Foundations of Special Education and Individualized Education Plan (IEP) Implementation 1.0

 

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Welcome to the Foundations of Special Education and Individualized Education Plan--or IEP-- Implementation presentation.  During this presentation we will focus on the following essential questions:  What fundamental information do I need to  understand special education and IEPs?  How can I use information contained in an  IEP to support student success? 

What are my role & responsibilities with regard  to implementing a student’s IEP?  Throughout the presentation we will also work  in the context of the following agreements:  All students are general education students  first. All students start out in general education and become eligible for special education through a process of evaluation.

It is only  when Tier 1 and Tier 2 supports and interventions  have been exhausted that a student may be  referred for a special education case study.  Special education is a service not a place  or entity. Special education has progressed  a lot in the past few decades and, while we  often refer to a student as being in special  education, person-first language--such as  saying that a student has a learning disability  instead of a learning disabled student or  a student has special education services instead  of a special ed student--is best practice  and places increased focus on the individual,  not the service that is being provided or  the area of disability.

The special education department provides a variety of supports  and services--within and outside of general  education classes--and should not be thought  of as a self-contained environment.  In addition to...not in place of…

ALL students  should always have access to Tier 1 supports  and interventions. Tier 2 and Tier 3 supports  and interventions should be put in place to  support a student’s academic, social, and  behavioral success IN ADDITION to those in  Tier 1, not in place of Tier I supports and  interventions.  All members of a student’s IEP Team are  working together and collaborating to support  a student’s academic, social, and behavioral  success and to provide a free appropriate  public education.

It is the responsibility  of a student’s IEP Team--including general  and special education teachers--to work together  to support the student through thorough and  appropriate implementation of the student’s  IEP. Failure of staff to coordinate services  and effectively communicate regarding a student’s  progress can result in a failure to implement  the IEP--and a denial of FAPE or Free Appropriate  Public Education as provided by IDEA--which  can leave a school district vulnerable to  legal action.  An important distinction to make is that between  a 504 Plan and an IEP or Individualized Education  Plan.  The following chart provides some discernment  between a 504 Plan and an IEP.

Both provide  protections to eligible individuals with disabilities.  Students with IEPs require some form of specialized  instruction or services to access their education.  This could be a single class of special education  like Learning Strategies, all classes in special  education, or somewhere in between. Some students  with IEPs require their education placement  to be in a setting off campus. Students with  504 Plans participate fully in general education  with accommodations, assistive technology,  and/or modifications.  By law, an IEP must include: 

A statement of a student’s present level  of performance (PLOP)--or how the student  is currently performing in areas such as academics,  behavior, social emotional well-being, and  health.  Annual educational goals with objectives  Special education supports and services that  the school will provide to help a student  reach their goals  Modifications and accommodations the school  will provide to help a student make progress  toward their goals  Accommodations the student will be allowed  when taking standardized tests  How and when the school will measure the student’s  progress toward annual goals  Transition planning that prepares students,  14 ½ years or older, for life after high  school  There are 13 categories under which a student  may qualify for specialeducation services  including: Autism, Deaf-Blindness, Deafness,  Emotional Disturbance, Hearing Impairment,  Intellectual Disability, Multiple Disabilities,  Orthopedic Impairment, Other Health Impairment,  Specific Learning Disability, Speech/Language  Impairment, Traumatic Brain Injury, and Visual  Impairment. Each eligibility has unique Determinant Factors, Exclusionary Criteria, and Inclusionary Criteria that are discussed at an initial eligibility meeting or eligibility determination conference (EDC).

The five most prevalent  categories under which students receive special  education services here at ETHS are Specific  Learning Disability or SLD, Other Health Impairment  or OHI, Emotional Disturbance or ED, autism,  and Intellectual Disability or ID. If you  would like to learn more about the eligibility  categories or the factors considered in determining  a specific eligibility, please visit the ISBE  website.  People often wonder how a student becomes eligible for special education services and  the answer is both prevention and intervention-based: 

once Tier 1 and Tier 2 interventions have  been implemented with fidelity and exhausted,  and a student continues to lack academic,  social, or behavioral success, the Grade Level  SST 2/3 Team meets. At this meeting the Grade  Level SST 2/3 Team considers student needs  and decides if the student requires a case  study evaluation. If the team decides a student requires a case study evaluation, parental  consent must be obtained for the evaluation  to take place. Once the evaluation data has  been gathered, the Grade Level Team reviews  the data and relevant eligibility criteria,  determining if a student is eligible for special  education services. 

There are a few “good customer service”  guidelines to keep in mind when working with  students with IEPs or with a student who you  suspect may have a disability. When working  with students who receive special education  services, confidentiality is key. Always speak  confidentially to students about their learning  needs and supports. A student should never  be identified as a student with an IEP or  as receiving special education services in  front of their peers. It is the responsibility  of the teacher to offer and provide accommodations  as outlined in the IEP. Please refrain from  saying “The student does not ask for their  accommodations” when discussing a student’s  performance or use of accommodations. It is  not the student’s burden to ask for what  they are entitled to under their IEP.

It is  the obligation for the adults to provide.  When communicating with guardians about a  student who is striving to achieve success,  share facts about the student’s skills and  functional performance in your class. Refrain  from telling a family that their student needs  special education. Instead, speak to your  department chair and to the counselor about  what you know about the student with a preventionist  mindset and approach. 

This graphic shows the continuum of services  for students with IEPs.  Once a student is found eligible for special  education services the IEP is developed, including  services and placement. With regard to special  education supports and services, all students  must be serviced in the Least Restrictive  Environment or LRE. According to the Individuals  with Disabilities Education Act or IDEA, the  least restrictive environment means that a  student who has a disability should have the  opportunity to be educated with their non-disabled  peers, to the greatest extent appropriate.  The least restrictive environment for a student  is to have all classes in thegeneral education  environment, with no supplementary aids or  services. Students who have a special education  class or classes, noted by a class code beginning  with SE, are being serviced in the Resource  Support (Learning Strategies) or Self-Contained  Placement along the ISBE continuum of services.  Previously, within the building, we referred  to programs such as Resource, IP or Instructional  Program, IPSC or Instructional Program Self-contained,  and the ARC or Adolescents Reaching Capabilities. 

Over the past few years the we have worked  to remove program labels within our building,  thus allowing increased focus on developing  placement based on the individual student--not  a program--and removing additional labels  placed on a student who receives special education  services.  The next topic we will cover is the difference  between differentiation, accommodations, and  modifications. We’ll support this with a  visual in a moment, but a helpful way to think  of these is that differentiation gives multiple  methods through which to hit a target, accommodations  give students what they need to hit a target,  and modifications change the target that students  need to hit. 

This image offers a way to envision the difference  between differentiation, accommodations, and  modifications. Differentiation is aligned  with MTSS in supporting the academic success  of all students. It is allowing different  ways of accessing the SAME target or objective  by changing the material. Examples of differentiation  include offering multiple reading levels and  varying the level of questioning.  Accommodations are methods put in place to  give a student what they need to hit a target  or objective, or to level the playing field. 

They can be physical or environmental changes,  including extended time, scaffolding, frequent  breaks, pre-teaching, use of graphic organizers,  shortening the length of a test, changing  test format such as offering multiple choice  instead of fill in the blank response types,  and allowing for verbal responses. Accommodations  DO alter the way tasks are presented but DO  NOT alter what the student is expected to  learn, the content of assignments, or what  an assessment measures. Assignments and tests  completed with accommodations should be graded  the same way as those completed without accommodations.  Modifications change the target or objective  a student needs to hit or achieve. A modification  DOES fundamentally alter the standard or expectation  of a course or assessment. Curriculum and  materials (assignments, assessments) may be  adapted in ways such as being written at a  lower level of understanding, and simplifying  vocabulary, concepts, and principles.

 Differentiation, accommodations, and modifications  make learning accessible to students and are  used to allow students to learn and show what  they know without being impeded by their disability.  Accommodations and modifications as outlined  in a student’s IEP are the responsibility  of a TEACHER to provide and MUST BE OFFERED  regardless of student request.  The handout Possible Tier I Strategies was  handed out on Institute Day 2 during the MTSS  training and has a more exhaustive list of  methods that may support not only students  with special education services but also those  in general education. An IEP is not required  to implement items on this list.  When it comes to implementing accommodations  and modifications, the concern often arises  with regard to maintaining high expectations  and rigorous curriculum while implementing  the IEP with fidelity. Sometimes accommodations  and modifications can be seen as lowering  expectations or providing too much support  for a student with a disability.

The most  important thing to focus on is that an IEP  is an individualized education plan. This  means that a student’s specifics strengths  and needs have been considered and a plan  has been developed that will provide the student  with the supports they need to achieve success,  and to minimize the impact of their disability  on their opportunity to achieve success. Even  when it comes to daily life, there are general  instances where expectations are altered to  support success: for example law enforcement  fitness tests, military fitness tests, and  qualifying times for races such as marathons  vary based on gender and/or age. In these  situations, standards are not being lowered  but rather altered upon the consideration  of certain factors. It may also help to remember  that equality and equity are two different  things: equality is giving everyone the same  thing whereas equity is giving people what  they need. 

So, How can a student’s IEP at a Glance  help you support their academic, social, and  behavioral success?  This document should be available to you via  TAC. It is typically uploaded by the student’s  case manager and includes information regarding  student strengths, and current academic, functional,  social-emotional, communication and vocational  performance.

It includes student’s annual  goals and objectives, and accommodations and/or  modifications for both classroom and standardized  testing. Your ability to immediately access  this reference allows you to know which accommodations  you need to provide as you are planning for  instruction and assessment. If you are unsure  how to provide a specific accommodation as  it is written, please email or call the case  manager for consultation. Together, you should  be able to interpret and implement the accommodation. 

The student’s case manager is listed on  the first page of this document- follow the  red arrow. Another source of consultation  would be the previous year’s content teacher  in your discipline.  The information contained in the goals and  objectives sections of the IEP at a Glance  are related to a student’s eligibility:  i.e. if a student has been found eligible  for special education services under Specific  Learning Disability in the areas of reading  and math, the student should also have academic  goals in those areas. This information can  support student success by giving staff insight  into what the student is working to achieve,  therefore areas in which they need the most  assistance.

All goals are written in alignment  with Illinois Learning Standards and should  be skill-based and measurable.  The information located in the Classroom Accommodations  and Supplementary Aids, Accommodations, and  Modifications sections specify the accommodations  and modifications that a student is afforded.  Many are commonly utilized accommodations,  but some may be written in vague language.  This has a purpose, in that the accommodations  need to be applied across contents and levels  of curriculum.

Writing the accommodation in  more general terms allows the general education  teacher and case manager to collaboratively  determine the accommodation needed for the  student to access instruction and demonstrate  their learning.  The information in these areas support student  success by outlining the specific structures  that will level the playing field for students.  These structures often benefit all students,  not just those with an IEP and many potential  accommodations may be listed on the Possible  Tier 1 Strategies, distributed at the Institute  Day 2 MTSS training.

Should you have any questions about how to  implement an accommodation, please reach out  to the student’s case manager directly for  assistance.  The present levels of performance sections  of the IEP at a Glance provide a brief summary  of a student’s strengths (academic, social,  functional), current academic performance  including areas of strength and those that  need improvement, and functional performance  such as attendance, self-advocacy, and work  completion.  The information in these areas support student  success by giving staff a snapshot of the  student. The information may contain above  and below the line information, which may  help you better understand the student’s  abilities and challenges, as well as develop  a relationship with the student.  You can also see the student’s grade level  team members, including case manager, through  the district links tab shown here.  Next we will discuss Functional Behavioral  Assessment (FBA) and Behavioral Intervention  Plans (BIPs). What are they? How do they help  staff support a student’s behavioral success?  If a student who receives special education  services is thought to demonstrate a behavior  or behaviors that impede the student’s learning  or the learning of others, a functional behavioral  analysis or FBA may be completed.

Functional  behavioral analysis is a process used to gather  information about a student’s behavior and  will be used to determine the need for a Behavioral  Intervention Plan or BIP. The student is observed  in one or more classes--often by the psychologist  or other qualified person on the IEP Team--in  an attempt to determine antecedents, variables,  and function as they relate to the target  behavior--the behavior that is creating a  disruption to learning.

Members of a student’s  IEP team later convene to discuss the information  gathered from the functional behavior analysis.  Based on the information in the FBA, the team  determines whether or not the student’s  behavior could be supported by a behavior  intervention plan or BIP.  A behavioral intervention plan supports implementation  of replacement behaviors--those that are more  positive than the target behavior and increase  access to the learning environment for the  student and their peers. The BIP operationally  defines the target behavior or describes what  the behavior looks like, and the potential  function it serves.  Your role in implementing to Behavior Intervention  Plan is important. Familiarize yourself with  the plan, and provide the interventions and  reinforcers as they are listed. Your input  as to how the plan is working or may need  to be revised is also important to share with  the case manager. 

Some common questions about teaming for students  with IEPs include:  Who is on a student’s IEP Team?  What does the partnership between case managers  and general education teachers look like?  And  As a general education teacher, what is my  role on the IEP Team?  A student’s team consists of several required  members including: the student, guardian or  guardians, case manager, counselor, and general  education teacher or teachers, psychologist,  IEP Coordinator, dean, and related service  providers--including but not limited to social  worker, speech language pathologist, occupational  therapist, physical therapist, hearing itinerant,  and vision specialist.  The case manager’s role is to monitor the  implementation of a student’s IEP, and is  the “go-to” for general education teachers.  If you have a concern about a student with  an IEP, you may choose to communicate with  the case manager to get more information--such  as if the behavior or academic challenge is  across classes--but you should also contact  the family.

While a case manager specializes  in how to implement the IEP and may have more  information about a student, as a student’s  classroom teacher, generaleducation teachers  should still establish rapport with a student  and their family, and maintain communication  to the extent necessary to support the student.  The case manager may supplement a teacher’s communication with a family but should not  be expected to consistently maintain communication  for another teacher.  With regard to the IEP, general education  teachers have a responsibility to implement  a student’s plan and to attend IEP meetings  as requested, or to submit feedback as requested  if you have not been invited to the IEP meeting.  Which general education teacher is invited  to an IEP meeting depends on several factors  including: free period/availability, rapport  with student, student progress in a class,  and student placement. While attempts are  made to invite a variety of teachers from  departments to IEP meetings, some teachers  may be invited to more IEP meetings than others.

 If you are invited to an IEP meeting of any  type, please request a substitute through  AESOP as soon as possible. Types of meetings  include:  Domains Meeting which takes place prior to  an EDC and where current data is reviewed  and determination is made as to what additional  data, if any, needs to be gathered for evaluation.  Eligibility Determination Conference or EDC.  At this meeting data is reviewed to determine  either initial eligibility for a student who  has undergone a case study or continuing eligibility  for a student who currently receives special  education services.  An Annual Review meeting is the annual opportunity  to discuss student's present levels of functioning,  progress toward goals, use of accommodations,  placement and services, and post high school  plans.

 Other types of meetings include a Manifestation  Determination Review (MDR), Progress Review,  Information sharing meeting--for the internal  team only, and a 30-Day Review meeting.  Regardless of the type of meeting you attend,  a general education teacher should be prepared  to share a student’s rate of progress with  regard to general education expectations,  share a student’s use of accommodations  and provide feedback regarding their impact,  and to make recommendations regarding course  sequence and level. 

Other responsibilities of a general education  teacher include gathering student performance  information regarding IEP goals and skills,  and reporting it to case managers when requested  such as at the end of each quarter.  What do you and the special education teacher  have in common? You both are responsible for  supporting students with IEPs. You both need  to communicate and collaborate around student  access to learning. You both are responsible  for understanding and implementing accommodations  for students. You both must attend IEP meetings.  You both teach 5 classes and have a duty.  Thanks to the feedback received from several  departments, there are many actions that you  and your special education colleagues take  that meet the needs of students with IEPs.  We want to lift those up here to share as  exemplars of best practices. 

They include:  “When I have had students who were anxious  about earned honors assessments in the past,  case manager and I have made arrangements  for the students to take their written assessments  in smaller environment”  “Talked to case manager who helped me break  lessons down into manageable chunks.”  “I attend the IEP meetings I am invited  to and learn so much about my student.

I also  can share about curricular and behavioral  expectations for classes like mine to help  the team decide on classes for the next year.”  “I try to work with learning strategies  teachers on assignments both due and missing  to help keep the students on track and to  ensure student success.”  There are a number of resources you can access  in order to obtain more information about  a student who receives special education services.  

The most comprehensive information can be  found in a student’s file in S121. Anyone  who provides services to a student with an  IEP may have access to the student’s file.  The file may contain a student’s social  developmental history, previous test scores,  past IEPs, and potentially information from  previous schools. Reading a student’s file  in S121 will help you create a more holistic  picture of the student and increased understanding  of the student as a person and as a learner.  In addition to the student’s file, there  are a number of school-wide systems, people--internal  and external, and technology resources that  can you look to for assistance in supporting  a student and appropriately implementing their  IEP.  

Some final takeaways are that teachers should  be partnering with a student’s case manager  to support a student. Teachers should also  be providing accommodations as outlined in  a student’s IEP. ALWAYS offer a student  their accommodation, not only when a student  requests them. When providing an accommodation,  provide the same condition for all students.  For students without IEPs who demonstrate  needs, implement interventions and be a preventionist  FIRST.  The links here take you to some resources  for how to best support learners with different  learning styles or learning needs.  Remember..  Collaboration is key.  When in doubt...talk it out--with a student’s  case manager.  Thank you very much for your attention during  this presentation!