prepared for adult living. IEPs also provide an important accountability tool for school personnel, students and parents. By measuring students’ progress toward goals and objectives, schools should use IEPs to determine if they have appropriately configured how they use their resources to reach the desired outcomes for students with disabilities.