Requirements

The IEP recommendation must report the student’s present levels of performance and indicate the individual needs according to each of the four areas:

• academic/ educational achievement and learning characteristics,
• social development,
• physical development, and
• management needs.

The report of the student’s present levels of performance and individual needs in the above areas must include:

• how the disability affects involvement and progress in the general curriculum (i.e., the same curriculum as for nondisabled students), or for preschool students, as appropriate, how the disability affects participation in age appropriate activities;
• for students age 14 (an updated annually), a statement of the transition service needs that focuses on the student’s courses of study; and
• for students age 15 (and at a younger age, if determined appropriate) a statement of the student’s needs, taking into account the student’s preferences and interests, as they relate to transition from school to post-school activities.

What is the purpose of including present levels and needs on a student’s IEP?

An appropriate program for a student with a disability begins with an IEP that reflects the results of the student’s individual evaluation and describes the needs of the student to be addressed through the provision of special education services, including a student’s interests and preferences. This section of a student’s IEP identifies the areas of unique needs related to the student’s disability and the current level of functioning, including the strengths of the student, related to those areas. This is the foundation on which the Committee builds to identify goals and services to address the student’s individual needs and to begin to incrementally prepare the student to select and reach the projected post-school outcomes.

Where does the information come from that is reported in present level and individual needs?

The Committee must ensure that the present levels of performance and individual need statements are developed in consideration of:

• the results of the student’s most recent individual evaluation(s);
• the student’s strengths;
• the parents’ concerns for the education of their child;
• the student’s results on State and districtwide assessments;
• special factors related to the student’s disability such as a student’s needs in the areas of behavior, communication, limited English proficiency, instruction in and the use of Braille, and assistive technology devices and services;
• how the student’s disability affects involvement and progress in the general curriculum, or for preschool students, participation in age appropriate activities; and
• the student’s needs, preferences and interests relating to transition from school to post-school outcomes.

Present levels of performance and need statements:

• summarize information from a variety of sources;
• translate information from technical evaluation reports to clear, concise statements;
• identify the instructional implications of evaluations; and
• describe, in language the parents and professionals can understand, the unique needs of the student that the IEP will address and identify the student’s level of performance in those need areas.

It is important for the Committee and the parent to know how the student is progressing toward receipt of a diploma. This information should be designated for students at the secondary-school level only. To assist the Committee to monitor the extent to which the instruction and the special education services provided to the student are preparing the student for graduation, the following information should be noted on an annual basis.

• Diploma Credits Earned (i.e., the number of credits earned toward a high school diploma)
• Commencement-level State Tests Passed (i.e., the specific commencement level State examinations the student has taken and passed that are required for a high school diploma).
• Expected Date of High School Completion (i.e., the anticipated date the student will graduate).
• Expected Diploma As a student progresses through his secondary school years, it is appropriate to indicate on the student’s IEP the type of diploma (e.g., Regents diploma, Local diploma, IEP diploma) that the student is expected to achieve. This helps to ensure that the student’s parents are informed as to whether the student is participating in classes to prepare the student for a high school diploma or whether the modifications to the curriculum or grading are such that the student is not earning units of credit for courses that will lead to a high school diploma.

Determination that a student will be working toward an IEP diploma should not be made early in a student’s school career. Students with disabilities must be afforded the opportunity to earn a high school diploma, if appropriate. Each student’s IEP, developed and reviewed annually, is the mechanism to ensure that students have access to and participate in the required courses, electives and tests as specified in Part 100 of the Regulations of the Commissioner. This opportunity must be available to students regardless of where the student attends school or who is providing special education services to the student (e.g., local school district, Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), approved private school, Special Act School District, State-operated or State-supported school).

The four need areas

The following areas must be considered in reporting a student’s present levels of performance and individual needs:

Academic/Educational Achievement and Learning Characteristics

The student’s current levels of knowledge and development in subject and skill areas, including, as appropriate:

• activities of daily living (e.g., personal care, preparing meals, household activities, managing resources);
• level of intellectual functioning (e.g. general intelligence, attention, memory, problem-solving ability, language functioning);
• adaptive behavior (e.g., the effectiveness with which the individual copes with the natural and social demands of his or her environment; how the student makes judgments and decisions);
• expected rate of progress in acquiring skills and information (e.g., the pace in which a student learns new information or skills, in consideration of factors such as those associated with the child's levels of cognitive skills, interests, age and history of rate of progress); and
• learning style (e.g., how the student learns best such as through visual or auditory modalities, hands-on approaches, cooperative learning, repetition).

Social development

The degree and quality of the student’s:

• relationships with peers and adults,
• feelings about self, and
• social adjustment to school and community environment.

Physical development

The degree or quality of the student’s:

• motor and sensory development,
• health,
• vitality, and
• physical skills or limitations that pertain to the learning process.

Management Needs

The nature and degree to which the following are required to enable the student to benefit from instruction:

• environmental modifications (e.g., consistent room arrangement, materials and routine; written rules displayed; limited number of items on his desk);
• human resources (e.g., a paraprofessional to assist the student to locate classes and follow schedules); and
• material resources (e.g., two sets of books – one for home and one for school; large print font).

Management needs must be developed in accordance with the factors identified in the areas of academic or educational achievement and learning characteristics, social and physical development.

How the disability affects involvement and progress in the general curriculum, or for preschool students, how the disability affects participation in age appropriate activities

The present levels of performance must include a description of how a student’s disability affects the student’s involvement in the general curriculum so that the programming and services for each individual student is tailored to address the student’s unique needs that impede the student's ability to make meaningful progress in the general curriculum.

Examples:

• Kari’s difficulty in organizing materials and information affects her ability to complete assignments independently and compose written essays.
• Luis has difficulty organizing information into larger units (e.g., main ideas or themes). He understands parts of a text, but has difficulty determining the main ideas and writing summaries of information read.

For preschool students, appropriate activities include those activities that children of that chronological age engage in as part of a formal preschool program or in informal activities (e.g., coloring, pre-reading activities, play time, listening to stories, sharing-time).

Examples:

• Dayton prefers to play in isolation and becomes upset (e.g., cries and hits others) when another student comes too close. As a result his peer interactions at playtime are limited.
• Damien’s attention problems result in failure to follow teacher’s directions, talking out of turn and responding inappropriately during group activities.

A Statement Of The Student’s Needs, Taking Into Account The Student’s Preferences And Interests, As They Relate To Transition From School To Post-School Activities

For students ages 14 and older, the student’s individual needs that may impact the student’s successful transition to post-school activities must be included in the IEP under the student’s present levels of performance. Such statements should include information on the student’s educational achievement (e.g., career skills) as well as social, physical and management needs related to transition.

Example:

Joey follows basic written directions in community settings (e.g., vending machines and work schedules). He is able to travel in his wheelchair for short distances in school, but needs adult assistance to travel in the community. He can read simple sentences but does not generalize his reading skills to functional activities (e.g., reading a menu in a restaurant).

Addressing special considerations

In developing a student’s IEP, the Committee must consider special factors that may be unique to the student, including:

• whether a student has behaviors that impede his or her learning or that of others;
• the language needs of a student with limited English proficiency as such needs relate to the student’s IEP;
• the needs of a student who is blind or visually impaired for instruction in Braille and the use of Braille;
• the communication needs of the student and, in the case of a student who is deaf or hard of hearing, the language and communication needs, opportunities for direct communications with peers and professional personnel in the student’s language and communication mode, academic level and the full range of needs, including opportunities for direct instruction in the student’s language and communication mode; and
• whether the student requires assistive technology devices and services, including whether the use of such devices is required to be used in the student’s home or in other settings in order for the student to receive a free appropriate public education.

The IEP must state, under the present levels of educational performance, the student’s needs in consideration of the above special factors. For example, the results of a student’s functional behavioral assessment (FBA) should be reported in the present levels of performance under the applicable need area such as:

• If a student’s FBA indicated that the student’s behavior is related to a cognitive area (e.g., the student hits his head when he cannot recall the correct words), it would be appropriate to indicate this in the academic/educational achievement and learning characteristics section.
• If a student’s behavior is related to a social concern (e.g., the student yells at his peers when he is embarrassed by something that is said), it would be appropriate to indicate this in the social development section.
• If a student demonstrates a particular behavior as a result of a medical condition (e.g., side affect of a medication; pre-seizure related behavior), it would be appropriate to indicate this in the physical development section.
• If the student needs an individual behavioral intervention plan to address his or her behaviors, this should be indicated in the management needs section.

A student’s need for a particular device or service (including an intervention, accommodation, or other program modification) to address any of the special factors described above would be documented under the applicable sections of the IEP. 

Attachment 2 provides examples of guiding questions that may be used by a Committee to determine whether a student needs such an intervention, accommodation or program modification to address one of these special considerations.

Present level statements should answer these questions:

Present levels of performance statements should answer such questions as:

• What are the student’s unique needs that result from his or her disability?
• What is it that the student can and cannot do at this time?
• What are the student’s strengths in this area?
• How do these needs affect the student’s participation and progress in the general curriculum or, for a preschool student, participation in age appropriate activities?
• What are the parents’ concerns for the education of their child?
• What instructional and/or behavioral supports or services have been effective or not effective in addressing the need area in the past year?
• What accommodations and/or program modifications or supplementary aids and services have been effective or not effective in addressing the need area in the past year?
• What instructional supports and services will likely be supported and used by the student?
• What transition needs of the student must be addressed to prepare the student for living, learning and working in the community as an adult?

When you complete the student’s present level of performance and individual need section of an IEP, you should be able to state:

We are individualizing this student’s education program because of his unique needs related to his disability in the areas of . . . . (e.g., reading, writing, organization, memory, vision, hearing, problem solving, attention, motor skills).

In the area of ___________, we know this student can currently _____________, but cannot ______________. (e.g., in the area of memory, he can remember a two-step sequence, but does not complete activities that involve multiple steps such as "get ready for school.")

He learns best through _____________________ (e.g., pairing auditory with written work; using music to trigger memory; redirection; modeling).

He will need the following resources to meet his needs (e.g., structure and routine throughout his instructional day; close supervision during transitions; assistance with note taking; adaptive furniture for motor support; instructional materials in large print formats, positive reward system for appropriate behavior).

Quality indicators

Present levels of performance and individual need statements:

• Reflect individual-need determinations.
• Provide instructionally relevant information about the student.
• Identify how the student is progressing towards the State learning standards.
• Are descriptive and specific.
• Provide the basis for annual goals and direction for provision of appropriate educational programs and services.
• Are written in such a way that parents, professionals and paraprofessionals can understand.
• Are based on the results of the individual evaluation.
• Reflect the priorities and concerns of the parents for the education of their child.
• Reflect transition service needs.
• Identify where the student is now so it is clear what it is he/she has to learn next and what supports and services he/she needs to get there.
• Identify what impact the student’s disability is having on his or her ability to participate and progress in age appropriate activities or in the same curriculum as nondisabled peers.

• Sections 200.1 and 200.4 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education
• Individual Evaluations and Eligibility Determinations for Students with Disabilities – August 2000, revised January 2002
• Guidance on Functional Behavioral Assessments for Students with Disabilities – Policy 98-05, July 1998

See Attachment 5

Present Levels of Performance and Individual Needs

Current functioning and individual needs in consideration of:

• the results of the initial or most recent evaluation, the student’s strengths, the concerns of the parents, the results of the student’s performance on any State or districtwide assessment programs;
• the student’s needs related to communication, behavior, use of Braille, assistive technology, limited English proficiency;
• how the student’s disability affects involvement and progress in the general curriculum;
• the student’s needs as they relate to transition from school to post-school activities (ages 14 and older).

Transcript Information – Secondary Students Only

Diploma Credits Earned: 11

Commencement-level State Tests Passed: Biology, Earth Science, Math A, Global History

Expected Date of High School Completion: 6/04

Expected Diploma: Regents

Academic/Educational Achievement and Learning Characteristics:

Current levels of knowledge and development in subject and skill areas, including activities of daily living, level of intellectual functioning, adaptive behavior, expected rate of progress in acquiring skills and information and learning style.

Social Development:

The degree and quality of the student’s relationships with peers and adults, feelings about self and social adjustment to school and community environments.

Physical Development:

The degree or quality of the student’s motor and sensory development, health, vitality and physical skills or limitations that pertain to the learning process.

Management Needs:

The nature of and degree to which environmental modifications and human or material resources are required to enable the student to benefit from instruction. Management needs are determined in accordance with the factors identified in the areas of academic/educational achievement and learning characteristics, social development and physical development.