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Education

UCP’s Education Channel provides resources for parents, teachers, and others involved in the education of students with disabilities and other special needs.

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Education

The Individualized Education Program (IEP)

Undertanding the IEP Process

Question: My child has some learning problems and the school says she needs special education services. We’re supposed to have an IEP meeting next week and I don’t understand the process.

Answer: An Individualized Education Program (IEP) is developed by a team called the IEP Committee (IEPC) at the IEP meeting. The IEPC is made up of school personnel and the child’s parents and, if appropriate, the child. The IEP meeting takes place at least annually. The school is required to give you 30 school days written notice of the meeting and the meeting must take place at a mutually agreed time and place. If you can’t make it to the meeting, you have the right to change the time and place.

The IEP includes a statement of your child’s present level of educational performance, the educational goals for the next year, the services your child is to receive at school, how the services will be provided, and how it will be measured that the services are effective and your child is meeting his or her goals. The school or classroom in which your child is placed is the last decision to be made and it should be made after the goals and objectives are determined. The school should not be walking in saying, “how about this classroom” first, and then building the goals and objectives around that decision.

You are entitled to bring anyone you want with you to the meeting. Professional advocates may be available to help you through the Citizen’s Alliance to Uphold Special Education (CAUSE) (800-221-9105) or through local chapters of The Arc (800-292-7851). It may also be helpful to bring a friend, particularly one who has experience going to IEP meetings.

The school personnel at the meeting will include your child’s teachers and may include other personnel involved in your child’s education such as the resource room teacher, physical and occupational therapists, and school counselors. You can request that a specific person from the school, such as a physical therapist, attend the IEP. If he or she can’t be there, request their recommendations in writing.

The following are some tips to guide you through the IEP process:

  • Read your child’s school file. Doing so may help you understand the school’s perspective on your child’s needs and how they propose to meet those needs.
  • Share your insights and hopes for your child at the meeting. Remember you are the expert on your child. Don’t let the meeting time limits or the person running the meeting hurry through it without giving you a chance to say what you want and what you think about their proposals.
  • Ask lots of questions. If you don’t understand a term, ask for an explanation. Educators often use their own jargon without realizing that most people do not understand it.
  • Labels such as “severely multiply impaired (SXI)” or “emotionally impaired (EI)” have distinct consequences in some situations. It may be helpful to talk to a professional advocate or an experienced parent about the category in which the school is suggesting your child fits. Don’t agree to the labeling unless you agree with the label and its consequences.
  • Make all requests in writing. This practice not only ensures that the request is documented, it triggers a required response from the school and prior notice if the request is rejected. Instead of requesting a specific service, request evaluation for that service, and review the evaluation results before the next IEP meeting.
  • You should have someone take notes so that everything that is discussed at the meeting is recorded even if it’s not written into the IEP.
  • You have the right to tape record the meetings.
  • Don’t sign the IEP if you don’t agree with something. You can take the IEP home with you and review it before signing it. If there is something in the plan to which you object, try to work out a compromise or alternative.
  • If you don’t agree with an assessment, you have the right to request an independent evaluation at public expense.
  • Get a signed copy of the IEP for your records.
  • You have right to appeal the IEP if you object to it.