As a new teacher concerned with lesson plans, testing, assessment and extracurricular activities another important issue is accommodations for exceptional students.
In your classroom you may have a number of students in special education which is “an educational program that is based on and modified by the results of continuous assessment and evaluation and that includes a plan containing specific objectives and an outline of educational services that meets the needs of the exceptional pupil” (Education Act, Section 1). The school principal is required to ensure that an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is developed for each student who has been identified as exceptional by an Identification, Placement and Review Committee (IPRC), within 30 school days of the student’s placement in a special education program.
At this point you may be asking your self, “Who is an exceptional child?” Exceptional children differ from the norm (either below or above) to such an extent that they require an individualized program and related services to fully benefit from their education. Thus, “exceptional” is an inclusive term that refers to children with learning and/or behavior issues, children with physical disabilities or sensory impairments and children who are intellectually gifted or have a special talent (Heward, 2006, 10).
You may have students in your class that fall in the following categories of exceptionality that require an IEP:
• developmental disabilities
• learning disabilities
• emotional and behavioral disorders
• Autism
• communication disorders (speech and language disorders)
• hearing impairments
• visual impairments
• physical and health impairments
• multiple disabilities
• giftedness and special talents
What is an Individual Education Plan (IEP)?
An IEP is…
• A written plan describing the special education program and/or services required by a particular student, based on a thorough assessment of the student’s strengths and needs – that is, the strengths and needs that affect the student’s ability to learn and to demonstrate learning;
• a record of the particular accommodations (supports or services that are not provided to the general student population but that are required by individual students with special needs to help them achieve learning expectations and demonstrate learning), needed to help the student achieve his or her learning expectations, given the student’s identified learning strengths and needs;
• a working document that identifies alternative expectations, if required, in program areas not represented in the Ontario curriculum;
• a record of the specific knowledge and skills to be assessed and evaluated for the purpose of reporting student achievement of modified and/or alternative expectations;
• an accountability tool for the student, the student’s parents and everyone who has responsibilities under the plan for helping the student meet the stated goals and learning expectations as the student progresses through the Ontario curriculum.
The IEP process involves the following five phases:
1. Gather information
• review the student’s record
• consult with parents, the student, school staff and other professionals
• gather information through observation of the student
• consolidate and record information.
2. Set the direction
• begin work on the IEP (e.g., record the reason for the IEP, record personal information, list relevant assessment data)
• indicate the student’s areas of strength and areas of need on the IEP
• establish a collaborative approach – the IEP team.
3. Develop the IEP as it relates to the student’s special education program and services
• record decisions about program exemptions, course substitutions and eligibility for a diploma or a certificate
• determine accommodations; record subjects or courses with accommodations only
• determine teaching strategies and assessment methods
• record information about evaluation, reporting and provincial assessments
• record information about the IEP development phase (including details of parent/student consultations); secure principal’s approval.
4. Implement the IEP
• share the completed IEP with the student, parents, school staff, and other professionals (providing a copy to parents and to the student, if 16 years of age or older)
• put the IEP into practice
• continuously assess the student’s progress
• adjust the IEP as necessary (recording any changes in goals, expectations, accommodations, teaching strategies, and so on)
• evaluate the student’s learning and report to parents.
5. Review and update the IEP
• update the learning expectations at the beginning of each reporting period
• review the IEP regularly and record revisions
• plan for the transition from elementary to secondary school, or for a transfer to another school.
A list of accommodations the student requires to help him or her learn and demonstrate learning includes the following:
Instructional Accommodations: adjustments in teaching strategies required to enable the student to learn and to progress through the curriculum.
• buddy/peer tutoring
• note-taking assistance, duplicating notes
• ability grouping
• graphic organizers
• manipulatives, concrete/hands-on materials
• more frequent breaks
Environmental Accommodations: changes or supports in the physical environment of the classroom and/or the school.
• alternative work space
• strategic seating, proximity to instructor
• reduction of audio/visual stimuli
• minimizing of background noise, quiet setting
• special lighting
Assessment Accommodations: adjustments in assessment activities and methods required to enable the student to demonstrate learning.
• extended time limits
• alternative settings
• more frequent breaks
• prompts to return student’s attention to task
• extra time for processing
• reduction in the number of tasks used to assess a concept or skill
Sources: “About: Special Education”
http://specialed.about.com
“The Individual Education Plan (IEP), A Resource Guide” http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/general/elemsec/speced/guide/resource/index.html
“Individualized Education Program”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individualized_Education_Program
“Special Education”
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/general/elemsec/speced/speced.html
“Wythe County Special Education: The Special Education Cycle”
http://wcps.wythe.k12.va.us/public/speced/pages/sped1.htm
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