Why does the process of referral and developing/approving an IEP take so long to complete? When a teacher notices that a student needs help, they need that help now, not 90 days later. As a teacher, what can I do in the mean time to try to help the student keep up while I am also teaching the whole class
can I whine?
Im a service coordinator for Early Intervention. We have 45 calendar days from referral to IFSP-calendar, as in includes weekends and holidays. Its a nightmare trying to get the evaluations arranged and completed. Parents are not always quick to respond, and I deal with many families who do not have a telephone.
We also need a prescription from the doctor to do any evaluation-more red tape, more time(THEY dont work weekends and holidays) We are subject to HIPPA(new legislation regarding medical record privacy)which has made everything even crazier.
I wish we in EI had more time, and I find it frustrating that there is such a difference between the two systems. The rational is, for a young child, each day is a bigger part of his life so we need to move quicker. Great in theory but we burn out service coordinators quicker than light bulbs!
Jill,
Make accommodations for the child. If the math is too hard, for example, then go back and give him different work on skills he has not yet mastered. Use a volunteer to give him some one-on-one. Maybe he could stay with you after school one day a week for some extra help until the special ed. placement is completed. Or, if the parent is cooperative, give the parent some remedial work to do at home with the child instead of your regular homework. If you give a test, read it aloud so the low reading level children will not be penalized. I do not believe that you can keep a child up if he is missing earlier skills. You need to go back and fill in what is missing. Take him forward from where he is. Hopefully you are already doing many of these things. And you will likely still have the child part of the day after he is placed, so it would be good to begin accommodations now.
It takes 90 days because of all the evaluations which must be done to document that the child has a disability. The paperwork is a hassle, but it is necessary since labeling a child as disabled is not something which should be done in haste. It’s great that you are open to suggestions in order to better help him now.
Janis