Rochelle’s Special Education Tips
The Overweight IEP
At the rate that IEP documents are growing, you will soon need a forklift to pick one up. Teams are putting so much data into them that it is sometimes hard to discern exactly what is going on with the student. Make sure that the data you are putting into the IEP really needs to be in the document. Old data should be removed. Do not put the meeting notes in the IEP; put those notes in the PWN. If a parent wants to write “War and Peace” as her Parental Input, shorten it to one paragraph and put the parent’s novel in the IEP file. You can also have too many goals and objectives. A weakness does not mean that there is a disability. You do not need to include every single objective desired by the advocate. Respond to arguments using the words “reasonable” and “appropriate.” Try to improve on the formatting of the Present Levels. These pages are often so drawn out that the reader misses the picture. Also, do not just write numerical scores. Put the meaning of the score next to the numeral (ex.: SS 100-Average).
Try to make the IEP user friendly.
Rochelle’s Special Education Tips (“Tips”) are designed to be helpful and thought provoking, but should not be considered legal advice as they may not be accurate for use in all situations. Tips are based on my opinions and positions in accordance with federal and Maryland law and my over 35 years of experience in the special education legal field. – Rochelle S. Eisenberg, Esquire
Copyright © 2018 Pessin Katz Law, P.A. All rights reserved.
Tips may be reproduced for distribution within the educational institution, the individual school or school system and is for use by their staff. Additional distribution must be approved by author.
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