IEP and IFSP Flashcards
No Child Left Behind
Nickle-B
Requires Modifications for Standardized testing
Documented in IEP
Teachers, schools are tied to achievement
What is a 504 plan?
Requires that the disabled child be able to have their needs met at the same level as able bodied
Kids who don’t fall under IDEA or Special Ed
- Lazy eye
- Amputation
- EB
- Disorder can’t be transient- Fx Radius
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Covers educational Services for children Birth to 21 years
Three types of Documents Required in the Law
- Notice and Consent forms
- IFSP-Individual Family Services Plan
- IEP-Individual Educational Plan
Requires NEEDED services not WANTED services
- No regard to budget or staff shortages
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Covers every one
Accommodations (reasonable)
Undue burden
Different from the others because its civil rights legislation
- Places individuals with any disability into a protected class
Can’t privatize yourself away from ADA
Any institution must provide reasonable accommodations
Who delivers IEP/IFSP services?
School system
- Public
Welfare/children services programs (usually early intervention – EI)
Home health programs (usually early intervention – EI)
In Alabama:
- 5-21 is in the school
> Can stay in school system until 21 if disabled
- Birth to 3 (5) is through Early Intervention, often home care
> Coordinates with Department of Health and Human Services
Notice and Consent with IEPs and IFSPs
First Document required in the EI and Special Ed World
Some school districts have set forms others let the individual schools do it
- Each School district will have a set of Procedural Safeguards
> Policy and procedures to assure no one falls through the cracks
Parents must be notified and informed in their native language, including Braille, sign language and oral communication if:
- There is to be any proposal to initiate or change services
- If the agency refuses to initiate or change services
Parents must be notified, but they do not have to agree
Parents must be notified and give consent for…
Evaluation and Reevaluation
- Before it can begin
- Must notify why, who, what areas, when, and what services
Meetings
- All team meetings, especially for IEP and IFSP
- Must notify time, place, purpose, who will be there
Other
- Anything that applies to the child
- Change in services, referral
Can’t schedule meetings knowing the parent cannot be present. Must accommodate
Role of the service coordinator
Team leader
Serves as the meeting leader
Assures documentation is complete and on time
Assures parents are aware of rights
Assures parents understand process and reports
Frequently the OT in Birth to 2 group
Can be after 2, but since OT is a related services and not a special ed service, they usually aren’t
Regarding eval and re-eval, IDEA requires…
What action is to take place
Rational for action
- Avoid evaluative comments
Safe guards
Procedures for filing a complaint
- Remember, the parents don’t have to agree but the decision must be based on best practice not schedule load or money
Detail of who is on the team
Areas typically evaluated with IEP and IFSP
Health
Vision
Hearing
Social/emotional status
General intelligence
Academic performance
Communication skills
Motor abilities
What is an IFSP?
Individual family services plan
- Comes under part C of IDEA
- Covers kids birth to 2
> In some cases to age 5
A document that specifies the specific strengths and needs of a child AND his family
Steps to achieve those goals
Who is responsible of the implementation of the plan
Who is paying
8 required elements of the IFSP
- Present level of performance
- Families resources, priorities and concerns
- People, skills, insurance ect - Major outcomes expected (goals)
- Specific early intervention services
- Includes frequency, intensity, and method of delivery - Statement of the natural environment or why not
- Dates for initiation of services
- ID of the services coordinator
- Transition steps
IFSP evaluation musts
Consent to evaluate
Performed by qualified individual
- Role of COTA
- Miller performed by a Teacher
Based on state approved criteria
Medical and health history included
Level of performance and unique issues of the child
The evaluation is conducted in the child’s natural environment
Present level of development statements
Use both descriptive and interpretive statements
List both strengths and weaknesses
Should also have a need statement, be broad but not too broad
Outcomes and goals for IEP/IFSP
Outcomes (think LTGs)
- Can be for the child or family
- Written annually and reviewed every six months
- Outcomes must be specific and have criteria , procedures and a time line to meet the goals
STIO-Short term Instructional Objectives
- Steps to meet the annual goal
- Could be increasing stamina or could be a bath bench
3 components of major outcomes
Criteria: What level do they need to be at
Procedures: How will the outcomes be measured
Time line: Who and how long
Daily notes for IEP/IFSP
Not required but some states require a daily note or adequate documentation (weekly, biweekly, monthly). Do whatever you’re comfortale with =, but remember documentation is what covers you, not your memory. If doing weekly, keep notebook for daily notes to have adequate weekloy note.
What is IEP
Individual educational program
Part B of IDEA requires this
- Children age 3-21(parents may wait till 5)
- Must be specific and Individualized
Compare IFSP and IEP
Similar
- Team approach is required
- Parent involvement required
- Requires parental notification and consent
- Both are “need to have” not “want to have” oriented
Differences
- IEP is student centered (does not consider family needs)
- IFSP-is developmentally based, IEP-educational development
- Under IEP-OT is a related services and student must qualify for special education first
> If they don’t qualify for special ed, they may qualify for 504
- IFSP-Natural environment, IEP-Least restrictive environment
8 Requirements of the IEP
- Present educational level
- Annual goals
- With benchmarks - Special education qualifications and related services
- Participation with non-disabled students
- As much as possible
- Least restricted environment, natural environment
- Includes curricular and extra-curricular - Participation in state or district testing
- If unable why - Start date and location
- Consider the least restrictive environment - Transition of services
- Out of all or part of special ed
- To job, life, college, sheltered program ect - Measurement of progress
- Usually annually
IEP process
Starts with an evaluation
- Team approach
- OT may but is usually not the Service Coordinator
Reevaluation at least every 3 years
- May be sooner as warranted
Under IDEA, the eval must
- Consist of a variety of tools
- Use no singular method or criteria to determine eligibility
- Be technically sound
- Be nondiscriminatory or not culturally biased
> Must be offered in their native language
IEP evals
The Eval may be part of the IEP document or may be a separate document
IF the child qualifies for special ed services, you have 30 days after the eval to meet with parents and develop the IEP
May address extended academic calendar
- May not get holidays and summers!
- Not constrained by school calendar, time, money or staffing issues!
5 components of IEP
- Strengths and concerns of the parents
- As applicable to education - Evaluation results
- Objective - Communication needs
- Student behaviors that can impede learning
- Any assistive technology needs
- May require the school to pay, if it is specifically for educational needs
> Wheelchair-no
> Computer to allow child to respond to teacher questions-maybe
>They can argue that the AT will be used at school more than home and therefore school should pay. This may prevent child from bringing AT home.
IEP Goals
Must be educationally relevant
Annual with short term benchmarks or objectives
- Unless they are for accommodation or modification only, then no benchmarks are required
- No set requirement but:
> One is usually considered to few
> Recommend 2-5 goals between all disciplines
Only address the student
OT should have input
- Don’t let someone else “do” the IEP
Must be measurable
Ways to look at IEP goals
Developmental
- “Student will write with a tripod grasp (instead of a gross radial grasp)”
Functional curriculum
- “Student will be able to follow along in daily reader when read to, using finger or bookmark”
Ecological
- “Student will be able to maneuver through the lunchroom without spilling food or running over other students”
