When an IEP meeting goes bad...

[Anonymous]

How do you continue working with the teacher and school after the IEP meeting which was an unpleasant experience for all is over? We will have the same teacher for the next school year.

[Anonymous]

You stay courteous and stick to the goals discussed and agreed upon, and go up the chain if there is evidence of not following-through.

As an aside, how is your child getting the same teacher? Is it is a case manager? If she is truly detrimental to your child's development, can you request to NOT have this teacher? I've heard this is possible in MCPS.

[Anonymous]

In a self contained autism program, the teacher is the same for up to grade 2 or 3.

[Anonymous]

You present your own data continuously. You track progress, get outside reports to present. Track all emails/calls from school on behavior. Get an outside educational consultant.

I agree that you should bring in the principal or contact the cluster supervisor as needed. Do not settle for just what the classroom teacher tells you! I have done all of the above. I haven't had to go to mediation yet, but I wouldn't hesitate.

The school needs to know you mean business. Of course, you still have to be nice. But don't let them walk on you. Because they will try.

[Anonymous]

We have repeatedly found that bad behavior at IEP meetings and with teachers doesn't change until we go over the heads of people at the school and call on the head of special education or the section 504 coordinator.

IME, these problems are reflective of a whole school culture that is the core of the problem. Individual teachers can only misbehave vis-a-vis an IEP when they feel like they won't get in trouble.

[Anonymous]

How far up the chain did you have to go? I would use whatever ally you found on the school's side to keep up the pressure.

For a while I had to step back and have DH do things (even though we were operating in sync with each other).

[Anonymous]

We gave up after numerous bad IEP meetings, and sent our child to private school. The cost nearly killed us, but our child did really well at the private school. The change was immediate. We did better too -- I got a lot more sleep when I didn't have to sit through those #$% IEP meetings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have repeatedly found that bad behavior at IEP meetings and with teachers doesn't change until we go over the heads of people at the school and call on the head of special education or the section 504 coordinator.

IME, these problems are reflective of a whole school culture that is the core of the problem. Individual teachers can only misbehave vis-a-vis an IEP when they feel like they won't get in trouble.

That is correct, sadly. If you ever wanted to move, now is the time, OP - do your research and pick another MCPS that is IEP-friendly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have repeatedly found that bad behavior at IEP meetings and with teachers doesn't change until we go over the heads of people at the school and call on the head of special education or the section 504 coordinator.

IME, these problems are reflective of a whole school culture that is the core of the problem. Individual teachers can only misbehave vis-a-vis an IEP when they feel like they won't get in trouble.

That is correct, sadly. If you ever wanted to move, now is the time, OP - do your research and pick another MCPS that is IEP-friendly.

Honestly, moving isn't the answer, complaining to the top brass and phrasing your complaint in terms of "failure to comply with IEP," being "out of compliance" and that you hope you can resolve the conflict, get the school "back into compliance" without "having to resort to due process options."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have repeatedly found that bad behavior at IEP meetings and with teachers doesn't change until we go over the heads of people at the school and call on the head of special education or the section 504 coordinator.

IME, these problems are reflective of a whole school culture that is the core of the problem. Individual teachers can only misbehave vis-a-vis an IEP when they feel like they won't get in trouble.

That is correct, sadly. If you ever wanted to move, now is the time, OP - do your research and pick another MCPS that is IEP-friendly.

Honestly, moving isn't the answer, complaining to the top brass and phrasing your complaint in terms of "failure to comply with IEP," being "out of compliance" and that you hope you can resolve the conflict, get the school "back into compliance" without "having to resort to due process options."

"Denial of FAPE" also works