Once you have an educational program in place, your next job is playing spy and enforcer. You can't rely totally on the school or the school district to monitor your child's progress or to ensure compliance with his IEP.

Parents value the opportunity to put their case before an independent panel, and SENDIST often rules in favour of parents. However, LEAs are often ignoring SENDIST rulings and are failing to automatically deliver an improved education.

One of the rules that makes autism a very different diagnosis when it comes to writing an IEP in Texas is what is known as the Autism Addendum.

A handbook written to help parents of autistic children understand the complex web of special education laws and obtain appropriate special education services for their children.

Due process is time consuming, intensive, expensive and highly stressful. To be successful, parents need to fully understand their legal rights BEFORE filing for due process.

For those children whose special educational needs are not met through Action or Action Plus, the LEA will need to make a Statutory Assessment of their needs and probably make a Statement of Special Educational Needs.

A Compilation of IEP Suggestions for Kids with NLD

The IEP is the cornerstone for the education of a child with a disability. The IEP is a written statement of a child's educational program that identifies the services a child needs so that he or she may grow and learn during the school year.

All there is to know about IPPs, how best to use them, and what the reality of their efficacy in the Public School system looks like.

The MAC Book: Highlighting the Person in the I.E.P.; Creating a LifeBook; etc.

Perhaps we, as parents, should adopt a more professional attitude in our approach to meetings with professionals.

The Record of Needs (RON) is a means of assessing, planning, and delivering provision for a child with special educational needs. It is a means of ensuring that a child's difficulties are recognised and monitored in an ongoing way.

With the students I have been involved with who are autistic and visually impaired, they will use any vision that they have given the auditory/language world can be pretty unreliable for them.

Hundreds of articles, cases, newsletters, and other information about special education law and advocacy.

Like the IFSP used in Early Intervention programs, the IEP describes your child's strengths and weaknesses, sets out goals and objectives, and details how these can be met within the context of the school system.

After the Statutory Assessment, if the LEA then decides your child needs special help, they must write a statement of special educational needs. This describes all your child's needs and all the specialist help and provision he or she needs.

A statutory assessment is a detailed investigation to find out what your Childs special educational needs are and what provision is needed to meet those needs.

In building Laura's awareness of her rights and responsibilities, she seemed to take more "ownership" of the process. The adults on the team needed to let her take over much of the control while still respecting her sometimes awkward attempts at self-advocacy (and who among us has not stumbled in this way?).

Believing the professionals are the only experts. Not making requests in writing. Not being familiar with Prior Notice section of the Procedural Safeguards. Requesting a related service instead of an assessment that supports the need for a related service. Accepting assessment results that do not recommend the services you think your child needs. Allowing the assessment information to be presented for the first time at the IEP meeting. Accepting goals and objectives that are not measurable. Allowing placement decisions to be made before IEP goals and objectives are written. Allowing your child's IEP meeting to be rushed so the school staff can begin the next child's IEP meeting. Not asking a lot of questions.

Information on your rights, the law, IEPs, ARDs, modification, and inclusion.

Understanding the IEP is essential to maximizing special education services for students with learning disabilities. We've assembled informative articles plus useful forms to help parents and educators make the most of the IEP process.

Because they are not educators, most parents don't understand that they have a unique role to play in the IEP process. Parents are the experts on their child.