Predetermination

Fri, Apr 21, 2023 12:42PM
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SUMMARY KEYWORDS
iep, child, iep team, parents, special education, iep meeting, iep process, meeting, education, input, students, avoid, ensure, draft, concerns, school district, support, learning, essentials, decisions

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Where do you draw the line between a pre IEP meeting preparation, which the law allows andpredetermination before the meeting, which can get schools into hot water.
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Hello, special education strategist. I'm your host, Wendy Taylor. And today we're taking a deeper dive into IEP s and predetermination. I'm a mom of three and a half sat on both sides of the IEP table as a parent and a professional. The world of special education can seemoverwhelming and scary, even for me, and I am a parent, and I've had extensive specialeducation training, but I've got you it shouldn't be this hard. So in my solo episodes of thisspecial education strategist, I am here to break down the IEP process help reduce the stressand empower you and your child. At the IEP table I've learned to improve outcomes. Be informed, be prepared and become a partner with the IEP team. If you're new to specialeducation feel like your child should be evaluated for special education or just a curiouslearner. Join me as we dive in and strategize and take your special education strategies andtake your special education worries to wins. So back to predetermination. It's very important tobe prepared for each IEP meeting and coming together without the parents before the IEPmeeting can be a key part of the preparation. Ide a our federal law regulation explicitly allowspreparatory activities to develop a proposal or a response to a parent proposal that will bediscussed at a later meeting. Examples of permissible topics of discussion at a pre meetingmight include sharing information about present levels of performance, and the student's current progress. It can also include identifying potential problems that should or may be raisedat the meeting, brainstorming possible solutions to those problems, and creating an agenda tohelp keep the IEP meeting team on track. So according to Ida are Individuals with DisabilitiesEducation Act predetermination refers to a situation where a decision is made about a child'seducation before the child's Individualized Education Program or IEP meeting takes place. This is a violation of IGA is requirement for collaborative process between parents and educators todevelop an IEP that meets the unique needs of the child. The ID EA states that the IEP team including parents, educators and other professionals must work to gather to develop the IEPbased on the child's strengths and needs. A real life example of predetermination at an IEPmeeting could be when an educator or an administrator decides that a child should be placed ina certain educational program, or receive a certain service without consulting the child'sparents or the IEP team. For instance, a school administrator may decide that a child with alearning disability should be placed in a self contained classroom without taking into account the child's individual strengths and needs or without considering other options for meeting thechild's educational goal. In this scenario, the administrator has pre determined that the child'seducational placement without the input of the IEP team or the child's parents, which is aviolation of ide a. This can also lead to a breakdown in the collaborative process and cannegatively impact the child's education can negatively impact the child's educational progress.To address the situation the child's parents could bring up their concerns with the IEP teamrequest that the decision be revisited with input from all team members. If the issue cannot be resolved through the IEP process, the parents may consider seeking legal assistance to ensurethat their child's rights are being protected.

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An example of a legal case that addressed the issue of predetermination and the IEP process isthe case of DL versus Hamilton County Board of Education. So in this case, the parents of achild with a disability claimed that the school district had predetermined their child'seducational placement before the IEP meeting took place. And the parents argued that theschool district had made up its mind about their child's placement and services before the IEPmeeting.
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and had failed to consider their input and concerns. The court found that the school district had indeed engaged in predetermination and had failed to provide the child with a free andappropriate public education or fate, as required by ide a. So the court held that the school district must provide the child with compensatory education to make up for lost educationalopportunities resulting from the district's failure to provide that free and appropriate education.So this case highlights the importance of avoiding predetermination and the IEP process andensuring that all team members including parents have the opportunity to provide input andparticipate in the development of the child's IEP. So when predetermination occurs, it cannegatively impact the child's education and can result in legal action against the school district.
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So courts have also found evidence of predetermination when a school has an unofficial policyof refusing to provide certain programs and services. I've had parents say to me, Oh, well, they said they don't do that here. Hmm. That doesn't work. Staff decides students place them before the IEP team meeting without our parent input. School administrators make its determination before an IEP meeting. And school staff fails to incorporate the suggestions of the parents. And so I always like to say when you have an IEP coming up, make sure that you go ahead andwrite your parent input statement. That way it goes on record that way it goes in the IEP, yourconcerns are noted, how you see strengths, how you see, gaps are all noted in there and whatyou would like for the student to accomplish within the next six months, the next year and acouple years down the road. So it's all contained in the IEP, and that your information is put there forward. And then also you're going to receive an IEP draft, it is in draft form, meaningthese are our suggestions. But then you're going to review that IEP as a parent, and you canrespond in writing, what your concerns are, your questions are for that IEP. That way everything has a paper trail.

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Let's talk about a couple of myths versus facts when it comes to predetermination. So it is illegal to hold an IEP prep meeting as mentioned at the start of this episode.
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Preparation is encouraged and expected. So predetermination violates the law. But teachers are allowed to discuss parental requests recommendation and data at an informal meeting. You can make you can't.
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You just can't make any final decisions until the IEP team meeting. And you have considered again the parents and put in suggestions that's for a teacher. But it's also good for parents tounderstand that teachers and teams are going to kind of come together and look at data andlook at information but they can not make any decisions until that IEP team meeting.
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My second myth is developing a draft is predetermination. If drafts if a draft IEP is developed,the school district should solicit parent and put the four to create a draft IEP clearly marked asdraft and provide it in advance to parents if possible, and make it clear to parents in the IEPteam that the IEP draft marks for proposals, review and discussions.
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As a teacher, you want to make sure you backup any draft proposals with data. And during thatIEP meeting, solicit input on the draft IEP, including any other suggestions from parents and IEPteam members. draft a piece can be super valuable when you receive them as a parent andadvance it gives you that opportunity to read through to ask questions to add your data andyour information. And it really then becomes this valuable discussion of back and forth of whatis the best way to support your child.
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If I'm going to speak to the parents, I'm also going to pop this in there for the professionals.Here's five tips for professionals to avoid predetermination that IEP meeting come preparededucators and professionals can come to the IEP meeting with an open mind and be preparedto discuss various options for meeting the child's educational needs. Again, this is an IEP anindividualized education plan, and some of our students who really need to consider out of thebox solutions to ensure that they're really getting the support they need.

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Listen to parents parents are a critical part of the IEP team and their input is
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Central it's important to listen to their concerns and ideas and work collaboratively to developthe IEP that meets the child's needs. We want to also consider all options, the IEP team shouldconsider all available options for meeting that child's needs. It includes exploring a range ofservices, accommodations, modifications that could be provided and avoid making unilateraldecision. So the IEP team should make decisions collaboratively and avoid making decisionsbefore the meeting takes place. So it's important to work together to develop a plan that meetsagain those unique individual needs of a student. And then we always want to document theprocess, keeping accurate records of the IEP process, including meetings, and decisions madecan help ensure that everyone's on the same page and that the process is transparent, andcollaborative. And this can help avoid any misunderstandings and potential conflicts down the line. So if a parent if you feel that predetermination has taken place at your child's IEP meeting,there's a few steps that you can take to address the concerns. You can talk to the IEP team. The first step is to bring up your concerns with the IEP team. It's important to be
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specific about what you feel was predetermined and how it impacts your child's education. You also want to ask the team to reconsider their decision and to work collaboratively to develop anIEP that meets your child's individual needs. And again, sometimes that may be meeting in themiddle and figuring out what works best with between what the school can offer and what yourchild's needs are. So really, it is a conversation to be had as a team, you can request an IEP review. If you're unable to reach an agreement with the IEP team you can request a review of the IEP. This review can be conducted by an impartial third party such as a mediator or dueprocess hearing officer who can help resolve any disagreements and ensure the IEP isdeveloped in accordance with the law.
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You can also seek legal assistance so if you're still unstable to resolve your concerns, you maywant to consider seeking legal assistance and an attorney who specializes in special educationlaw can help you understand your rights and options and can be an advocate on your behalf.It's important to remember the IEP process is designed to be collaborative and to ensure thatchildren with disabilities receive an appropriate education. If you feel that predetermination hastaken place, it's important to take action to address your concerns and to ensure that yourchild's needs are being met. A lot of information to think about and to break down but we always want to make sure that our child's our baby our students have this collaborative teamthat are working together to do their best to support our learners in and outside of theclassroom so that they can have future education and dependents and employment. That brings me to my tip you know your child best if they are struggling, if they are thriving if youhave if they are happy or losing hope, if they understand or if they completely lost. Sometimes we get that question of What now, you're not sure what steps to take learning essentials edu.com has a quick quiz to help your child succeed and give you that starting point. After answering a few couple questions about your child it will guide you towards the first step andhelping your child be the best they can be. Again, I'm your host Wendy Taylor, I'm obsessedwith helping families and professionals bridge learning gaps, access special education services,and build killer IPs. Thank you again for strategizing with me and spending your precious time listening. If you've liked what you've heard, share this episode with a friend and give us a likeand a follow at learning essentials. If you need more special education support visit learningessentials where we provide individualized and systematic approach to supporting studentswith various learning needs and differences through academic coaching, educational therapyand brain camp or executive function support model. Need IEP coaching? I've got you coveredvisit learning essentials edu.com For additional information. I hope this helps make it a great day. Bye for now.