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Progress monitoring

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Progress monitoring is the regular, repeated measurement of a student's performance on a skill to check whether instruction is working.

Topic: The IEP document

In plain terms

Progress monitoring uses brief, frequent measures given the same way each time, often weekly or every other week. The scores are graphed against a goal line, so the team can see the trend. If several points in a row fall below the line, the teacher changes the instruction rather than waiting until the end of the year.

How it shows up in an IEP

The IEP must describe how progress toward each goal will be measured. Progress monitoring is how that promise is kept between meetings, and it supplies the numbers that appear in each progress report.

Example

Every Friday, a teacher gives a one-minute math fact probe and graphs the digits correct. After four points below the goal line, the teacher adds a daily five-minute fluency practice.

Not the same as Progress report

Progress monitoring is the ongoing data collection. The progress report is the periodic summary of that data sent to the family. Read the definition of Progress report.

The rule

Federal reference: 34 CFR §300.320(a)(3).

Related terms

  • Curriculum-based measurement (CBM)Curriculum-based measurement is a set of brief, standardized, timed probes that measure a general skill, such as reading or math, to track growth over time.
  • Goal line (aimline)A goal line is a line on a progress graph drawn from the baseline to the annual target, showing the rate of growth needed to meet the goal.
  • BaselineA baseline is a student's measured performance on a skill before instruction toward a new goal begins, used as the goal's starting point.
  • ProbeA probe is a brief check of a skill, given without teaching or help, to see what the student can do independently at that moment.
  • Progress report (IEP)An IEP progress report tells parents, on a schedule stated in the IEP, how much progress the student is making toward each annual goal.
  • Data sheetA data sheet is a form for recording a student's performance on an IEP goal in a consistent way each session.

On IEP Atlas

This page describes special education terms and federal rules in general terms and is not legal advice. Our editorial policy explains how IEP Atlas writes and reviews content. Browse all 244 terms.