IEP - Individual Education Plan = Yeah you know me??
Individual Education Plans
IEPOnline is for anyone involved in developing or implementing individual education plans (IEPs) to support students with special education needs. Central to the website is the Ministry of Education publication Collaboration for Success: Individual Education Plans (September 2011) which replaces the 1998 ‘Individual Education Programme (IEP) Guidelines’.
Connecting to my previous presentation 'To obey like a canoe before the wind' I have arrived at this point in my inquiry. There are students in my classroom and across my team where school is a serious challenge to be a functional part of. These students have - special needs in the classroom daily. You plan for groups at a time, however the plans must then be tailored again to support these particular individuals as their ability to work in a small group is challenging for themselves, their peers and teachers.
It has been aptly put on the TKI site, under the title 'How to succeed at IEPS':
The IEP process is about writing students INTO the New Zealand Curriculum rather than writing students out.
This has a teacher thinking, dreaming and looking ahead to the new term of what can be done for the INCLUSION of these students in the day to day, week to week running of the learning environments we strive to create, maintain and sustain?? What do I write into my plans to ensure these students are not just here in body but seriously engaging with the curriculum?
My vision is to have blocks of learning change during the week for these particular individuals. Relate to the time of day/week where the student tends to become disengaged or may need a 'second wind'. Recent talks also with GATE in our staff meetings have supported this view.
For example:
Sporting student: weekly learning sessions with our Sports Teacher and Coordinator, linking to learning in classroom. Planning how to tackle the tasks set and further. Linking to community and region sporting events and goals. Mentoring with people in community outside PES?
Naturalistic student: weekly sessions to work on garden boxes in block and further. Support from our school caretakers etc. Linking this to the wider community and it's benefits.
All this would need to be consistent and regular to ensure engagement and shifts of positive change for the students.
Barriers:
- the teachers/adults/mentors need to be available consistently.
- feedback and feedforward to be regular from student/mentor and teacher to ensure progress is monitored and recorded
- resourcing of people to work one on one and to fund the projects for these programmes
Solution
- look at timetable of team teachers, locate time specifically for the set up
- research funding/resources available for this type of IEP - more individuals to make up the different focus groups?
- regular updates on the progress of these programmes, record and share with SMT for future
Imagine if we get this right the IEP will have these students saying - 'Yep, teachers knows me!!
