Project 1: Examining Access to the General Education Curriculum for a
Student with a Disability
Standards-Based IEPs
Summer, 2013
Date Due: 7/1/13
Purpose: At this point in time, there is no requirement for special education teachers to look at
and reference the Montana Standards when developing IEPs. However, IDEA does require that
IEP teams consider how students with disabilities can have access to the general education
curriculum. This project provides you with an opportunity to explore an IEP for a student with
whom you are familiar, examining the components of the IEP that are intended to describe the
student’s access to the general education curriculum. Based on this analysis, you will draw
conclusions about the extent to which this student is involved in the general education
curriculum.
Total Possible Points: 40
Implementation Steps:
1.
Complete assigned readings and view webinars for Weeks 2 and 3 to establish a
foundation of information about what is required by IDEA, and the concept of “access to
the general education curriculum”. You may also find it helpful to look at the StandardsBased IEP examples posted on the Resources page of the class blog site.
2.
Identify a student for whom you have access to the IEP, and get a copy of his/her current
IEP. For the purposes of this project, you will not be sharing any identifying information
about this student.
3.
Review this student’s IEP, considering the required components that are intended to
promote the involvement of students with disabilities in the general education curriculum.
As described by Karger and Hitchcock (2008), they are as follows:
(1) IEP goals must address how the student will be involved in and progress in the
general curriculum;
(2) the IEP must specify appropriate supplementary aids and services,
accommodations, modifications, or supports; and
(3) the IEP must include an explanation if the student will not participate in the
regular class.
In addition to these areas, review the section of the IEP that is called Least Restrictive
Guide for Project 1: Summer 2013
1
Environment to determine the when and how much time the student is physically present
in the general education classroom.
The table below identifies where you will find this information in both the IEP form that
is available for download from the OPI website (NOTE: your local forms may be
different), and the fields in which this information is entered in the AIM system. Both
documents can be found on the class blog site on the Syllabus page.
Component
OPI IEP Form
AIM Screen
1. involvement and progress
in the general curriculum
page 5: PLAAFP statement
and measurable goals
pages 6-8
2a. supplementary aids and
services
2b. Accommodations,
modification, and supports
page 8 - table
page 16
page 7 - spec ed service list
pages 10-12
3. Explanation of nonparticipation in the regular
class
Page 5 - PLAAFP statement
pages 6-8
4. Least Restrictive
Environment
page 7 - Participation in
regular ed.
pages 14-15
4.
Critically examine the information in this section, considering the questions below as you
draw a conclusion about the extent to which this IEP actively supports involvement and
progress in the general education curriculum.
A. As you look at the Present Levels of Academic Achievement and Functional
Performance (PLAAFP) statements, does the information in this statement tell
you what the student’s skills are relative to the grade level standards in this
curricular content area? Does the statement reference the range of standards in
a curricular content area? Does the statement address the challenges that this
student’s disability present to learning and performance in this content area?
Looking across the entire list of goals, do they address components of the
standards-based curriculum?
B. Does the list of supplementary aids and services provide specific guidance
about supporting this student in the general education classroom? Do you see
services and supports that address the impact of this student’s disability on
learning and participation in the regular classroom?
C. Does the list of special education and related services seem comprehensive?
What about the location of services? Are special education services being
delivered to support the student in the general education setting or does the
Guide for Project 1: Summer 2013
2
student need to leave the regular classroom in order to receive special
education services?
D. Are specific reasons identified for non-participation? If so, do any of the
reasons go beyond gaps in performance between this student and his/her
typical peers? Do you see any way in which the provision of some type of
supplementary aids and services could address the reason for nonparticipation? (Note: For the purposes of this project, do not limit your ideas
based on existing resources. If strategies that you come up with were
possible/available, could this student be supported in the regular classroom?)
E. What observations can you make about the reasons for non-participation and
the amount of time the student is removed from the general education
classroom? If you know more details than are available by a simple reporting
of the percentage of time the student is in the regular education classroom, you
are encouraged to use that information in your analysis. You may know, for
example, that the student is in the regular classroom for 60% of the day,
receiving all reading and math instruction in a separate setting. Do you see any
relationship between what a student is pulled out for and their ability to access
the general education curriculum? Does specialized instruction in one setting
help prepare the student for what occurs in the general education classroom, or
is the student receiving an alternate or parallel curriculum?
5.
Develop a short narrative that summarizes the outcomes of your analysis. Organize it
so that it includes the sections below. I encourage you to use the headings I have
provided to organize your project.
Introduction: One paragraph to introduce and describe the purpose of the project.
Description of Student: Include age, grade level, and nature of this student’s
disability. If you use a name, please use a pseudonym.
Student Placement: Describe the percentage of time the student spends in the
general ed setting and the percentage of time spent in special education. Identify
what skills are addressed in each setting.
Reasons for Non-Participation: Summarize your thoughts about how this is
addressed in the student’s IEP, considering the questions in 4D above. Can you
think of ways that current barriers to participation might be reduced?
PLAAFP Statements and Measurable Annual Goals (MAG): Using your responses
to questions in 4A above, describe your observations about the relationship
between the PLAAFP statements and MAGs in this IEP and the standards-based
curriculum.
Supports to Participate in the Regular Classroom: Using your responses to
Guide for Project 1: Summer 2013
3
questions in 4B and 4C above, what conclusions can you draw about the supports
available to this student when s/he is in the general education classroom.
Instructional Settings: Describe your conclusions about the relationship between
the student’s placement and access to the general education curriculum.
Conclusions About Access: Based on your responses to the sections above,
describe your thoughts about this student’s access to the general education
curriculum.
Reflection: Did this activity provide you with any insight about the IEP
development process as it relates to supporting access to the general education
curriculum? Are there things you might do differently in the future when
developing IEPs to support access?
Project Evaluation: Points will be awarded based on the following distribution across project
components. Each component will be read for the completeness and thoughtfulness of your
response. The mechanics of the writing process are considered in the last identified project
component.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Introduction (2 pts.)
Description of Student (3 pts.)
Student Placement (2 pts.)
Reasons for Non-Participation (3 pts.)
PLAAFP Statements and Measurable Annual Goals (MAG) (10 pts.)
Supports to Participate in the Regular Classroom (8 pts.)
Instructional Settings (2 pts.)
Conclusions About Access (5 pts.)
Reflections (3 pts.)
Clarity of Writing (2 pts.)
Guide for Project 1: Summer 2013
4