IEPs

Hey All!

I recently attended a really informative workshop on IEPs given by the Michigan Alliance for Families (specifically with Sandee Koski). It was jam packed full of info (I would highly suggest that everyone attend at least one of their workshops if you can…they are very informative), but I will try get down what I think is the most helpful here.

Helpful MI IEP Resources

We got a little tip at the session: if you have a question and/or need clarification about the special education laws, rules, and/or regulations in MI, call this number: 888-320-8384. It is the number for the Michigan Dept of Ed Office of Special Education (OSE) and they can and will answer questions about the law, etc. If you call and leave a message, it will be returned within 24 hours. You can also go to http://www.michigan.gove/ose-eis or email mde-ose@michigan.gov.

If you have a dispute, you may want to check out Michigan Alliance for Families’ page on disputes. It is very thorough and explains the steps you should go through to hopefully resolve your issue.

IEP Process

According to the presentation, IEPs cover three main areas: 1) General Education Curriculum, 2) Extracurricular Activities, and 3) Nonacademic Activities. I discovered during the workshop that I was guilty of possibly being too focused on the academic part of the IEP and probably not giving enough thought to the other two areas. The presenter pointed out that the 2nd and 3rd types of activities are important to take into account because they are probably the areas that kids are most concerned about. Good point!

An IEP, which is valid for a calendar year but may not include the summer, basically goes over the following four points: 1) Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance (PLAAFP), 2) Goals and Objectives, 3) Accommodations and Modifications, and 4) Programs and Services.

1) Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance (PLAAFP)

This is where the team discusses the student’s needs.

2) Goals and Objectives

This is where the team discusses the skills and behaviors you want the student to learn this year. Sandee emphasized that the goals and objectives should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Results-oriented, and Timely (SMART).

3) Accommodations and/or Modifications

One of the handouts we got was from the Pacer Center (which I am unfamiliar with, but is, apparently, an organization that supports children with disabilities) and is a long and fantastic list of school accommodation and modification ideas. You can get it here. It includes textbook and curriculum accommodations/modifications, environmental accommodations, instruction and assignment accommodations/modifications, test accommodations/modifications, behavior accommodations, and lots of others. And all of these are just jumping off points…I am sure there are many that have been used that are not listed. Truly a fantastic resource.

Of note, you may have noticed that I wrote accommodations and modifications separately…because it was emphasized to us at the training session that they are two different things. Accommodations allow “a student to complete the same assignment or test as other students, but with a change in the timing, formatting, setting, scheduling, response and/or presentation” (from the PACER document). So, the expectations are the same as the other students, just a change in how it is completed. Modifications, on the other hand, allow “an adjustment to an assignment or a test that changes the standard or what the test or assignment is supposed to measure” (from the PACER document). So, this changes the expectations. The team needs to decide what is best for the child, but the difference is that too many modifications could mean that the child will not be able to get a high school diploma. The trainer said this is especially important in high school, but too many modifications in middle school could mean that the student will not have the knowledge/skills to complete high school classes without modifications. Michigan allows students to have Personal Curriculums (PCs), which would allow for some modifications (which could be super helpful for many kids), but the district decides what is required for graduation and they probably won’t allow massive modifications (like, 30% instead of 70% counting as a passing grade).

4) Programs and Services

Placement. According to the law, our children should be placed in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). We were given a worksheet at the workshop that listed the various environments from least to most restrictive: 1) General Education Classroom, 2) General Education Classroom and Resource Room (less than 50%), 3) Self-Contained Classroom (more than 50%) and General Education Classroom, and 4) Center Based Programs.