On the Same Team
| On the Same Team |
Building collaborative special education relationships between home and school.
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Introduction
An IEP is a written statement for a child with a disability that is developed, reviewed, and revised in accordance with IDEA.
The State education agency must make sure that schools develop and implement an IEP for each eligible child served by that school, or
referred to a private school.
Generally, at the start of each school year, the school must have an IEP in place for each eligible child. The school must ensure that the child’s
IEP is available to appropriate personnel working with the child. Furthermore, each of those individuals must be apprised of his/her specific
responsibilities involved in implementing the IEP, as well as the accommodations, modifications, and supports to be provided to the child.
IEP Meetings
The school must properly initiate and conduct meetings to develop, review, and revise a child’s IEP. The initial IEP meeting must be
conducted within 30 days of the team’s determination that the child requires special education and related services. Subsequent meetings to
review IEPs must occur periodically, but not less than once per year, to discuss whether the child is achieving the annual goals.
Meetings must also occur to revise the IEP, when appropriate, to address lack of expected progress toward annual goals, results of any
reevaluation conducted, information regarding the child provided to, or by, the parents, the child's expected future needs, or other matters.
The regular education teacher must participate, to the extent appropriate, in the review and revision of the child’s IEP.
IEP Team
The IEP Team means a group of individuals consisting of:
Parents are members of the child’s IEP team and must be members of any decision-making group that determines the child’s educational
program and placement. Consequently, the school must comply with many obligations that ensure parents’ participation in the IEP process.
The school must attempt to make sure that one or both of the child’s parents attend each IEP meeting, or are at least given the opportunity to
participate. Specifically, the school must alert parents of the meeting with sufficient notice to provide them the opportunity to attend, and must
schedule the conference at a mutually agreed upon time and location. The notice must include the meetings purpose, time, location and
attendees.
The school must take steps to ensure that the parent comprehends what happens at the meeting. This may include arranging for an interpreter
for parents with hearing impairments, or who do not speak English.
If neither parent is able to attend, the school must employ other methods to guarantee parent participation, including individual telephone calls
and conference calls. If the school is not able to convince the parents to attend, it may hold a meeting without a parent.
Schools must provide parents with a free copy of the child’s IEP.
IEP Team Attendance
A member of the IEP Team is not required to attend the IEP meeting if the parent and the school agree that the member's attendance is not
necessary, because his/her area of the curriculum or related services is not being discussed or changed in the meeting.
A member if the IEP Team may be excused from attending the IEP meeting when the meeting does involve a discussion and/or change in the
member's area of the curriculum or related services if-
The parent's agreement to excuse an IEP Team member must be provided in writing.
IEP Content
IDEA stipulates what must be included in each child’s IEP. The IEP for each eligible child must include the following:
An IEP is a written statement for a child with a disability that is developed, reviewed, and revised in accordance with IDEA.
The State education agency must make sure that schools develop and implement an IEP for each eligible child served by that school, or
referred to a private school.
Generally, at the start of each school year, the school must have an IEP in place for each eligible child. The school must ensure that the child’s
IEP is available to appropriate personnel working with the child. Furthermore, each of those individuals must be apprised of his/her specific
responsibilities involved in implementing the IEP, as well as the accommodations, modifications, and supports to be provided to the child.
IEP Meetings
The school must properly initiate and conduct meetings to develop, review, and revise a child’s IEP. The initial IEP meeting must be
conducted within 30 days of the team’s determination that the child requires special education and related services. Subsequent meetings to
review IEPs must occur periodically, but not less than once per year, to discuss whether the child is achieving the annual goals.
Meetings must also occur to revise the IEP, when appropriate, to address lack of expected progress toward annual goals, results of any
reevaluation conducted, information regarding the child provided to, or by, the parents, the child's expected future needs, or other matters.
The regular education teacher must participate, to the extent appropriate, in the review and revision of the child’s IEP.
IEP Team
The IEP Team means a group of individuals consisting of:
- the parents of the student with a disability;
- not less than one regular education teacher of the student (if the student participates in the regular education environment);
- not less than one special education teacher, or when appropriate, not less than one special education provider of the student;
- a representative of the school who -
- is qualified to provide, or supervise the provision of, specially designed instruction to meet the student's unique educational needs;
- is knowledgeable about the general education curriculum; and
- is knowledgeable about the availability of the school's resources
- an individual who can interpret the instructional implications of evaluation results;
- other individuals who have knowledge and/or special expertise about the student (at parent's or school's discretion);
- when appropriate, the student with the disability
Parents are members of the child’s IEP team and must be members of any decision-making group that determines the child’s educational
program and placement. Consequently, the school must comply with many obligations that ensure parents’ participation in the IEP process.
The school must attempt to make sure that one or both of the child’s parents attend each IEP meeting, or are at least given the opportunity to
participate. Specifically, the school must alert parents of the meeting with sufficient notice to provide them the opportunity to attend, and must
schedule the conference at a mutually agreed upon time and location. The notice must include the meetings purpose, time, location and
attendees.
The school must take steps to ensure that the parent comprehends what happens at the meeting. This may include arranging for an interpreter
for parents with hearing impairments, or who do not speak English.
If neither parent is able to attend, the school must employ other methods to guarantee parent participation, including individual telephone calls
and conference calls. If the school is not able to convince the parents to attend, it may hold a meeting without a parent.
Schools must provide parents with a free copy of the child’s IEP.
IEP Team Attendance
A member of the IEP Team is not required to attend the IEP meeting if the parent and the school agree that the member's attendance is not
necessary, because his/her area of the curriculum or related services is not being discussed or changed in the meeting.
A member if the IEP Team may be excused from attending the IEP meeting when the meeting does involve a discussion and/or change in the
member's area of the curriculum or related services if-
- the parent and the school consent to the staff member's excusal; and
- the member submits, in writing to the parent and IEP Team, input into the IEP development prior to the meeting.
The parent's agreement to excuse an IEP Team member must be provided in writing.
IEP Content
IDEA stipulates what must be included in each child’s IEP. The IEP for each eligible child must include the following:
- A statement of the child's present levels of performance (academic and functional), including
- how the child's disability impacts his/her involvement and progress in the general education curriculum;
- for preschool students, as appropriate, how the child's disability affects his/her participation in appropriate activities; and
- for students with disabilities who take alternate assessments, a description of short-term objectives or benchmarks
- A statement of measurable annual goals (academic and functional), which is developed to
- meet the child's disability-related needs, and to allow the child to be involved and progress in the general education curriculum;
and
- meet the child's other needs, which stem from the child's disability
- A description of how the Team will measure the student's progress toward IEP goals, and when the Team will provide regular reports
on the child's progress
- A statement of the special education and related services and supplementary aids and services t, along with a statement of the
program modifications or supports for staff and personnel that will be provided to the child -
- to progress appropriately toward IEP goals;
- to participate and progress in the general education curriculum, and to participate in extracurricular and other nonacademic
activities; and
- to be educated and participate with other children with disabilities and typically developing children in these activities
- An explanation of the extent (if any) to which the student will not participate with nondisabled students in the regular education
classroom;
- A statement of any accommodations that are necessary to measure the student's academic and functional performance on State- and
district-wide assessments; and
- if the Team decides that the student will take an alternate assessment, a statement of why:
- the student cannot participate in the regular assessment; and
- the selected alternate assessment is appropriate for the child;
- The projected date for beginning of services, accommodations and modifications; and
- The anticipated frequency, duration, and location of those services;
- A post-secondary transition plan for age-appropriate students.
| IEPs |
Access IDEA through the Library of Congress.
Access the United States Constitution.
Review relevant case law.
Access federal special education regulations.
Learn about the American Legal System.
Access the United States Constitution.
Review relevant case law.
Access federal special education regulations.
Learn about the American Legal System.