Note
From Wrightslaw: Appendix A was an Appendix for the 1999 U.S. Department of Education Regulations issued pursuant to IDEA 97. This Appendix was not reissued with the 2006 regulations, however it does provide guidance and many of the concepts remain valid.
Appendix A is a
great tool for parents and educators. Appendix A includes 40 questions
and answers about IEPs, IEP teams and meetings, parent rights, transition,
and other topics.
Appendix A is a "must read" for parents and educators who
attend IEP meetings. Read Appendix A two or three times. Use a highlighter.
Make margin notes. You will soon become an expert about special education
law!
Parent
Are Equal Partners
When Congress amended the IDEA, they strengthened the role of parents.
"The parents . . . are expected to be equal participants along
with school personnel" in developing, reviewing, and revising the
IEP for their child. This is an active role . . . " (Appendix A,
Question 5)
The school must
advise parents about who will attend the IEP meeting. (Appendix A, Question
7)
Parents have a right
to a copy of their child's IEP. (Appendix A, Question 8)
What happens if parents and school disagree about some portion of the
child's IEP?
"The IEP meeting serves as a communication vehicle between parents
and school personnel, and enables them, as equal participants, to make
joint, informed decisions" about the child's needs and appropriate
goals, the extent to which the child will be involved in the general
curriculum and participate in regular education, and partcipate in State
and district assessments, and the services the child will receive. (Appendix
A, Question 9)
IEP
Goals and Objectives
IEP goals must relate to the child's disability - and they must be measurable.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997 requires "measurable
annual goals, including benchmarks or short term objectives."
To help parents
and educators monitor the child's progress during the year, IEPs must
include measurable intermediate steps (short-term objectives) or major
milestones (benchmarks). (Appendix A, Question 1)
The school must
advise parents about the child's progress on a regular basis. (Appendix
A, Question 10)
IEP Meetings
Feel overwhelmed or intimidated by the number of school staff at the
IEP meeting? Take heart. The law says the IEP team may include "individuals
who have knowledge or special expertise about the child." (Appendix
A, Question 28)
Revising
IEPs
Do you have concerns that your child is not making adequate progress?
The IEP team is required to convene a meeting and revise the IEP to
address your concerns about "Any lack of expected progress toward
the annual goals and in the general curriculum." The school should
revise the IEP when there is new information about the child - from
new testing or from the child's parents or teachers. (Appendix A, Question
20) Sometimes more than one meeting is necessary to finalize a child's
IEP. (Appendix A, Question 23))
Note:
The citations in this article are from Wrightslaw:
Special Education Law,
published by Harbor
House Law Press
in 1999
