IEPs and 504s

The Problem with Compensatory Education? Too Often, Comp Ed Steals Music, Sports, Auto Tech, and Everything that Brings Happiness

Students who have disabilities are known to struggle with depression. By removing the joy from their lives because the school is required to provide compensatory education, one harm is traded for another. The student is provided instruction he is owed, but is denied happiness he needs.

When schools fail children, they end up having to provide compensatory education in return. In theory, it sounds great. The school district will make up for its errors, the student will receive help, all will be good. . . .

However, the reality is much different.

What are Related Services?

This is important.

Pay attention, because you might live in an area that doesn’t proactively propose related services in compliance with IDEA, Section 504, and/or implementing state regulations. Too often, my experience has been that if you don’t know to ask, they won’t be proposed.

Related services are supports required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education. This could be transportation to tutoring sessions, work with a speech therapist, assistive technology training for the parent and student, training parents to use sign language, providing special training to teachers working with students, and much more.

Accommodation Breakdown: Clarification of Directions and Expectations

Imagine a teacher assigns a writing project, requiring students to write three paragraphs related to an element on the periodic table.

Imagine one student writes three paragraphs about Chlorine and turns it into the teacher.

Now, imagine the teacher returning the paper back to the student, with red marks noting points taken off and the message, “I expected five sentences per paragraph.”

What happened?

Accommodations Don’t Have a Word Count: Clarity Trumps Word Count When Writing Accommodations

No laws or implementing regulations state accommodations must be written within a specific word count.

However, pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the unique needs of students must be addressed.

In other words: Clarity and ensuring the unique needs of the child are met is more important than word count.

Accommodation Breakdown: Word Prediction Software

Word prediction software is an assistive technology (AT) tool that suggests words as a person types them. If you want your student to use it and/or your student’s IEP or 504 Plan team suggest it, what should be included in the accommodation? How should it be written?

The following is an example of an accommodation written into one student’s IEP:

“Student will respond using word prediction software.”

Seems straightforward, but there are too many holes to allow it to stand.

KTEA-3: Comprehensive Isn’t Always Comprehensive

Is the Kaufman Test of Education Achievement (KTEA-3) being administered to your child?

If yes, do you know if the Brief or Comprehensive Form is being administered?

Do you know the difference between the Brief and the Comprehensive Forms?

Are you aware of the Dyslexia Index?

Do you know if your school is cherry picking subtests to administer, what each subtest measures, and if they are appropriate for assessing your child’s needs (or suspected needs)?

Accommodation Breakdown: Clearly-Defined Expectations

A teacher asks her students to write a report about a topic of their choice. She states two requirements for the report:

1. The report must be one page in length.

2. The report must focus on a topic she taught in science within the last month.

Did she provide clearly-defined expectations?

No.

The accommodation for clearly-defined expectations should provide exactly what it sound like: clearly-defined expectations.

For the student’s IEP or 504, the accommodation must be written as clearly as it is expected to be implemented.

Accommodation Breakdown: Accessible Text

Accessible text is text that can accessed by the student. This might be a format such as Braille, digital text, large-format text, or audio.

If your student needs accessible text, ask the questions posed in this article as this accommodation is developed,

Category: IEPs and 504s (page 4)