HI Wray,
Our form has 2 boxes for the parents to choose from:
I agree with the district's plan, or I disagree with the district's plan.
Then there is a signature line. The parents do NOT have to use this piece of paper but there must be some type of documentation that they disagree to prevent the (annual, not initial) IEP from automatically going into effect. On my team, the parent can just tell me verbally. I will write a note for the file and call a new meeting. Yes, if the parent disagrees, it is best to call a new meeting. This can simply be another IEP meeting, sort of a "back to the drawing board" or either parent or the district could request for this to be a conciliation meeting, which would then include the director of special education.
I am SO SORRY everyone for assuming United States. I don't think of many of the other countries as having IEPs. Very narrow minded of me, I apologize. Ashi, please disregard all advice from me on this post.
Karolysgirl, I might be mistaken, but off the top of my head, I don't think my state's IEP has a place to sign that you do not agree on the back page. Actually, one time I did disagree on what the supervisor was proposing in a student's IEP and when it came my time to sign, I stated that I didn't agree and needed to sign wherever you sign when you don't agree. (This was way back when I thought I still worked for parents and not the politcal school system.) I was promptly told that when signing the IEP, you do agree with it and that signature means you have had the opportunity to have input and agree with all the input that is documented on those pages. The only places we have in our paperwork to say we disagree is when we are signing for eligibilty and when a parent is signing for evaluation or services to be given.
Of course, in this case, it's a moot point since she is in Canada, but I am interested that your's has a place where you do not agree. If a parent signs that and says that, then do you have to call another meeting to fix what they don't agree with , or is it just documented that the parent didn't agree to the IEP?
I am sorry....I didn't realize you were in Canada. Gabu is entirely correct. We have been giving you advice not based on mere local practices here, but on US LAW. Laws that DON'T apply where you live. To find out what rights you and your child have in Canada, get involved with parent organizations where you live. Sorry if we misled you.Ashi,
I saw your post on another board about your IEP and you mentioned you are in Quebec, Canada on that board, so the advice people are giving you based on US law may not apply. Maybe you should try another post to see if there are any Canadians on the board that could help you.
Actually, YOU MUST send back the signature page saying that you DISAGREE. This is crucial. IF you don't the new IEP automatically goes into effect in 14 days. This is not true of initial IEPs, those require a signature, but for all annual IEPs after the initial one, if you do not inform the district that you disagree, the IEP will automatically go into effect in 2 weeks.
I just sent this page to my sister, who has PECS in her son's IEP. The way the goals are stated, are very similiar to how my daughters goals on her IEP are laid out. In Fact, the IEP program the school district has automatically sets it into the format on the PECS pages. Here is the info:
http://www.pecs.com/Brochures/Objectives/IEP%20Objectives%20 2002.pdf
I hope its ok to post websites.
Again, this applies ONLY in the US.
Thanks for sharing your opinions and I am sorry I forgot to mention , I was in Canada. Just didn't occur to me that laws could be different. Even if the law is some what different, I still got some great tips from this thread that require only common sense and not the law. I will discuss the issues with his resource teacher because I simply don't agree with the IEP. And don't be sorry karolysgirl, you had some really good thimgs to say. I don't have to bring in the law when I am talking to the teacher, I'll just say, I disagree with some of the points in the current IEP and have a few suggestions of my own. Thanks guys.DOn't feel pressure to sign an IEP you disagree with. However, I believe the teacher used the word "promptly" because no services can be given until the IEP is signed. Since your child apparently already has an IEP (you say he goes to Resource Room, which would require an IEP), whatever is in his current IEP will stay in place until you sign the new IEP. One of the BASIC tenets of IDEA 2004 is that PARENTS have the right and responsibility to FULLY participate in the decision-making process. Whenever you feel pressured, tell them so. Say, "I need to take this document home to mull over. Please do not pressure me in this way." They may not even realize you feel pressured. To the pros, this is all part of the job. They sometimes forget they are talking about our nearests and dearest -- OUR CHILDREN. To them, it can be seen as so much paperwork. To us, it's our kids' futures. Sometimes a reality check is in order.It is ok not to agree with the IEP!!!!!
Goals should state ie. Bob will state the letter A consistently nine out of ten times. Be careful -- sometimes they consider success one out of two ( was it luck or did your child perform successfully?).
I like wrightslaw.com alot they have been very helpful to us.
Good Luck!!
Stephanie
OH ME!!! All I have to add to this please please please follow Karolysgirl's advice. I can not stress to you how much you should be concerned about this IEP. It is 100% AGAINST parental rights (the law-IDEA) for this teacher to send home an IEP and instruct you to promptly sign it and return it. You are the most important member of the IEP team and the law says that you must have prior written notice before ANYTHING happens, and that includes a meeting.
By prior written notice in the case, I mean that they should have sent home a form titled something like proposed meeting. It lists the day, time and place they are proposing the IEP meeting, tells who has been invited, and what is to be discussed. You have an area to check yes you can meet or no you can't meet at that time and for them to reschedule. And then you sign it and send it back. In my state, we have to give a 10 day notice for IEP meetings. I can't just send the notice home with a date and expect you to be able to come 2 days from now. There has to be enough time for you to be able to be out of work or schedule childcare if needed.
THE ONLY TIME AN IEP MEETING SHOULD BE SIGNED WITHOUT A PARENT PRESENT IS IF SEVERAL ATTEMPTS TO GET THE PARENT TO COME IN HAVE BEEN DOCUMENTED AND THEY STILL WON'T SHOW UP. AND THAT IS RARE.
Just please do not send the IEP back. Instead, send a letter requesting an IEP meeting and let them set it up. When you get to the meeting, tell them you do not accept it and it's incomplete. Well, Karolsgirl said it better than me so be sure to use the terms she used.
Let us know how it goes and I am glad you figured out it was wrong and are looking for help.
Is this the draft IEP she proposes to present to the IEP team during the meeting? And IEP is NOT developed by one person and then shown to the parent. The parent is brought in on the IEP meeting and has opportunity for input. If you were not invited to that meeting and did not attend, it was not a valid IEP meeting. What you write here are not valid goals. Goals must be written in an observable and measureable way. What does "improve" mean? How can you measure "improve?" I would suggest you call ANOTHER IEP meeting and address ALL your child's needs in an observable and measurable way. A good book to give you (and them) some help in this area is Better IEPs by Bateman and Linden.
Thanks a lot guys. There has been no meeting. I called last week and asked when were we going to arrange an IEP and I was told they are working on it and if i wanted to add any suggestions, to let them know and today they just one paper in his back pack and the resource teacher put in a note saying if I had any suggestions , she could meet but she also addes that I should "Promptly" sigh it and send it back. I feel as if they say the want my suggestions but actually they only want me to just sign it. I was under the impression that they would ask me when they are writing the IE,P about where he was it, what his strengths were or weeknesses etc. But they are hinting that meetimg is optional and the main goal is to get it signed.DO NOT SIGH THE IEP! You are suppose to be a part of the team in putting the IEP together. Your input is just as important as their's. Get knowledge FAST! Go to wrightslaw. com, go the book store or library and get books on IEP's. Surprisingly, many of the people that wright these IEP don't have a clue how to do it, or they figure that they can be vague about it, and collect the fed. matching funding, without doing to much work.
Due process requires a formal meeting with you and in fact, the written meeting notice must be included with the IEP in the due process file. The school district is out of compliance. Call the case manager, request an IEP MEETING, and tell her that you would like to receive written notice of the meeting date and time. Tell them also that by attempting to write an IEP without holding a meeting with you they are out of compliance with federal regulations and you will report any further due process violations to the state's compliance monitors. Furthermore, check the DO NOT AGREE box on the signature form, date it and return that form to them with a note that you disagree due to the fact that they did not follow due process.
You do NOT have to explain how you know all of this. Just keep coming back here, and those of us who have been there before will keep trying to help.
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| I just got my six yrs old son's IEP from his resource teaher to take a look and sigh it. I brought it home and I am very dissapointed in the goals that they have listed. Take a look: Goals: 1) He will work on improving his speech and language skills 2)He will work on improving his social skills 3)To have him feel less anxiety during transition times 4)He will improve his ability to follow the teachers directives 5)He will complete pre-skill and academic tasks, at his appreriate level 6)He will work on fine motor skills What bothers me is that this could be any other autistic child's IEP cause it's so general. Nothing in this is measurable. It doesn't say anything about where he is at right now and what they are building now. It mentions his "Approriate level" but doesn't say what his level is. What would I measure it against six months or a year later? The worst part is, they came up with these goals after several meetings among the teachers,the resource teacher and the Shadow. Am I right? I sit really as bad as I think it is? I have never seen an IEP before so I doubt myself a little too. Am i being too hard on them? Please help me with suggestions. |
You can go to www.wrightslaw.com to see what an IEP must include: but briefly-
It MUST include the child's PRESENT LEVELS OF EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE there should be a statement of presentl levels before each individual goal. The goal statements must be reasonable, attainable, and related to the needs listed both in the present levels and the most recent educational evaluation. Goals also must be written as "from-to" stating what the child can do currently, and what level will be achieved within one year. Goals also have to be measurable, and have to define who is measuring them and how they are measured.
"Johnny will improve his expressive language from present levels of _______ to saying ________ first when prompted, then independently. 4/5 trials as observed by speech therapist."
Write a formal letter requesting an IEP meeting ASAP and state that you do not agree with the current draft IEP. You may want to outline your most serious concerns and how you would like them to be amended. You may want to reference the law, whatever it may be where you live. Perhaps you could mention that you are trying to have a child advocate attend the meeting with you (not a bad idea to bring one!). Make sure that you hand deliver or send the letters by certified mail to the appropriate people. Keep copies. Document every single interaction you have with the school...phonecalls, office visits, comments by the bus drivers, letters, and keep a log of your advocacy for your child from now on. Date, time and sign or initial each entry. This will proove what you have been trying to do for your child. Much of the advice here on these boards is useful...Remember, just do the best that you can...One day at a time. Good Luck!In NC they have a box that you can sign disagree but it is only for SLD. In NC if you totally disagree with the IEP you dont sign at ALL. Or if you agree with some but not all of the IEP sign and write on the IEP I disagree with this or that. Always ask for a PWN explaining why they agreed or disagreed with you and what this decision was based on. In NC if you sign without writing anything ON the IEP saying you disagree, you are saying you agree with it all. I am sorry I dont know the laws in Canada.
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This IEP sent chills down my spine. We will be rewriting my son's IEP sometime in the next few months again after we get recomendations back from his diagnosing clinic. So far my son's IEP primarily contains educational objectives. However it is written out so that basically says at the start of the IEP he could identify and write five letters it named all the letters he could write, the next update states he can identify 85% of the letters and write 11% of both upper and lower case, next update he can identify all but 3 letters and can write these letters etc. For a behavior such as following directions it states at the beginning Corbin follows directions 50% of the time, second update 25% of the time (we had a baby so set back) and the next update following directions 40% of the time. There is also a progress section that tracks the childs progress etc. HOwever all the goals state he will follow directions 85% of the time, he will be able to rote count to 40, he will be able to identify and write and name sounds of letters with 85% accuracy etc. In x amount of time.
I would imagine his IEP will get a lot longer after this next meeting since he has been formally diagnosed with PDD-NOS and the social interactions, transition issues and the like are going to have to be written into the IEP. This just showed me though that even with those things it will have to be a clearly stated goal such as In X amount of time Corbin will socialize with x amount of people. OK I am sure that sounds silly but you get my drift.
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