IEP (Individualized Education Program)
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An IEP is the written plan, developed by a team that includes the parents, describing the special education and services an eligible student will receive.
Topic: The IEP document
In plain terms
The IEP is both a meeting and a document. It describes the student's present levels, sets measurable annual goals, explains how progress will be measured and reported, and lists the special education, related services, accommodations and supports the school will provide, with when, where and how often. The IEP must be reviewed at least once a year.
How it shows up in an IEP
Everything in the IEP should connect: a need found in the present levels leads to a goal, the goal has a baseline and a way to measure it, and services are planned so the student can reach it.
Example
A fourth grader's IEP lists a decoding need, a goal to read two-syllable words with 90% accuracy, 150 weekly minutes of reading instruction in a small group, and progress reports each quarter.
Not the same as Section 504
A 504 plan provides accommodations for access. An IEP adds specially designed instruction, measurable goals and progress reporting. Read the definition of Section 504.
The rule
Federal reference: 34 CFR §300.320, 34 CFR §300.324.
Related terms
- IEP teamThe IEP team is the group of people, including the parents, who develop, review and revise a student's IEP together.
- PLAAFP (present levels of academic achievement and functional performance)The PLAAFP is the IEP section that describes how a student is currently doing in school and how the disability affects progress in the general curriculum.
- Measurable annual goalA measurable annual goal is an IEP goal written so that two different people could observe the student and agree on whether it was met.
- Annual reviewAn annual review is the IEP meeting, held at least once every 12 months, where the team reviews progress and writes the next year's IEP.
- IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)IDEA is the federal law that guarantees eligible children with disabilities a free appropriate public education and sets the rules for IEPs.
- FAPE (Free Appropriate Public Education)FAPE is the right of every eligible child with a disability to special education and related services, at no cost, designed around the child's needs.
On IEP Atlas
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