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Individualized Education Plan Analysis

Allyson Turrentine

University of Kansas

SPED 775: Practicum with Children and Youth with Disabilities: High Incidence/Adaptive

Dr. Irma Brasseur-Hock

January 18, 2021

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Individualized Education Plan Analysis

Student Information

Madison is a 7-year-old girl that is in the second grade. She currently lives with her

mother and father and their new puppy. Madison has an older brother who is 20 years old and is

in the Army. She is typically able to see him around twice a year when he is able to come home.

Madison loves cheerleading, soccer, playing with her friends, and sharing stories. Madison loves

to talk and has a large group of friends. She is easy to understand, and her volume is always easy

to hear.

Madison has attended her current school since kindergarten; a total of three years. She

started kindergarten academically in line with her peers, but as the year continued, she started to

fall behind. The first signs of this lack of progression was in the area of reading. She was able to

memorize sight words but was unable to remember certain letter sounds and sound out basic

consonant-vowel-consonant words. She also had trouble with paying attention to tasks at hand.

At the end of her kindergarten year, she began working in general education Tier 2 supports.

These included working with the reading specialist, access to audio books, proximal seating to

the front of the classroom, and additional small group work with her general education teacher in

reading. She began the IEP initial evaluation process at the end of her first grade year, and

qualified in September of second grade. When schools were closed during the COVID-19 initial

shut down, her parents took her for an outside evaluation, where she was diagnosed with

Dyslexia and ADHD. Currently, she participates in her general education classroom with

supports, attends small group by the special education teacher for 30 minutes for reading, and

attends reading tutoring after school three times a week.

Behavior
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Behaviorally, Madison does not require many positive behavior supports. She follows

directions, is respectful to peers and adults, and wants to please those around her. Occasionally,

she can become off-task or will talk with her peers when she is supposed to be working or

listening to her teacher. When this occurs, Madison is easily redirected by the adult in the room

and is able to then follow the directions.

Academic

Academically, Madison is behind her peers in reading. Her Measures of Academic

Performance Reading Assessment (MAP) places her in the 8th percentile in reading when

compared to same-aged peers. Within reading, Madison shows deficits in phonological

awareness, fundamental reading skills, fluency, and comprehension. She often shows letter

reversals (reading /b/ as /d/) and is inconsistent in correctly reading vowel sounds. An area of

strength in reading that Madison shows is in the area of vocabulary. She has a very rich

vocabulary and is able to identify words that have different meanings. Currently, Madison’s

goals are in phonological awareness, specifically in identifying middle sounds in words, breaking

a word into its’ phonemes, and correctly reading real consonant-vowel-consonant words.

Madison excels in math and it is currently her favorite subject. On her Math MAP assessment,

she scored in the 82nd percentile. On all other screeners given and on her weekly math quizzes,

Madison scores in the average range.

Student Observation

Madison was first observed in the general education setting. The class was doing an iLit

lesson, which is a combination of reading, science, social studies, and math. Her general

education teacher gave instructions to transition from their independent work to begin the whole-

group instruction. Instead of moving to the whole-group activity, Madison became distracted and
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began talking to a classmate of hers. Due to this, she appeared to miss the instruction given to her

by her teacher. After finishing her discussion, Madison approached her teacher to discuss the

directions. Her teacher repeated the directions to her and Madison returned to her seat to put

away her independent work materials. As Madison’s teacher began teaching, she appeared to be

an active listener and participant in the discussion. Her teacher asked the class multiple different

questions, and Madison was called on two separate times to answer in front of the class. Both

times she provided the correct answer and was praised for providing real-world examples for her

responses.

Madison is currently seated in an independent student desk in the front and center of her

classroom. There is a peer seated directly behind her in an individual desk, two peers to her right

at a table, and two peers to her left at a table. The Smartboard is located directly in front of her,

where most whole group instruction occurs. There is a para-professional in Madison’s classroom

for two hours of the day, in which they are able to assist Madison with assignments, answer

questions she may have, and provide additional prompting in order for her to access the full

general education curriculum.

Madison was also observed in her special education small group reading class. Madison

comes to this class with a group of three additional peers, all of which are also in her general

education class. She entered the classroom telling one of her peers a story. She needed prompting

to conclude her story so that the teacher could begin teaching. The teacher moved through a

reading lesson asking the students to answer different questions involving phonological

awareness skills. Madison answered each time she was called on, and typically needed around 5

seconds of wait time to produce her answer. Madison answered most questions correct and

needed some additional wait time and assistance when asked to isolate the medial sound in a
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word. The group then moved into a dictation lesson over the reading skill that they were working

on that week. Madison completed the paper by herself but needed additional prompts to remind

her to double check her work. When she did this, she found and corrected the errors that she had

made, which were reversing /b/ and /d/ and not doubling an ending consonant. When group was

completed, she was able to put her materials away and returned back to her class as instructed.

IEP Information

Madison’s IEP includes similar information to what was observed above. It stated that

she is an active participant in her classroom, she loves to share, and that she loves to socialize

with her peers. It also includes that she does need some additional prompting to remain on task

and to complete assignments. Her IEP truly captures her whole persona in what she is like inside

and out of a classroom. It states that she strives to please her teachers, that she loves her dog and

her family, and that she wants to do well in school.

Currently, Madison is supported by many different adults in the school. Prior to her IEP

being written, Madison saw the reading specialist for 30 minutes each day to work on her

reading skills. Now that she has an IEP in place, she now instead sees the special education

teacher in a small group setting to work on these reading skills. In the special education

classroom, she works on phonological awareness and uses the Orton-Gillingham curriculum,

which is an evidence-based program with effective teaching practices for individuals with

Dyslexia. Madison also has 60 minutes of support in her general education classroom, which is

provided by a paraprofessional. They are able to provide her with prompting, read the directions

to her on assignments, and assist her with providing all additional accommodations. On all

classroom assignments and assessments, Madison is provided with adult support, extended time,

taking tests in a quiet non-competitive setting, oral test administration, access to audio books,
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and text to speech for directions and test items. She is also provided with fidget tools and sensory

breaks as needed. She has preferential seating close to the front of the classroom and has a small

group reading and math time with her general education teacher each day. Outside of school,

Madison attends tutoring twice a week. Her tutor is also Orton-Gillingham trained and uses those

methods with Madison as well.

Instructional Plan

Before instruction can begin, some information needs to be gathered. Madison’s present

levels need to be assessed in phonics skills, letter and sound knowledge, reading fluency, and

reading comprehension. These are all skills that will be addressed in a small group setting, so all

of Madison’s current abilities need to be analyzed so that instruction begins on her current

instructional level. This information will be collected in an individual setting in the special

education classroom. This will minimize distractions to ensure her present levels are accurate.

Besides her academic present levels, Madison should also have a current time on task done.

Although her IEP is current as of September of 2020, this is also a present level of ability that

directly effects how much information he is able to retain in class.

Based on her time on task data, this will determine what supports she will need in her

general education classroom. Likely, Madison will require adult support, extended time, access

to audio books, assignments read to her, and preferential seating close to the teacher. The adult

support will allow Madison to ask questions and to keep her on task. The extended time will

allow her to focus and not feel pressure to rush. Having access to audio books and having

assignments read to her will allow her reading to not hinder her performance on assignments.

Preferential seating close to her teacher will allow distractions to be minimized, allowing

Madison to focus on the content being presented.

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Communication systems will need to be set up between all adults that work with Madison

on a daily basis. There will be a folder on a shared drive that each teacher will have access to

continually update data on Madison in each classroom. Once a week, the special education

teacher, the paraprofessional that works in Madison’s general education classroom, and the

general education teacher will meet to discuss what is working and not working for Madison.

They will analyze her progress and modify instruction, if needed. Madison will also show her

work from her special education classroom to her general education teacher to instill

accountability transfer from each classroom. This also keeps the general education teacher

informed on what Madison is doing daily in the special education classroom.

The instruction that will be provided in the learning center will directly address not only

all of her IEP goals, but her overall development as a reader. Madison has 30 minutes listed on

her current IEP to provide direct instruction in reading. Her IEP goal states that by September of

2021, Madison will be able to accuracy segment all phonemes in words with 80% accuracy.

Therefore, she first 5-10 minutes in class will be spent working on phonological awareness.

Besides that, a strong knowledge in phonics directly correlates to how Madison will continue to

develop as a reader. After this, the remainder of the time will be spent using an Orton Gillingham

approach to direct instruction in reading. The first 5-10 minutes will be spent doing the Three-

Part Drill. This is where Madison will review previous letter and sound patterns taught visually

and auditorily, and also places these patterns within words. The remainder of the time block

Madison spends in the direct instruction format will change every day. At the beginning of the

week, Madison will spend this time learning a new skill for the week. This could be a new sound

pattern, a new spelling rule, or a new concept that she will encounter in her reading. She will also

learn new sight words during this portion. In the middle of the week, Madison will learn how to
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apply these skills in lesson dictation by writing words and sentences that contain this new skill.

At the end of the week, Madison will work on her reading fluency and reading comprehension

with texts that are a Level H, which is her instructional level.

Different types of assessment will be used with Madison frequently. Each day, Madison’s

teacher will take informal data on which phonics skills she is able to perform accurately as well

as which letter and sound patterns she is able to recall quickly. Her lesson dictations that she

does each week will be saved to collect data on how she is able to recall these skills as well.

Each week, Madison will work one-on-one with her special education teacher for her to progress

monitor each of her IEP goals. This will involve Madison answering around ten questions on

each phonics skill identified in her goal areas. Madison will also read running records and

answer comprehension questions on them each week to ensure that she is progressing towards

more difficult text. For summative assessments, three different fluency probes will be used three

times a year to track her progress, as well as a phonics screener used three times a year as well.

These probes are from EasyCBM, an online platform that was designed by the researchers who

specialize in the Response to Intervention model. The curriculum-based measures used are a

sample from grade-level curriculum to assess where Madison is compared to her same-aged

peers.

MAPS

Madison, her parents, and her teachers were interviewed in order to complete the MAPS

diagram. Everyone was not able to meet altogether as a group, so interviews were conducted

individually. When Madison was asked what her dreams were, she stated that her three dreams

for her future are to be a cheerleader, a singer, and an astronaut. When Madison was asked about

what her day looked like, she explained that she works hard in her classroom, goes to lunch and
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recess, and goes to extra reading with her resource teacher. Madison said that she likes school

because that is where she gets to talk to her friends. Madison explained that her strengths were

that she is happy, funny, has a lot of friends, and works hard when she comes to school. When

initially asked what her needs were, she said she did not have any. After some additional

prompting, Madison said that she needed help with reading and with keeping her desk organized.

Madison’s parents said that their dreams for Madison’s future are for her to become an

independent reader and to become more confident in herself and in her abilities across all areas

of life. They stated that they enjoy what Madison’s current daily schedule looks like, with her

receiving specialized reading group in a separate setting each day along with adult support in her

general education classroom. They said that her strengths are that she perseveres through hard

things and has a positive attitude about all tasks that she encounters. They also love how social

she is with everyone that she meets. Madison’s parents said that her needs are in the areas of

confidence and in reading. These needs relate directly back to the dreams that they have for her.

Madison’s general education teacher stated that her dreams for Madison are for her to

grow in her reading abilities and to become more organized. She stated that organization relates

to her physical space (desk, cubby, etc.) as well as organizing assignments (planner, where to

start when writing, etc.). Her teacher loves how enthusiastic Madison gets when telling stories

and how she always has items to share when the class is having discussions. She also said that

her strengths that she sees are her positive attitude, her social nature, and how she is determined

to work hard each day. Her needs that she sees are in organization and in reading.

From these interviews, Madison’s MAPS form was created (Appendix A). All of the

individuals, including herself, are included on the MAPS form. From creating this form, goals

and supports were created. The goals that were created are in the areas of reading and
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organization. All individuals that were interviewed stated reading as a dream and a goal for her,

so that will be an area that is targeted. Organization was also a theme that came across in all

interviews. Organization can also overarch with the theme of independence, since if Madison

grows in her organization, it will also increase her independence.

Recommendations and Reflections

Based on the information above, Madison has a very comprehensive and data-driven

current plan implemented through her IEP. However, there are always areas to improve. One of

these areas that would help Madison is to begin supporting her in the area of organization. A

common need and dream listed on Madison’s MAPS was in the area of organization. This was

interesting to see, because there is minimal information in Madison’s IEP or documents about

her organizational skills. This means that it is an area to be observed and to see if any additional

supports can be offered to Madison to help her organizational skills. Some ideas of ways to help

Madison could be weekly desk organizations with her teacher or a para-professional, desk

organizer inserts that go inside the drawer to keep her materials straight, a bag on the back of her

chair to avoid loose papers inside her desk, or a visual on her desk of where all of her supplies

belong inside her desk to ensure that it stays organized.

Another area that could be improved in Madison’s instructional plan is in the area of

confidence. Currently, all of her goals and instruction are centered around her deficits in reading.

This is correct, because it is the area where data has shown that Madison needs additional

support in. However, her confidence is not noted much, or at all, in her documents. It is an area

that appeared in the MAPS diagram from all who work with her repeatedly. In the observation of

Madison in her general education class, her teacher called on her when she raised her hand and

allowed Madison to share in front of the class. This is a great way for Madison’s confidence to
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grow in front of her peers. Another idea of how to help in this area is to allow her to teach certain

reading concepts and rules that she has mastered to younger students. Madison has an excellent

knowledge of certain spelling rules (the “cat kite rule”, the “doubling rule”, etc.). Madison could

be allowed to teach these rules in her own words to younger students. This makes her the expert,

allowing her confidence to grow in the area of reading. Madison also loves to talk and share with

others, so this will capitalize on her strengths. It also allows the information to further process

with Madison, in that teaching others shows true mastery of a subject. Any areas that her

teachers see that can promote confidence in Madison should be opportunities that they seize.

Based on the data presented above, Madison’s academic programming does not need to

be changed. Madison’s IEP is very important to her educational success. It provides her with the

direct instruction she receives outside of the classroom, as well as her support inside the

classroom along with her accommodations and modifications. Within her general education

classroom, she has all of the appropriate supports to help her access the general education

curriculum while also allowing it to be on her instructional level. All of the accommodations

given are proven to be what she needs without adding too many, making her environment not

least restrictive. With her diagnosis in Dyslexia and ADHD, Madison requires intensive reading

instruction in a small group setting. This instruction should come from an evidence-based

program by a trained professional, which is what is currently happening in Madison’s classroom.

Her data is showing that she is making great improvements in her reading since starting this

small-group intensive instruction. One thing that I would change, however, is her minutes. I

would keep her 30 minutes of small group for reading instruction, because she does learn a lot

from feedback from her peers. I would add 15 minutes of additional support for her at the end of

group for one-on-one reading instruction as well as writing instruction. With this, Madison’s
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specific skills in reading and writing can be taught explicitly on her level. She can be given

meaningful feedback without fear that peers will overhear. It will allow her to focus on only one

subject, the teacher, rather than the teacher plus a group of peers. Teachers do not always have

the luxury of providing one-on-one support, however if it could be possible, Madison would

benefit greatly.
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Appendix A