Your child has gone through the assessment process for an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and your child qualifies for special education and related services. You have had multiple IEP meetings to develop the IEP and you have consented to the IEP, special education services, special education goals and special education accommodations. But your child is still struggling. In fact, they have an IEP and are failing. Is this even possible? Read on to learn more about what you can do when your child has an IEP and is still failing their classes.
Does Having an IEP Mean a Student Cannot Fail Classes?
Unfortunately, no. Having an IEP does not entitle a student to earn A’s or B’s in their classes. It doesn’t even entitle them to earn a passing grade at all. The IEP merely entitles a student to receive special education and related services from credentialled personnel with specialized training to provide the support needed in your child’s IEP. The Individualized Education Plan ensures that special education staff are working on your child’s IEP goals and that their special education accommodations are in place and being enforced. None of this means your student cannot fail a class.
What About the Minimum Standards of an IEP?
There is indeed a minimum standard for developing an IEP for a student based on special education assessment data, progress on prior goals and the student’s present levels of academic performance and achievement. This was decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in the Endrew F. decision. That decision states that an IEP must be “reasonably calculated” to make progress based on each student’s unique circumstances. This applies to students who are in general education with special education support, as well as students who are in special day classes, nonpublic schools or other settings. In other words, it applies to all students with IEPs regardless of their special education setting.
However, the standard isn’t talking about making progress in a general education class or special education class. It’s talking about making progress on the special education goals developed in the IEP. It does not mean the student is going to pass their classes or even make progress in those settings. It means they need to be making their IEP goals.
Well Then, Why Can’t the Goal State the Student will Pass their Classes?
It certainly can and we do have some students with those goals. However, those goals are appropriate only if it’s an identified area of need. This would be based on special education assessment data as well as present levels of performance. As an example, a student with dysgraphia, a writing disability, who is struggling with including all the components of a paragraph in her writing. A goal that might be appropriate is for her to write one paragraph scoring a 3 on a 4-point rubric; in other words, to earn a passing score on a writing assignment by including the correct components of a paragraph. While the goal doesn’t expressly state the student will pass the class, she does need to earn a passing score on the rubric in order to meet the goal.
How is it Determined if a Student is Making Progress on their Special Education Goals?
The most common way to identify if your student is making progress on their IEP goals is to look at the progress reports (you can read more about IEP goals here). If the progress matches or mirrors the goal, then you should be able to tell if your student is making expected progress. If so, then the IEP is reasonably calculated for the student to make progress.
If you are seeing that your student’s progress is lower than the baseline of the goal, then your student is regressing and the IEP is not reasonably calculated for your student to make progress. You should contact your school to schedule an IEP meeting as soon as possible to discuss why your student is not progressing and to make adjustments to the IEP as needed.
What if My Student Isn’t Making Big Progress but Isn’t Regressing Either?
While an IEP is supposed to be reasonably calculated for the student to meet his goals, it can be okay for a student to make slow progress. Let’s take a student with Autism who has significant deficits in the areas of social pragmatics. He has a goal for increasing his engagement with peers by engaging in three reciprocal play exchanges in 4 of 5 opportunities across settings. The baseline states this is a new skill (0 of 5 opportunities). The first progress reporting period shows no progress, but the second reporting period shows 1 of 5 opportunities. Is this expected progress? It’s not the progress anyone hopes for but, based on special education assessment data and continued behavior data collection, it could be appropriate for this particular student.
What Can I do if My Student is Regressing or is Failing Classes?
Remember, under federal procedural safeguards (aka your special education parent rights), you can absolutely call an special education IEP meeting outside of the annual and triennial reviews. If your student is failing their classes and has an active IEP, then call an IEP meeting to discuss what’s happening with your student and to get an update on their progress. Perhaps services and accommodations need to be tweaked. Perhaps another special education assessment needs to be completed. You won’t know unless you have that discussion with your student’s IEP team.
I’ve Asked my Student’s IEP Team for an IEP Meeting. It Didn’t go Well or They Refuse to Hold an IEP Meeting. What Now?
If either of these situations happened to you, you need help. Our dynamic team has extensive knowledge on what schools may and may not do when you request a meeting. We are also experts on goal writing and measuring progress on goals. We can work with you to ensure your student’s IEP is reasonably calculated for them to make expected progress based on their individual needs. Our team can review your student’s records, explain them to you and attend IEP meetings with you to ensure your student’s needs are being met. Contact our office today to find out more.