Getting the Most out of your Child’s IEP

1. Getting the Most out of your Child’s IEP Anne M. Howard, PhD Education Department Fitchburg State College anhoward@fsc.edu 978-665-3309 Many thanks to the FCSN and MA DOE for graphics and other material included here.

2. Agenda • Who is here? • Basic Assumptions • How does General Curriculum interface with the IEP? • A few key components of IEP • Vision • PLEP – A • Current Performance > Goals > Objectives • Questions

3. Parents . . . finding the right balance • Team Member • Expert • Questioner – thoughtful Colombo Parent roles

4. ASSUMPTIONS . . .

5. What is the relationship between the IEP and the General Curriculum? IEP General Curriculum

6. General Education Curriculumand the IEP • Federal law requires that ALL children have access to the general education curriculum. • General Curriculum = MA Frameworks+ District Specific Curriculum • There is no need to repeat the curriculum in the IEP.

7. General Curriculum - Curriculum Frameworks School Life of the School Other Curriculum Areas School

8. IEP should have skills focus, rather than curriculum focus. • The goal of the IEP process is not to have the student master an isolated Framework/standard, but to master skills impacted by the disability. • The focus of the goal must help the student develop skills to access, participate and make progress in the general curriculum and the life of the school.

9. There is no one right way to organize an IEP. • There are many wrong ways, but really good IEPs can look quite different. • Different districts. . .different practices. • Different schools. . . Different practices.

10. IEP 1 • Parent and/or Student Concerns • Student Strengths and Key Evaluation Results • VISION STATEMENT

11. Start with the VISION • Classic quote from Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: “If you don’t know where you’re going, any place will do.” • KNOW WHERE YOU WANT THE STUDENT TO GO!

12. Student Centered Vision • Consider next 1-5 years, longer for older child. • Ideally, this should be a shared, team vision. • beginning no later than the first IEP in effect when the student is 16, the vision statement must reflect the student’s preferences and interests, including desired outcomes in adult living, post-secondary and working environments.

13. Examples of Vision Statements • The team would like to see Elena enter an integrated kindergarten program when she reaches age 5. • By the time Katie is in 2nd grade, we can see her taking the yellow school bus to school and walking independently through the school building. • Pedro wants to be a reporter on the school newspaper and wants to take as many courses as possible to improve his writing skills.

14. Examples of Vision Statements (cont.) • While it is ideal to have a shared vision statement from the team, if there are multiple perspectives be clear about the various perspectives. SAMPLE: Becky’s parents want to see her master more of the basic skills she seems to have missed in earlier grades. They also want her to have more friends to do things with outside of school. Becky wants to play soccer and would like to go to the same college that her cousins go to.

15. Present Levels of Educational Performance (IEP 2 & 3) GENERAL CURRICULUM and OTHER EDUCATIONAL NEEDS • Impact of disability on progress • ACCOMMODATIONS • SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION • Content • Methodology/Delivery of Instruction • Performance Criteria

17. How does the disability affect progress? 1. Skill weakness 2. How weakness impacts success 3. Address each component of the disability • Other Considerations—organization, attention, anxiety etc. INFORMATION in this section should support choice of accommodations and modifications. IEP pages 2 & 3 T3, Trans

18. Think about how these statements point toward the selection of accommodations and modifications.

19. How does the disability affect progress? • Jorge takes a long time to complete any written assignment so that it is difficult for him to get his work done in time allocated. He has difficulty maintaining his pencil/pen grip. • Matt’s difficulty with oral expression makes it difficult for him to participate actively in small group activities. • Sarah has trouble staying in her seat for more than 10 minutes so that she often leaves lectures.

20. How does the disability affect progress? (cont.) • Becky has difficulty with decoding and as content material becomes more complex, she is having more difficulty with reading comprehension. • Paul has particular difficulty when there is time pressure / response constraint. Her generally legible handwriting deteriorates substantially when she is tired or under time pressure.

21. What types of accommodations, if any, is necessary for the student to make effective progress? • Do not involve modifying the material content. • Whatever is being covered in the general education classroom/curriculum remains the same. • Do allow students to receive information in a more effective manner. • Do allow students to demonstrate knowledge in a more effective manner. • Can be provided by general educators.

22. Accommodations. . . . LEVEL the playing field, but they don’t change the game. Miriam K. Freedman

23. Examples of Accommodations** tremendous number of disability specific resources on WWW • Pencil grip • Alphasmart • Preferential seating (specify WHERE and WHY) • Slant board • FM System (enhanced audio) • Rug on floor • Large type • Fewer problems on each page

24. What type(s) of specially designed instruction, if any, is necessary for the student to make effective progress? MA IEP divides specialized instruction into three areas: • Content • Methodology/Delivery of Instruction • Performance Criteria

25. Specially Designed Instruction: CONTENT EXAMPLES: • Student working on key concepts only • Only as many problems as necessary • Content level reading materials should be at 3rd grade level.

26. Specially Designed Instruction: CONTENT (cont.) • If you are working with HIGH SCHOOL student, be careful to make sure content is not being modified so muchthat student will not receive credit toward graduation.

27. Specially Designed Instruction: Methodology/Delivery of Instruction What is unique about the way that instruction should be provided? Different from anything delivered in general education classroom? • Provide help at the start of any new, unfamiliar activity • Ask for directions to be repeated back to assure understanding • Provide ongoing praise and periodic activity-time reward for work completion

28. Specially Designed Instruction: Methodology/Delivery of Instruction(cont.) - Use of Velcro picture schedule. • Mayer-Johnson symbols to be used with all print directions • Check for splinter skill development rather than solid mastery. • Reinforce use of self-initiated adaptations.

29. Specially Designed Instruction: Performance Criteria • Grades for written products will combine original and edited versions. Oral tests for key course content. • Test only on vocabulary and concepts included on study sheets; have a series of grading options/activities to choose from at the completion of every major curriculum unit.

30. Specially Designed Instruction: Performance Criteria If your child is in general education classroom and us receiving a modified curriculum, make sure you know how grades will be determined.

31. IEP2 . . . PLEP-General Curriculum • This is the most crucial page for general educators to have and understand. • Always ask how information about your child will be communicated to the general educator(s).

32. While accommodations level the playing field, modifications can change the game.  Don’t worry so much about which section the information goes in, just make sure it is on the page.

33. On to IEP 4 . . .Current Performance Levels /Measurable Annual Goals • Exactly what can student do NOW? • Current Performance Level • What is it we want him to know or • be able to do at the end of a year? • Measurable Annual Goal • What will student need to do to complete that goal? Skills to acquire? • Objectives

34. Current Performance Levels (CPL) How is this different from PLEP? • CPL • Specific • Limited to goal area • Focused on skill building • Used to write a goal • PLEP • General • Focused on progress in the general curriculum • Used to write accommodations and modifications IEP page 4

36. Current Performance Levels- written for each goal (IEP 4) What can student currently do? • Should be written in as quantitative, specific terms as possible. • Serves as a baseline against which to measure future progress. • Should support your choice of goals & obj.

37. CPL EXAMPLE – 4th grader with diagnosed learning disability Becky can independently write clearly and coherently using short (2-4) word sentences and 1-2 syllable words. She is just beginning to use topic sentences and multiple paragraphs. She has difficulty translating her good ideas into written products. She can form letters in both print and cursive, but displays inconsistent spacing and when she is tired, her cursive writing can be very difficult to read. Becky has trouble spelling multisyllabic words, but will consistently attempt to use a personalized dictionary. Becky works well from a writing model, and when provided with one by the teacher, Becky can use a graphic organizer to help structure her thoughts and writing.

38. CPL Examples • Jill typically interrupts the work of others 2 or 3 times in any five minute period of quiet work time. She interrupts when she requires teacher assistance. • Lisa has the physical capacity to produce speech sounds. She has a 10 word verbal vocabulary. When she speaks, she most commonly uses the words: yes, hi, no. She can also use eye gaze and single switches to communicate with others. Her combined vocabulary using all three methods of communication totals 18 words.

39. GOALS • Stay focused on SKILLS student needs: • to access and progress in the general curriculum; • to fully participate in the life of the school; and • to move toward vision – consider adult life. (DOE 2/03) • What will make the biggest difference?

40. Goals (cont.) • Is goal supported by current level of performance? • Always ask how will student' progress be measured?? • How will you know if goal has been met? • Beware of rewriting the curriculum.

41. Measurable Annual Goal Components TARGET BEHAVIOR - The skill or behavior in need of change. Condition - Circumstances under which the target behavior is to occur. Criteria - Acceptable level of performance of the target behavior. IEP page 4 Created collaboratively by MA DOE &

42. MA currently requires GOALs to be measurable Examples: Behavior conditioncriteria John will follow school rules as described in the school handbook by walking down the halls without incident. Using 3rd grade level books with six chapters, Kim will be able to consistently silently read and correctly answer questions about name, idea and supporting details.

43. Examples Measurable Annual Goals TARGET BEHAVIORConditionCriteria • Nadia willWRITEA SIX SENTENCE PARAGRAPH using four types of sentencesscoring 45/50 on the district writing rubric. • When given a topic in History, Social Sciences, English Language Arts or Science and Technology, Carlos will be able toindependentlyWRITE A THREE-PARAGRAPH ESSAYcontaining the required elements; introduction, supporting details, and conclusion. IEP page 4 Created collaboratively by MA DOE &

44. Examples Measurable Annual Goals TARGET BEHAVIORConditionCriteria Monday through Friday, Jillian will USE THE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM TO GET TO AND FROM HER JOB PLACEMENT,independently arriving at work on time, for any five consecutive days. IEP page 4 Created collaboratively by MA DOE &

45. OBJECTIVES and Benchmarks • What will the student need to do to reach goal? • Although MA expects measurable goals, most special educators have been trained to write measurable objectives. Make sure GOALS or /and OBJECTIVES are measurable!

46. One strategy. . . GOAL: (general – non measurable) Joey will show increased vocational skills by meeting the following objectives: OBJECTIVES: (specific - measurable) • Given 100 flyers, Joey will place one flyer in each mailbox in no more than 5 minutes. • Given a set of no more than 10 pages to copy and written directions for collating and stapling, Joey will complete the task in no more than 10 minutes.

47. Objectives vs. Benchmarks – use what makes the most sense! • OBJECTIVES – focus is on what SKILLS the student needs to reach the goal. • BENCHMARKS – written in terms of TIME. What will student be able to do by December? April?

48. Examples of Measurable Benchmarks Monday through Friday, Jillian will USE THE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM TO GET TO AND FROM HER JOB PLACEMENT,independently arriving at work on time, for any five consecutive days. • By the end of the first quarter, accompanied by an adult, Jillian will walk to the bus stop, ride the bus to work, and get off at the correct work bus stop. • By the end of the second quarter, Jillian will be able to identify the steps she will follow to independently travel to work. • By the end of the third quarter, Jillian will independently walk to the bus stop, ride the bus to work and get off at the correct work bus stop. IEP page 4 Created collaboratively by MA DOE &

49. ANALYZE what skills the student needs to learn • What are the key components? • Answering orally? Answering in writing? • How long should she read independently? • What about strategies to improve her reading comprehension? • E.g., summarizing orally, stopping to ask herself questions at the end of each chapter?

50. GOAL: Using 3rd grade level books with six chapters, Kim will be able to consistently silently read and correctly answer questions about name, idea and supporting details. OBJECTIVES: • Given 3rd grade level chapter books, Kim will read silently for 30 minutes, 4 out of 5 opportunities. • After each chapter, Kim will independently write the names of characters, one main idea, and at least two supporting details. • After having read two chapters from 3rd grade level book, Kim will correctly answer 4 out of 5 questions about name, idea, and supporting details. • After silently reading a complete….book, Kim will correctly, orally answer written questions, 9 out of 10.