UNIT 4: DISCUSS THE COMPONENTS OF INDIVIDUAL EDUCATIONAL PLAN, PLACEMENT CRITERIA AND APPLICATION OF IEP IN A PLANNED LESSON
Key Unit Competence:
The student should be able to completely design and apply an IEP (Individualeducation plan) in an inclusive class.
4.1. Definition, principles, objective and the structure of IEP
The assessments of a learner’s Special Educational Needs often lead to a
recommendation for an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). The IEP is not usually
created for any learner with any disability as it is often believed; it is an officially
developed document to plan specific education program for a learner who may
have demonstrated needs for special education provisions. The IEP is developed
through school-based team efforts and is reviewed periodically.
For the IEP to be effective the following procedure is necessary:
– Determination of eligibility for special education,
– Membership and role of the IEP team,
– Role of the parents and the school leaderships in IEP processes,
– Development of learner’s individual education plan,
– Acceptance and amendments, determination of the appropriate educational
placement,
– Availability of support provisions within an equipped Resource room/centre,
– Implementation after placement, classroom accommodations and review of
IEP.
a) Definition of Individual Education Plan (IEP)
The IEP is an official document that describes the education plan designed
to meet the unique needs of a learner with a disability, or any other special
educational needs. It is also a systematic way to monitor and assess the
progress of a learner with special needs. It involves educational planning that
caters for each child’s specific educational needs. An IEP includes:
– Full identification of the learner including gender, family, education level and
background, etc.
– Summarized description of strength and needs of the learner in accordance
to the SEN assessment results
– Detailed description of planned activities for education and rehabilitation of
the learner with SEN within a specified time frame
An IEP is expected to be a tool for communication and collaboration detailing
plan of action, record and progress. It is a framework for decision making and
evaluation, therefore, it should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic
and Time bound (SMART).
b) Principles and objective of IEP
The IEP is a working document and should be useful, available and
comprehensible to all those dealing directly with the student. It needs to
be considered in the context of home, school and classroom organisation.
Effective individual education plans have key characteristics. These are:
– Individualised and child-centred
– Inclusive
– Holistic
– Collaborative
– Accessible
An IEP is meant to ensure that learners receive appropriate teaching and
placement, not only in special schools, but also in any other setting that may
include inclusive or mainstream schools that provides for learners with SEN. In
this way, the learner is assured of specialized and planned assistance where
this is necessary, as well as an equal participation in all school activities as his
or her peers.
c) Structure and components of IEP
The IEP is an official document that describes the education plan designed
to meet the unique needs of a learner with a disability, or any other special
educational needs, and the following ought to be included:
• The learner’s identity and background,
• The learner’s present levels of academic and functional performance
(strength and limitations)
• Measurable annual goals, including academic and functional goals
• How the learner’s progress toward meeting annual goals is to be measured
and reported.
• Special education and related support provisions, as well as supplementary
aids to be provided to the learner
• Schedules of services to be provided, including when the services are to
begin and end, the frequency, duration and location for the services to be
provided
• Program modifications or supports provided to school personnel on behalf
of the learner
• The amount of time to be spent each day by the learner in general education
settings, the amount of time to be spent in the rehabilitation or special
educational settings, the time the learner will not participate along with
ordinary learners.
• Accommodations that are necessary for the learner’s academic and
functional performance
• Ways of evaluating the learner’s progress
• A statement of plans for successful transition to upper levels of schooling.
An IEP could include other pertinent information found necessary by the team,such as a health and/or a behaviour plan for some of the learners.
4.2. Procedures of developing Individual Education Plan
4.2.1. Membership and roles of the IEP team
The IEP team includes the learner, the learner’s parent(s) or legal guardian(s), a
special education teacher, at least one general-education teacher, a representative
of the school leadership, the responsible local education authority (where required),
and an expert able to interpret the instructional implications of the results of the
learner’s SEN Assessment (psychologist, physiotherapist, occupational therapist,
speech and Language therapists, etc). In fact all professionals working in
rehabilitation setting can be member and can play a specific role in IEP team. The
intervention of each and every one of the professional depends on his area of
specialization toward the need of the child.
a) Role of the parents in IEP processes
Parents are key members of the IEP team, along with school personnel.
Without them, the professionals will not be able to gather all information on
the child. Parents have the right to be involved in meetings that discuss the
identification, SEN assessment, IEP development, and educational placement
of their children. They also have the right to ask questions, dispute points of
concern, and request modifications to the plan, as do all members of the IEP
team.
b) Role of the school leaderships in IEP processes
The school leadership is mandated to ensure that all the IEP team members
are invited in time and attend, scheduling a mutually agreed meeting timetable
and venue, and to ensure that the team members understand the proceedings
of IEP team meetings and are facilitated, including arranging interpreters for
the Deaf or alternative facilitations where required. After IEP is developed, the
school leadership has to ensure IEP is fully implemented.
Although IEP teams are required to work toward consensuses, if an agreement
cannot be reached, the school or district education leadership ought to
guarantee credible provisions for ensuring that the learner receives a fair and
effective educational program.
c) Role of a specialist
The specialist may include any expert able to interpret the instructional
implications of the learner’s SEN Assessment results. These could be
psychologist, physiotherapist, orthopedician (P&O), occupational therapist,
speech and Language therapists, special education specialist, social workers,
paediatrician etc. It is advisable to include an expert who has involved in
learner’s SEN assessment.
d) Role of class teachers
The class teacher is an important IEP team member in planning, development
and the implementation of IEP. S/he is expected to have basic information on
the learner performance, advice the school leadership on the learner’s eligibility
to IEP, helps in identifying the IEP team and in organizing the IEP meeting.
e) Role of learners with SEN
The learner must attend the IEP meeting and must provide required
information where possible. S/he should follow instructions and be part of the
implementation of the IEP as the prime beneficiary.
4.1.2. Determining eligibility for IEP
For eligibility of SNE to be determined, the learner must have one or more special
and / or unique learning needs that cannot be reasonably accommodated in
general education, and requires special education services as determined through
SEN assessment.
Before an IEP is written for a learner, the school must first determine whether the
learner qualifies for special education services. To determine eligibility, the school
must conduct a full SEN Assessment (evaluation) of the learner in all areas of
suspected limitations, difficulties or disabilities. Basing on the SEN assessment
results therefore, the school in consultation with the parents determines whether
special education services are needed.
If the learner is found eligible for special needs educational services, the school is
required to convene an IEP team meeting and develop an appropriate Individual
Educational Plan (IEP) for the learner. The assessment is conducted in the
earliest possible years of schooling, and thus, the IEP should be developed and
implemented as soon as the learner is found eligible. The schools should provide
a specific timeline that should be respected in all processes for determining
eligibility, IEP development and IEP implementation milestones.
4.1.3. Developing a learner’s Individual Education Plan
After the learner’s eligibility for special educational needs services has been
determined, the IEP team is expected to develop an individual education plan
as soon as possible, basing on the individual SEN assessment results. When
developing an IEP, the team considers:
• The learner’s abilities (strength and limitations)
• The concerns of the parents
• Results of the initial or most recent SEN assessment of the learner (including
private evaluations conducted)
• The academic, developmental, and functional level of abilities and needs of
the learner
• Areas of deficits and the corresponding long and short term goals and
objectives developed to improve the deficit areas. In the case of a learner
whose behaviour impedes teaching and learning of other children (E.g.
learners with some autistic and ADHD symptoms), the team is required
to consider the use of Positive Behavior Interventions and/or alternative
support to address the behavior.
• The communication needs of the learner among other things, including use
of Braille, Sign Language interpreter, communication boards or any other
available resources.
The IEP team then drafts a matrix containing:
• The learner’s present level of performance
• Ways the learner’s disability or difficulties influence participation and
progress in the general curriculum
• A statement of measurable goals including benchmarks or short-terms
objectives
• The specific educational services to be provided, including program
modifications or support provisions, an explanation of the extent to which
the learner will or will not participate in general education;
• A description of all transformations and/or interventions suggested by the
SEN assessment results.
The IEP team also suggests the projected date for initiation of the interventions
and the expected duration of the services; the statement on transition needs, and
a statement of interdisciplinary interventions to ensure progress and continuity of
services even when the learner is not in school, a statement regarding how the
learner’s progress will be measured and how the parents will be informed in the
process.
4.1.4. Placement and review of IEP
a) Acceptance and amendments of IEP
An initial IEP is required to be accepted and signed by a parent or guardian
before any of the above outlined matrix can be implemented. Usually parents
and other IEP team members are accorded a specified period of time to
consider the IEP before signing the document.
b) Determining the appropriate placement
After the IEP is developed, the IEP team determines or confirms placement, or
the most suitable learning and teaching environment in which the learner’s IEP
can most effectively be implemented. The IEP team is required to be convened
before the school term and placement decisions are made, so that the learner’s
IEP development is also fitted into the existing school program, i.e: the IEP is
developed to fit the learner’s educational needs, while the placement is chosen
to fit the IEP. A learner can only be placed in:
• A special school: These are schools for specified special educational
needs, such as schools for the blind, schools for the Deaf, school for different
learning difficulties and/or disabilities.
• A special class or unit: This is special classroom also called unit, provided
within mainstream school if the severity or nature of the disability is such
that appropriate education services cannot be provided to the learner with
peers of the same age in a regular school.
• Integrated schools: This happens when a learner with special education
needs is accepted in a mainstream school and is expected to adjust to
the school system for effective learning. Many mainstream schools in
Rwanda receive children with special education needs without any tailored
accommodation mechanism in place.
• Inclusive school: This occurs when the school puts in place all the
necessary accommodation and adjustment mechanisms to effectively
support a learner with special education needs basing on the Universal
Design for Learning (UDL) approaches.
c) Implementation of IEP after placement
After the IEP is developed and placement is determined, the learner’s teachers
are responsible for the full and accurate implementation of all educational
services, program modifications or support provisions, specified in the learner’s
IEP as soon as possible. The initial IEPs are required to be developed as soon
as the eligibility to IEP has been determined, and schools are required to have
IEP in effect at the beginning of the school year.
d) Review and evaluation of IEP
The IEP team is responsible for conducting annual or regular reviews to ensure
that the learner is meeting goals and/or making progress on the benchmarks
specified for each objective. If an IEP is not helping the learner in the classroom,
the school (through the class teachers) is expected to organize its immediaterevision.
