November 2012 FAQs

November 1st, 2012  


Q: I am using the Edmark program to teach reading to some of my students. Can I include the name of the program in the goals and objectives?
A: It is not best practice to include the names of specific programs in the goals and objectives for the students, but rather a general description or title of the program. For instance, for Edmark, you could say, “a sight word/ functional word based reading program.” In the PLAAFP and in the baseline for the goals, you can state where the student currently is in regards to the programs in which he/she is working. Including names of programs locks the teacher into a particular program, and if the student were to move, would lock another school into a particular program (or providing an explanation of why that program will not be used).

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Q: I have an IEP annual and a 3-year reevaluation due in the same year, but we did not hold the meetings together. Any thoughts?
A: The most important thing to remember is that our Special Education Database holds only the most recent IEP paperwork. Once new information is inputted, the previous is deleted. Because of that, it is imperative that you plan ahead.  When an annual and a 3-year are done in the same year, but not at the same meeting (for instance, two weeks apart), you will need to send the paperwork into district office for the first meeting, BEFORE the next meeting is started so that it can be reviewed and corrected, if needed, before it is erased with the paperwork for the subsequent meeting.

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Q: A student just transferred from Connections to my school. The IEP doesn’t make sense to be able to implement at my school. Now what?
A: When a student transfers from Connections, primarily with a consult-model IEP, the receiving school will need to amend the IEP to be able to implement the IEP at their school. This includes an amendment to the summary of services and possibly the goals and objectives to be implemented at the receiving school. Always feel free to contact the Connections special ed teacher if you have questions about the student.

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Q: I usually send paperwork home to parents at the same time I send it to district office. It is embarrassing to have to contact the parent to correct mistakes found by district office. What can I do?
A:  The hard copy of the IEP is the legal document that the school is to follow and is the educational record for both the district and the parent. Therefore, that document must not only reflect the decisions made by the team for the student, but must reflect our best work as school district employees. Always print out the IEP and proofread it. You may consider asking a colleague to proofread it for you. You may also wish to contact the district office secretaries or your program coordinator prior to printing and sending the document anywhere, and we will be happy to proofread it for you! Proofreading should be for typos as well as for content inconsistencies or errors.

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What’s Your Agenda?

November 1st, 2012  

Having and following an agenda at your meetings helps the meeting and its participants stay on track. It helps to cover everything and provides a smooth order and flow to the meeting. Here is one example of a meeting agenda that covers all required items and provides a smooth flow from PLAAFP to goals and objectives to determining services required to meet those goals and objectives.

  Introductions

  Student Strengths

  Teacher Reports

  Related Service Provider Reports

  Other Reports

  Other Agency Involvement

  Parent Concerns

  Special Factors the IEP Team Must Consider

  Review Progress toward Previous IEP

  Discuss New Goals and Objectives

  Accommodations and Modifications

  Assessment Participation

  Summary of Services

  Placement (LRE)

  Parent Questions

  Parent Rights

  Signatures of Participation

Sample IEP Meeting Agenda
IEP Meeting Ground Rules

More Collaborative IEP Meetings this Year!

November 1st, 2012  

In the spirit of collaborative, amicable and efficient IEP meetings (and the new part of the sped teacher evaluation), here are some tips. “IEP team leaders need to run their meetings in a way that gives everyone an equal opportunity to participate in and understand the proceedings. [They] also need to foster a climate of respect and trust,” Eric Hartwig, administrator of pupil services for Marathon County Schools, Wisconsin.

 

1. Don’t tolerate personal attacks. School staff and parents can be demeaning or confrontational when they are angry or frustrated. For example, a parent may turn a discussion about the child’s speech/language services into a discussion about whether the provider is qualified. Personal attacks against parents are most likely to be critiques of their parenting skills. Always intervene and shift the conversation back to the student’s needs. Realize that it is permissible to call for a break if a staff member or a parent needs to be spoken with one-to-one.

2. Don’t allow parents to pick and choose. “There should never be an IEP that says, ‘We didn’t do this because the parents didn’t want it,’” said Hartwig. “If the child needs something, you have to find a way to get it to him.”

3. Do summarize reports, evaluations.  In some meetings, evaluators go on for hours regurgitating every piece of data from a test or evaluation. Parents want to know what the information means for their child in an easy to understand, meaningful way.

4. Do instruct staff on how to talk about disabilities.  Demonstrate professionalism and compassion. Ask that staff avoid any language that may be interpreted as offensive, derogatory, or negative.

5. Don’t let staff members leave during the meeting.  Parents may believe that they don’t have the full attention of all the team members, while team members who miss out on parts of the meetings may not understand why certain decisions were made.

Source: Special Ed Connection®. Copyright 2012 by LRP Publications, P.O. Box 24668, West Palm Beach, FL 33416-4668. All rights reserved. For more information on this or other products published by LRP Publications, please call 1-800-341-7874 or visit our website at www.shoplrp.com/special_ed.html.

 

April 2012 FAQs

April 1st, 2012  

Q:  I keep getting reminded that I need to include more on the PLAAFPs. Where do I find the info I am being asked to include?
A: Information for all areas of the PLAAFP needs to be gathered from a variety of sources. You will get a lot of the information from your ESER, if the evaluation was held recently. If not, some of that information may still be relevant, but you will also need to get information from a variety of other sources, i.e. SBA or HSGQE scores, your IEP team members, curriculum based measures and classroom assessments, IEP progress reports, etc.

Please review December’s newsletter and ask your program coordinator if you have any questions!! And remember:  At each annual review, the PLAAFP must be updated with the student’s current information! 

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Q: What is the 45-day timeline from consent to ESER?
R: The day that parents sign consent for any evaluation, a 45-school day timeline begins. The team has 45 school days from the date consent is signed to the date of the determination of eligibility. The 45 schools days must be counted carefully from the date of consent to the date of the meeting to determine eligibility (ESER). Remember to count only school days. **Note: Ideally all individual evaluation reports will be completed and available to the team, including the parent, prior to the meeting—around the 30 day mark of the timeline.

There have been several situations in the past few weeks where the timeline has been miscalculated result ing in timelines that are past due. Be sure to count and recount!

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Q: Why does it feel like the paperwork that I turn in is being “nit-picked”?
R: The paperwork that is kept in the district office is a student’s official educational record. The file must be maintained with a high level of professionalism. Documents contained therein cannot have spelling errors, incorrect dates, white-out, crossed out dates and words, etc. If you think about it, as educators, would we accept work from our students that had those kinds of errors?

Here are some things to be extra watchful of in regards to the signature cover page:

–  Ensure that you have the correct student’s cover page at your IEP meeting.
–  Once you print it, check that ALL dates at the top of the page are correct and match the meeting date.
–  Check that you have secured the parent signature on all applicable lines and boxes.

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March 2012 FAQs

March 1st, 2012  

Q:  I wasn’t able to attend the IEP Saturday. What did I miss?
 A:  Clayton Holland sent an email to all certified special education staff dated February 25, 2012. Here are the main points:

~  Students’  IEP accommodations can now be found in PowerSchool.
~  The Gen/Sped Teacher option has been taken out of the database (summary of services). General education teachers cannot be the supervisor or the provider of special education services. You do not need to change any IEPs that have already been written, but this needs to be updated as you write IEPs from now on.
~  Vision and Hearing should not be checked on the Consent to Evaluate unless the student is actually going to be evaluated by a specialist. All students are screened and therefore consent is not needed for the annual nurse’s report.
~  Building school psychologists will be responsible for requesting and storing Woodcock-Johnson protocols for use at each school. In the future, if you need a protocol, contact the school psychologist rather than the district office. Until the Normative Updates are available on the district server, give your completed WJ protocols (with the raw scores calculated) to your school psychologist who will arrange to get them scored using the new norms. If you have questions, contact your school psychologist or your program coordinator.

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Q: I have been in “the business” for a long time. I know what needs to be done and when. Why would you say that I should use the IEP Checklist from the database?
A:  Everyone needs a reminder now and again. By following the process laid out on the IEP checklist, you are most likely to not forget any paperwork or any information. It is also really helpful for the secretaries at the District Office to ensure that they have received everything that you intended to send. Because the checklist is updated from time to time, print a copy directly from the “Blank Forms” section of the database so you will always have the most up-to-date version.

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Q: Do I really have to hold my IEP before the annual review date? See, the weather has been so bad/ the parent couldn’t make it/ my dog ate my paperwork/ (insert additional excuse here…)

A:   In a word, YES! This past month, we have had more IEPs that were out of compliance than in the whole school year so far.

The federal and state law requires that IEPs are reviewed annually. In order to remain in compliance AND provide the most current and effective program for the child, the IEP needs to be completed before the date of the previous IEP.
Recognizing that there are extenuating circumstances that sometimes arise, please plan ahead! It is crucial to plan to hold your IEP two weeks ahead of the due date. This allows for more time to reschedule if needed due to any number of problems that may arise.

**Addendum to this answer: This includes the idea that there are two deadlines when 3 years come around and BOTH need to be met. The annual review must be held prior to the IEP Annual Review Date. The 3 year re-evaluation must be held prior to the 3-year Re-evaluation Due Date. When in doubt, please ask!!

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