The Golden Rule of IEPs
This time of year, you can't but stop and reconsider what you put in last year's IEPs. In most cases, someone else has inherited your case load, and they're trying to figure out what in the world you were doing. I know as I look at other people's paperwork, that's what I'm wondering.
So, I figure the Golden Rule of IEPs must be "Write IEPs unto others as you would have others write IEPs for you." Forget the flourishes, the fancy-smancy verbiage and try to make those IEP goals clear, simple and measurable. I found the best way to write an IEP goal is to write the data collection sheets at the same time. If I can't figure out what the procedure is going to be, I'm going to deep six that baby! Start over!
I recently worked with a younger colleague creating IEP goals and pulled up some suggested goals from one of our neighboring state's special ed sites. The goal starts "Given a question pertaining to her daily activities that requires a few tasks for each period . . . "  What? The purpose of the goal is for the student to create a picture schedule for her day with picture symbols. Makes you wonder how many Masters of Education it takes to screw in a lightbulb.
So be kind to your colleagues, okay?
Comments
Here Here! I cannot tell you how many times I have gotten a new student, read their IEP and said “What were they thinking?” An IEP, in my opinion, is a guideline of what you want the student to achieve. There are certain goals that you want to student to master but again…it is only a snapshot of what the student will be learning throughout the year. One of the most important questions you should ask yourself before writing the goal is ‘is this goal attainable and is it relevant to this student?’ If not then think of another goal…just don’t put one there to fill a blank spot!