Discretion and regulatory flexibility must be managed without violating the amended, reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Misbehaving disabled students may be removed from their educational placements for 10 consecutive days or less--the same punishment meted out to regular students. Longer-term placements need IEP team…

Discusses strategies for encouraging student participation in the development of an Individualized Education Program for a child with a disability. Outlines the significant steps in the process including developing a vision, prioritizing learning needs, collaborative problem solving, setting goals, and planning the intervention. (CR)

This study attempted to validate a strategy for improving the quality of individualized education program (IEP) goals and objectives. A diverse group of early childhood special educators was trained on writing quality IEP goals/objectives and using a curriculum-based measure. Results indicate the quality of written IEP goals and objectives…

This article discusses practical strategies to assist parents in becoming a more inclusive part of the Individualized Education Program process. Characteristics of effective teams are provided, and strategies are listed for providing social support, increasing distinctiveness, ensuring fairness, providing a sense of similarity, and for enhancing…

To address disabled students' troubling outcomes, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services identified school-to-work transition as a major priority. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act mandates that transition services be part of secondary students' IEPs. Principals' and parents'…

This study investigated parents' perceived levels of involvement and satisfaction in the IEP (Individualized Education Program) planning process. Approximately half of the 98 parents interviewed expressed high levels of satisfaction with their involvement in their children's educational planning process, although 26 percent expressed definite…

Criticizes the process of making statements of special educational needs for students with disabilities. Statementing is argued to have led to schools' demands for special resources for activities seen as outside of the ordinary and to have increased the number of children with statements of special needs. (CR)

School districts are on safer legal ground if they recommend appropriate educational services for each special-needs child, convene parents and school personnel for Individual Education Plan meetings, make placement decisions based on individualized, thorough evaluations; document alternative options; develop behavior-management programs, and use…

Interviews with 29 incarcerated youth revealed significant differences in their knowledge of their Individualized Education Program transition plans. Those who took career classes had more knowledge about job searching, application, and interviewing. (Contains 19 references.) (SK)

A collaborative team of a teacher-consultant, state education agency associate, and university faculty member facilitated a workshop and monthly inquiry group meetings to support teachers' implementation of student-led Individual Education Programs (IEPs). Through participant-observation and grounded theory analytic methods, we examined issues…

This article describes a process to encourage student-led Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings and student ownership for their own education. Sections address preparing for the IEP meeting and research results on students' involvement. Insets summarize three levels of student involvement, relevant sections of the Individuals with…

The 1997 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) called for an increase in student involvement in individualized education program (IEP) meetings. To determine the extent of student involvement in educational planning, this study observed 109 middle and high school IEP meetings; 90% of the participants completed a…

Federal legislation requires that all students, including students with disabilities, be included in all state and district-level accountability systems. Many students can take the regular assessment with or without accommodations, but some students with disabilities need alternate ways to access assessments. For the past several years, states…

Giangreco helps teachers answer one of the hardest questions in including students with disabilities in mainstream classes: How can teachers include students who function substantially below grade level? Giangreco describes a teacher who must help a boy working at kindergarten level participate in the academic work of her 5th grade class. He…

Benchmarks and standards have become an important part of the teachers' instructional focus since the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. As educators they all recognize the importance of having high expectations of their students. Standards help schools articulate these expectations clearly to students, their parents, and the community. Yet, there…