IEP in place -- now what?

[Anonymous]

I am very new to all of this so would welcome any feedback on the IEP track. Following an evaluation conducted by DCPS, my son is now eligible for an IEP due to a 'specific learning disability' related to his struggle in reading. Since he is only in 1st grade, I was told it's too early to look deeper into the cause of this (e.g. dyslexia) -- which we'd have to do on our own through an outside/independent source -- and best to have DCPS implement its plan support him through the end of the year and see how he does.

Do I need to do or know anything as we move forward?

Thank you.

[Anonymous]

The thing to do now is to validate that their plan to support him makes sense.

What are they proposing to do? Do you have a draft IEP or you've only gotten to the 'yes he's eligible' stage?

[Anonymous]

13:57 again:

You, as a parent are a full member of the team to develop the IEP. It's a negotiable document.

[Anonymous]

The main thing you need to know is that you should assume that the IEP is not going to be followed. Stay on top of things and don't be afraid to advocate forcefully.

Second, it's bullshit that first grade is too early to be diagnosed with dyslexia. But for purposes of an IEP, all disabilities have to be coded into one of the categories listed in the IDEA; dyslexia would fall under specific learning disability. Dyslexia (which isn't in DSM V) basically means "specific learning disability in reading."

Third, the law requires that he be given an evidence-based reading instruction, implemented with fidelity. That means that have to show you that the reading intervention they are using has research behind it showing that it's effective for kids with specific learning disabilities in reading. It then needs to be implemented with fidelity -- so if the research shows that it's effective when kids get 1 hour a day, your son needs to get one hour a day. Programs should be gorton-gillingham based.

[Anonymous]

OP here -- thank you for your feedback.

If the school has diagnosed the 'specific learning disability' but not the source of the issue (e.g. dyslexia), how can they use evidence-based reading instruction that is targeted for my DS? If he had dyslexia, he would need an orton-gillingham type of instruction vs. other approaches based specific to other issues. Not sure how I can fight to implement "evidence-based reading instruction with fidelity" if we are just going off of a general assessment of "learning disability in reading."

Or maybe I just have them propose the plan, implement it and then see how it goes for a few months. Perhaps by staying in touch with the special ed teacher, we can slowly narrow down the source of the problem which my gut tells me it's either dyslexia or his inability to focus.

Thanks again for your feedback.

[Anonymous]

Don't wait a few months.

Ask the IEP team what specific reading program they are going to be using with him and what evidence they have that shows that the program is a good match for him. Then research it and see what you think.