Individualized Education

Program (IEP)
Morgan Roach
 1. Recognition
Teacher, parent, administrator, counselor or other caregiver recognizes a
consistent need or problem exhibited by the student.
 2. Pre-Referral
Pre-referral intervention is to identify, develop, and implement alternative
education strategies for students who have recognized problems in the
classroom before the student is referred to special education.
 3. Referral
The official referral begins the formal process of determining eligibility for
special education services. Once a referral is provided, the school must obtain
consent from the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) to begin the evaluation phase of
the referral process.
 4. Evaluation
The evaluation is to be conducted by a multidisciplinary team that will
consist of individuals who can bring different perspectives and expertise to the
evaluation.
 5. Eligibility
Within 30 days of the completion of the evaluation, the individuals that
took part in the process thus far will meet to determine eligibility. A student is
considered eligible for special education services if (1) the child has a disability
as defined by IDEA which negatively impacts his/her educational performance,
and (2) the child needs special education services in order to benefit from
education.
 6. IEP Meeting
The Individualized Education Program (IEP) is a legal contract between
the parents and the school district that describes the special education services
to be provided by the local education agency which is the local school district.
 7. IEP Implementation
Once the IEP is developed and signed by members of the IEP team it is
the responsibility of the entire IEP team to ensure that the IEP is
implemented. The IEP team may meet as frequently as needed to discuss the
implementation of the IEP. School personnel are required to provide
documentation of the mastery of benchmarks and annual goals.
 8. IEP Re- Evaluation
Each year, the IEP team is required to meet for the dual purpose of
evaluating the implementation of the current IEP and to develop the next
annual IEP.
During these annual meetings, the IEP team should discuss the positive and
negative elements of the special education services provided and determine,
based on any new assessment data, what services should be provided in the
upcoming school year.
 Personal Reflection
Overall, I loved this IEP simulation. It was so interactive and we could
build upon our own thoughts and ideas. I have been in so many IEP meetings
before as the student. This time I was the Parent, I got to see and feel what
my mom had to go through. Although I had my own thoughts on what would
work for this student, it was great to hear other classmates points of views, and
what they had to say. They had ideas that I would have normally never thought
of. I now feel that I have a greater understanding of what an IEP really does.
http://www.projectidealonline.org/v/special-education-referral-process/