Measuring Educational Benefit

1. Measuring Educational Benefit Shannon McMahon Program and Training Specialist BCIU #22

2. Educational Benefit Review (EBR) • Purpose • To determine if the student’s IEP is reasonably calculated for the student to achieve educational benefit • Sample parameters • 10 records over 3 years • All primary disability categories • All grade levels • Team members • Special Ed/General Ed/Program knowledge

3. Determine if there is a clear relationshipamong: Present levels of academic achievement and functional performance Identified needs Annual goals Transition Progress reports Accommodations/modifications Supplementary aids and services THE IEP:DOES IT ALL CONNECT? 3 3

4. Why do we need to do this? 4

5. Free Appropriate Public Education(FAPE) • IDEA standard since 1975 • Appropriate education to conform with the requirements of an individualized education program • At no cost to the parent

6. Rowley (Supreme Court-1982) Define a two pronged test to determine if IEP was appropriately developed: • Does IEP meet procedural compliance? • Was IEP reasonably calculated to enable child to receive educational benefit? BUT….what is “educational benefit”?

7. Rowley Standard • Defined educational benefit as “if the student derives more than minimal or trivial progress” • Did not require schools to maximize a student’s potential • Provided access, but did not require identical access

8. Reexamining Rowley • How does Rowley align with the standards movement, IDEA 2004 & NCLB? • Accountability/assessment of all students • Uniform standards • Participation in the general curriculum • Data collection and progress monitoring • Research-based instruction • Inclusion • Transition planning

9. Ed Benefit Post-IDEA 2004 • IEP identifies present levels, needs related to disability and impact on involvement/progress in general curriculum • Measurable annual goals • Services planned to support progress toward goals and in general curriculum • Education in LRE, participation in extracurricular & other nonacademic activities • Transition needs are addressed • IEP adjusted if progress not made

10. Measuring Educational Benefit Can be measured in a variety of ways • Achieving passing marks • Advancing from grade to grade • Making progress toward meeting annual goals • Improving scores on statewide/district wide assessments • Graduating with a regular diploma

11. Educational Benefit Review Process 11 11

12. WHAT IS THE EDUCATIONAL BENEFIT REVIEW PROCESS? • Educational Benefit Review Process is a process that will assist in examining & reflecting on the quality of IEP development to increase student access, participation, and progress in the general education curriculum by providing an appropriate education. • Record IEP information for 3 consecutive years • Analyze relationships among components • Compare progress across consecutive IEPs • Look for patterns and determine if IEP was reasonably calculated to result in educational benefit 12

13. Step One: Chart IEP Information • Copy verbatim phrases from the IEP • Abbreviations are acceptable, but do not paraphrase or summarize • Capture progress from progress reports, test scores, report card grades and comments • Identify sections (academic, social, physical) or content area (ELA, Math..) for better organization • Was IEP adjusted?

14. Was the student’s program reasonably calculated to result in educational benefit? YES or NO? 14

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16. Step Two: Analyze Relationships • Consider each IEP (years) separately • Determine alignment-the LEA relationships between two or more components (column to column) • Look for patterns of progress across years • Broken chains may indicate gaps

17. Step Three:Compare to Prior Years • What about items that are on one year but not other years? • What item disappears from one year to the next? Why did it disappear? Was the goal achieved?

18. EBR:Decision • Are the assessments complete and do they identify all the student’s needs? • In Year 3, does the IEP, through the PLAAFP statement or other IEP information identify all of the student’s significant needs? • In Year 3, are all of the student’s needs addressed by goals and supplementary aids and services

19. EBR: Decision • In Year 3, are there programs and services to support all of the student’s goals and objectives? • In reviewing the PLAAFP from Yr1 to Yr2 and Yr2 to Yr3, if the student did not make progress was the IEP revised to facilitate the learner’s future progress?

20. Educational Benefit Clarification: A properly written IEP provides the blueprint for teaching. It focuses upon the factors that tend to interfere with student achievement and utilizes students’ strengths to enhance learning. In order to bring this about, the IEP must link the assessment results to effective teaching strategies. 20

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22. Educational Benefit:Annual Goals Goals Address the needs of the student, as stated in the Present Levels of Performance Are written in measurable terms that focus on one year of instruction and must be formulated to be achievable by the student Must be relevant to class activities, and improve classroom performance Should focus on foundation skills, based on student’s individual needs described in the present levels of performance. Include clear and specific methods of measurement 22

23. Educational Benefit Now let’s try this out with a sample student from our district. 23

24. Was the student’s program reasonably calculated to result in educational benefit? YES or NO? 24

25. Conducting the EBR • Review student records for three years • Chart IEP information • Analyze relationships among components • Compare progress and look for patterns • Determine if the IEP was reasonably calculated to result in educational benefit

26. Educational Benefit: Outcome Improving Performance & Academic Achievement Progress toward goals Improved scores on district and statewide assessments Advancement from grade to grade Progress in the General Education curriculum OVERALL: Increased movement toward LRE 26 26