As a student teacher last semester, I worked with a student that we noticed was getting very behind. We suggested he be reffered for an IEP and his parents agreed so we went ahead with the process. I was shocked to find out that it would probably fe 3 to 4 months before he was actually approved or denied. If someone notices that a child needs help, they need help now, not in 4 months. Why does it take so long to get a child in need approved for an IEP. Also, what can be done to give the student that extra help that they need until they can get approved to get that extra help?
Re: IEP Approval Time
Jill, as a teacher, that’s your job. You give the extra help. You make the modifications in your classroom that you think the child needs. You don’t need a piece of paper to do that. It’s nice if they can get the other services asap, but most LD modifications in the inclusion setting are stuff the teacher does anyway, ie. deadline extensions, test modifications, preferential seating, copies of notes, etc. I’m regular ed., and I have over 50 students with IEP’s plus who knows how many kids with “issues” — I confess that I don’t memorize each student’s IEP — I just do what each one needs. Kinda overwhelming, huh?
Re: IEP Approval Time
Boy, I love your attitude! We have a 4th grader with “issues”, though he is very smart. I suspect in a less supportive classroom he might need an IEP. But he has a wonderful teacher this year that just does what needs to be done. He’s having a great year, learning LOTS and his self esteem has grown by leaps and bounds.
Thanks for being the kind of teacher you are!
Karen
Re: IEP Approval Time
Instead of accomodations maybe what we should call it is good methods of instruction. The reason class within a class was so successful is that the regular education teachers were given the opportunity to learn the methods the sped teachers were using - they began using them and everyone was learning more and having more fun doing it. I always find it interesting to visit a high school content class and find them teaching the same way I was taught 32 years ago in high school. It wasn’t very effective then and it sure hasn’t gotten any better today!
If the students is already labeled Special Ed., you should not have to wait for “IEP approval”. You should be able to use whatever modifications you think that student needs. In fact, teachers can use any kind of modification for any kind of student, whether they are Special Ed or not. If the student is not labeled Special Ed, talk to the teachers about what kind of modifications can by used to help the student succeed until an IEP can be approved. If everyone wants to see this student’s performance increase, they will do what ever is necessary until the “red tape” can be cut.