Steps Leading to the IEP (Individualized Education Plan)
- A teacher notices that a student is having serious academic or behavioral difficulty
- The teacher consults the student’s parents and tries the instructional or behavioral management strategies she or he believes will resolve the problem.
- If the problem is not resolved the teacher asks for the help of the child study (or teacher assistance) team.
- With the help of the team, the teacher implements and documents the results of strategies designed to resolve the problem.
- If the problem is not resolved after reasonable implementation of the team’s suggestions, the teacher makes a referral for evaluation. *
- The student is evaluated in all areas of known or suspected disability including medical, psychological, social, and educational evaluations.
- With the results of the evaluation components in hand, the IEP Committee determines whether the student is eligible for special education.
- If the student is found eligible, then an IEP must be written.
What Should I do Before Making a Referral?
- Hold at least one conference to discuss your concerns with the parents (or make extensive and documented efforts to communicate with the parents).
- Check all available school records, and interview other professionals involved with the student to make sure you understand the student’s history and efforts to help that have already been made.
- Ask the Child Study Team – or principal, the school psychologist, and at least one other teacher who knows the student- to help you devise strategies to solve the problem.
- Implement and document the results of the academic and behavior management strategies you have tried.
What Information Should I Be Able to Provide at the Time of Referral?
- A statement of exactly what you are concerned about
- An explanation of why you are concerned
- Detailed records from your observations of the problem, including samples of academic work
- Records documenting the strategies you have used to try to resolve the problem and the outcomes of those strategies
* NOTE: Referrals may also be made by parents or administrators who believe the student may have a disability.
