What is an I.E.P.?

The Individual Education Plan (IEP) is an ongoing planning-tool and written record, that should be developed by the school and family, to outline the programming needs specific to the individual exceptional student. The development of an IEP is a requirement of the Education Act for all students identified through the Identification, Placement and Review Committee (IPRC) process. However, many school boards also develop IEPs for any student who requires special education services.

Ontario Education law (Regulation 181/98) requires the development of an Individual Education Plan for Identified students within 30 days of the IPRC, and many school boards develop the IEP as part of the IPRC process. It is the responsibility of the Principal to ensure that the IEP is developed, although other staff, including Special Education Teachers and the Speech-Language Pathologists, may prepare the document.

Under the new Regulation, the Individual Education Plan must include:

• specific educational expectations for the pupil

• an outline of the special education program and services to be received by the pupil

• a statement of the method by which the pupil's progress will be reviewed

For students over 14 years of age:

• a transition plan describing the steps toward appropriate post secondary school activities, such as work, further education and community living.

The Individual Education Plan must be developed in consultation with the parent, and/or student, and must be signed by the parent or legal guardian.

Important Information to be included in an IEP:

• Student's strengths

• Student's Needs ( as recorded in IPRC)

• Relevant medical/health information

• Relevant tests or assessment results

• Student's current level of achievement

• Goals and specific expectations

• Program modifications

• Accommodations required

• Special Education and related services

• Assessment of strategies used and student's progress

• Regular updates showing changes

• Transition Plan (for students over 14)

What does an Individual Education Plan look like?

The Ontario Ministry of Education Individual Education Plan (IEP) Resource Guide provides a sample format for school boards, but many school boards have their own formats. The design does not matter as long as the IEP includes all the critical elements and is designed to address the learning strengths and needs of the student.

How is the IEP developed and what is the parent's role?

The IEP process usually has several phases:

1. Gathering information

2. Developing the IEP

3. Implementing the IEP

4. Reviewing and evaluating the student's progress

The Individual Education Plan should be developed jointly by the child's teacher, staff involved with the child's program (i.e., Special Education Teacher, Speech-Language Pathologist) and the parent/guardian. This means that there should be lots of communication with the school staff sharing information and ideas with the family, and the student and parents sharing information and ideas with school staff. If everyone is working together and talking with each other from the beginning, then the final content of the IEP will not come as a surprise, and the focus of any meetings can be on the details of making the plan work.

Parents should help the school staff and:

• Share any relevant reports or assessments

• Share their ideas and concerns about the child's abilities and school work

• Agree to the child doing any tests that may be helpful

• Agree to the school contacting any Doctors or other professionals that are helping the child

• Sign any consent forms needed for the testing or the contacts with professionals

• Keep a good record of the reports, test results, appointments and discussions with the school

1. Gathering Information:

In this phase, one of the staff involved with the student (usually the Special Education or Learning Resource Teacher) is asked to gather information about the student. The information may include previous IEP or IPRC information; report cards; assessments or tests the student has completed; samples of the student's work and observation of the student; consultation with student, parents, school staff and other professionals.

2. Developing the Individual Education Plan:

Once the information about the student has been gathered it is important to meet together and discuss the student's strengths and needs, and identify the goals and expectations for the student. This is usually done formally as part of the Identification, Placement and Review Committee (IPRC) process, but may occur informally in conversations or school visits.

Describe the student's strengths and needs:

The statement of decision of the IPRC will usually include the three top needs of the student. Occasionally there will be more than three needs identified, but for most students working on three problem areas is more practical and likely to lead to success. It is important that the strengths of the student are also included in the IEP. All children have abilities as well as activities that they like. This type of information will be very helpful in deciding how to work on the student's needs.

NOTE: Many school boards use computer programs that have lists of possible goals and strategies. These can be very useful if you can find a statement that describes your child's needs (as they can be time savers). However, if there is not a good match you can modify the statement or create a unique statement that describes your child's needs.

Decide on the goals:

The main focus should be on helping the student to be successful in the classroom and participate in the curriculum. For many students this may mean that changes are needed in how the material is presented or how the student completes the work. For other students there may be more significant changes, like going to a quiet room or working on different lessons. Or, the focus will be on other skills that are needed, like paying attention, speaking clearly, improving hand-eye coordination or maintaining self-control.

The goals for each student should be reasonable and have a good chance of success. A student that can not sit still, pay attention or print his name may become frustrated if you try to fix all the problems at the same time. The priority need may be to get the student to sit still, as it will increase the chance of him paying attention, and will decrease the chance of him distracting other students. However, a goal of sitting through all lessons every day is unrealistic, and a better idea will be to get him to sit for five minutes at a time and build up to one complete lesson. This makes the problem more manageable and increases the chance of success!!

Example: A student with a language impairment who has difficulty following instructions may need to have lessons broken into small steps. A number of strategies will be used including:

Decide how to achieve the goals:

There are many ways to help a child. The strategies can be divided into two categories - accommodations and modifications. Accommodations are those changes or strategies that change the way a student completes their work, or where the work is completed. Large print books, audio tapes, withdrawal to a quiet room, or extra time to complete projects are all examples of accommodations. A modification involves a more significant change to the curriculum or lessons being taught. This may include a student completing alternative material or lessons that have been simplified. Ideally, the lesson content should still be based on the school curriculum, even if it is at a different grade level.

It is important that the strategies (accommodations and modifications) that are developed are realistic, in terms of the resources available, and meaningful for the student. School boards have a legal responsibility to meet the needs of students, but do not have the money to give every child a personal teacher. It is, therefore, important that the strategies be carefully developed.

The resources and supports that are needed should be clearly described in the IEP. The person responsible and intensity of support should be detailed. Any special accommodations or materials should also be listed. The curriculum modifications should also be articulated with the grade level indicated, or alternative outcome expectations described.

Other strategies may include reducing distracting noises or visual material from classroom, providing student with additional time to complete lesson or allowing student to go to more private location.

Including a Transition Plan (for students over 14 years):

Under the new regulations an Individual Education Plan for a student over the age of 14 must include a Transition Plan describing how the student will prepare for appropriate post secondary activities, such as work, further education, and community living. For students with speech and/or language impairments transition planning will require the team to consider the listening, speaking, reading and writing demands of post secondary or workplace setting. The team will need to identify the student's strengths and needs, and the compensating strategies that the student will need to function in the workplace or in a post secondary institution. In addition, the plan will need to identify the qualifications, information and other resources that will be needed for the student to apply for their chosen career or further education.

Transition Plan Example: A student is interested in a career which involves working with children. In the first year of the transition plan, the goals and strategies may be:

The goals and strategies included in the IEP Transition Plan will depend on the age of the student and the eventual destination. It will be important to have a career or post secondary education goal, and to identify the short and long term strategies to get there. The Transition Plan is a useful tool that can focus the student, school team and family on identifying where the student is heading and what skills, credits and other resources the student will need by the time they leave school.

Each year the transition plan will become more focused on specific credits, skills and supports required for a selected post-secondary course or work place. By starting the planning early it is more likely the student will be ready to graduate and be prepared for further education or the workplace.

3. Implementing the Individual Education Plan:

The most important part of implementing the IEP is to share a copy with the student, family, school staff and other professionals. It is important that everyone be aware of the goals and strategies to be used in teaching the student, and that the families and school staff are working together. There are lots of ways that families can support the plan.
 

Parents can help to implement the IEP by:

• Making sure they understand the plan and who will do what

• Explaining the plan to the student

• Giving the student a quiet place to work at home

• Helping the student to practise new skills at home

• Talking to the student about school and their daily work

• Letting the teacher know how the student is doing at home or in the community

• Keeping in touch with school staff regularly to follow - up on the plan

4. Documentation of medical and health needs:

The IEP should include a section for recording medical and health care needs. It may be labeled as "Related Health Issues" or "Health Care Needs". This section is to be used to record any relevant diagnosis, such as Cerebral Palsy or Muscular Dystrophy, and to document any services the student is receiving through the School Health Support Services.

This section should be completed and health supports and services documented. It is also important that any program goals are recorded and that strategies for evaluation are identified. If a Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist is involved on a regular basis the contact schedule should be included. In developing a program plan for a student all the factors should be considered and prioritized. For example, a child who has had major surgery or a serious illness may need to have a greater focus on their physical recovery and a physiotherapy program.

The IEP provides a formal process to identify needs, but more importantly it provides the opportunity to prioritize program goals. Health care needs must be considered and prioritized within the overall IEP. We must keep the whole child in mind and make sure all the expectations on the child and support personnel are reasonable and achievable.

5. Reviewing the IEP and student progress:

Because the IEP is an ongoing planning tool, it must be reviewed and revised on a regular basis. The IEP will be reviewed at least once a year, as part of the annual Identification, Placement and Review Committee (IPRC) process. However, you can request a review whenever you feel changes need to be made to your child's program, but not less than three months since IEP was implemented.. Remember, changes do not always refer to difficulties or negative aspects, but could also be a result of something positive.

If your child's needs have changed significantly, and the IEP needs to reflect this, it is best to submit the request, in writing, to the school principal with a copy to the teacher. Remember to keep a copy for your own records. You may want to request a review if:
 

your child has met one, or several of the goals written in the IEP

your child does not seem to be making any progress toward one, or several, of the goals written in the IEP

you feel additional strategies should be considered in order for your child to progress

you feel a service is no longer necessary in order for your child to succeed

your child has experienced major changes, such as illness, surgery, or injury

A copy of the Individual Education Plan should be placed in the Ontario Student Record, but other copies should be shared with all the Teachers, staff and family members who will be helping the student and using the plan. A copy of the IEP should be provided to the parent with each report card. The student's Report Card should compliment the IEP and show where the IEP has resulted in changes to the student's program, or outcome expectations.

The Individual Education Plan is meant to be helpful for families and the school. Try not to view it as a chore or a burden but as a tool that will help your child to succeed at school!