The IEP Team is suppose to help support your child, but sometimes their approach can be misleading. Knowing the law is key when advocating for your child. In my book, Special Ed Mom Survival Guide, I spend considerable time helping you learn about the law and how to apply it. In attending many IEP meetings as a special education advocate, I realized that the schools don’t quote the law when the deny services. Their information is hidden in messages that sound legitimate.
Here are 12 phrases I often hear that are really the IEP Team’s way of skirting around their obligation to provide services.
- “Your child is not eligible for special education because she is doing fine academically.” IDEA specially states that grades and performance are irrelevant to determining if a student needs special education services.
- “The IEP goals are all written, all you need to do is sign that you approve.” Instead of involving you in the process of developing goals, the IEP Team is all prepared when you arrive. IDEA explicitly states that parents should be involved in the development process.
- “You should take your child to the doctor and request medication.” It is illegal for the school to suggest your child should be on medication. They are not doctors and are not qualified to determine that child should be medicated.
- “We decided your child no longer needs xyz services, so we are stopping them.” IDEA states that removal of services requires a formal evaluation, data and an IEP meeting. They cannot remove services just because they think they should.
- “We don’t have that service at our school.” The I in IEP stands for individualized, so if your child needs a service they do not have, they need to arrange another way for your child to get it.
- “We believe your child should be in a self-contained classroom because she is difficult to handle.” A self-contained placement may not be the least restrictive environment (LRE). A general ed class with aide support may be better. IDEA requires them to evaluate and use data to determine which placement is optimum for the child.
- “I need to take this to my supervisor to get permission to increase services.” IDEA procedural safeguards require that a school district administrator be present at the IEP meeting so these kinds of decisions can be made.
- “We are keeping the same goal because he has not made progress and we have to keep working on it.” Lack of progress in a year is a sign that the goal or remediation method is not appropriate. The IEP team should discuss alternative options so the child makes meaningful progress. It’s important to organize all information in an IEP binder so you are ready to show evidence of progress.
- “This is a charter school, so we don’t have the resources to serve a student with special education needs.” Any school that receives government funding must provide support for special education services. They cannot refuse a child just because their support services are not already in place.
- “We are not allowed to assess your child for an IEP unless we first try RTI (response to intervention).” Unfortunately this statement has been so overused the Department of Education actually put out a memo clarifying that RTI cannot be used to delay or deny evaluation for special education services. Click here to read the memo. Assessment for an IEP and RTI can be done simultaneously. This way if the RTI is not successful, the child will get support as soon as possible.
- “We will not accept your parent concerns for the IEP because we disagree with what you have written.” The procedural safeguards for IEPs say that a parent can give their input to the IEP. The IEP Team may not censure what the parents write. Get a copy of your state procedural safeguards (parent rights).
- “Our cafeteria is not able to provide a sensory diet.” Okay, so I threw this one in for humor. But it does often happen at meetings that the school team doesn’t know what they are talking about. Educate yourself so you can provide information and evidence to show why a service or accommodation would benefit your child.
Infographic with 12 Warning Signs IEP Team is Not Doing Their Job!
I created the following infographic that you can save as a reference. If you share it on a blog or other site, please link it back to this page so the original source is referenced.
Bonnie Landau is a licensed professional clinical counselor and educational consultant in Ventura County, California. Her goal is to help parents of neurodivergent individuals find strategies and solutions to help their children succeed in school and in life. Bonnie is also the author of Special Ed Mom Survival Guide: How to Prevail in the Special Education Process and Find Life-long Strategies for You and Your Child.
As a classroom teacher for more than a decade I have participated in countless IEP meetings. Please, parents, know that the team is not always like this. You are always your child’s best advocate, and my hope is that you feel heard and respected at all IEP meetings. My hope, too, is that you feel there are more advocates for your child at the table and that you do feel like a team.
Hi Jen,
Thank you so much for your comment. I’m glad you chimed in because I love it when teachers share that their school does things right. It seems like more districts try to avoid providing help, but of course it’s because we rarely hear from the great districts.
We now live in a district that is really good with special ed, and none of what I wrote in this post would apply to them. I work in another district that is also great at special ed. Unfortunately they are the exception in our local counties since most of the other districts are really resistant to providing help. Several of the local districts have been sued multiple times, and one is right now in a class action suit for not providing support.
I appreciate that there are amazing teachers doing all they can to help kids! We love knowing you are out there and I hope more parents can find their way to schools that make it easier to get the best support for their kids!
Take care,
Bonnie
Thank you for this comment. I am a caring, hard working teacher as well and my students are my world. I put hours into IEP’s and follow through to make sure my students are getting needs met and parents are included throughout the process. It always upsets me to read articles that put our profession down. I’ve worked in many schools and have never witnessed any of this.
It’s great that you are an advocate for the kids you serve. For those of us who don’t have you in our corner, articles like this can be helpful. The author is not saying that all teachers or districts are at fault.
I hate to disappoint you but the list is true and it ACTUALLLY happens all over the US. It is upsetting to know not everyone do things the way you do and it is shared to inform others they are not alone. So what do you think you can do to help have more of you who does what they are supposed to for these kids?
I’m a parent who has first hand experience and am currently experiencing similar issues.
Like you I see this issue keeps you up at night. I too have experienced many issues on thud list. Then there’s the bullying!
Two of my four girls have IEPs. We’ve been in multiple districts/schools and have only run into an IEP team like this once. When we in the process of starting our older daughters IEP, the team fought us the entire time, tried to bully us into retaining her a grade, and then, once we held our ground, reluctantly started an IEP and told us “your next school district will just pull her from services anyway” (we were a military family and moved that summer). I was terrified the whole time that my daughter would lose what little services she had. Then we got to the new district and not only did they not try to dismiss her, they increased services and wrote goals that actually addressed my daughter’s issues.
Every other team we’ve had since then has been great. We’ve felt part of the team (and once my daughter entered middle school, she became part of the team, as well) and have never felt like we were rushed or that our daughters’ best interests weren’t at the core of every meeting.
I wish I had some of this knowledge when we started the process for my older daughter. Might have saved me some tears in that first meeting.
Do the same “rules” apply for a 504? I’ve had a 504 meeting with none of the building principals attending. Someone told me that was illegal and someone else told me that because the school psychologist ran the meeting that counted as administrative presence.
Unfortunately, I have heard some of the above excuses, including wanting to remove interpretive services for my deaf child. 😡
Most of these only apply to IEP situations, but #1, 3 and 10 would apply in a 504 situation. I’m sorry you’ve been on the receiving on of these excuses. I have too, and it’s horribly frustrating! I hope you are able to get your child the support that is needed!
Re: School psychs representing admin for a 504 meeting:
504 plans are gen ed accommodation plans, and do not require formal testing to implement. As such, school psychs are not required to attend these meetings unless an evaluation has been conducted AND intellectual testing is being presented. Many school psychs are also district ESA/LEA representatives, and so have the decision making ability of admin. I’ve been in 4 districts in WA State now, and all four have complied with this.
School psychs have specialized training both in the assessment of disorders related to learning and education, and with the ability to represent both the student’s and district’s interests. If someone ever says the school psych counts as admin, first ask if they are an ESA/LEA representative before assuming it isn’t alright.
Great article! We are getting number #5 and number #9 at our school right now. My son was just diagnosed with dyslexia and has an IEP for sensory processing disorder. Can you point to any legal documentation, wording I can provide to refute these statements? I want to bring this back up with our administration and I believe they’ll need to see the legal language to be persuaded. Thanks!!!
Janae, here is everything you need to know about special education in charter schools: https://sites.ed.gov/idea/files/policy_speced_guid_idea_memosdcltrs_faq-idea-charter-school.pdf I would print out this document, spiral bind it, highlight important parts and bring it with you to the meet. Put sticky tabs next to the guidelines that specifically state that they must provide all the same services and support that a regular public school provides. This information comes from the federal government, so their state laws cannot overrule it.
Great list. #11 has a typo – missing “e” — includ(e)
You have an astute attention to detail! Thousands have read this, and nobody has pointed that out. I have fixed. Appreciate the help!
Hi, I’m new to all these meetings and evaluations. My son is 3 and has a 40% delay in adaptive skills, the school states that it only applies in the home setting. How do I prove that in the home setting and in the school setting he will have the same delays? He also has an expressive language delay.
Did they tell you this or have they done an observation with measurable data? If they refuse to provide services which you have requested, they must give you a Prior Written Notice with an explanation about why they are refusing. They cannot just say it is so, they are suppose to provide data that demonstrates the service is not needed in the school setting.
Hi there, thank you for providing this information! The link to number 10 about RTI appears to be broken!
Thank you for letting me know, Becky! I have fixed it.
As a teacher of 38 years, I attended many IEPs. To my recollection, none of these things was ever said. The schools generally have the child’s best interest at heart. Yes, funding is often difficult and we don’t always get as much aide time as we would like but we do want what is best for the students and do the best we can.
Nancy, it’s wonderful to hear that your school does such a great job! I wish all the schools were like yours!
Sadly for my oldest, I’ve heard 6 out of 12 said to me over 5 years! That’s including just this month with “I have to bring this to my supervisor” and “we just don’t have that service available currently” (when asked for a reading specialist).
Can you explain #1 more? Where exactly would you find that? This is something we hear WAY too much.
#1 is probably the one I see the most. It makes logical sense, so parents usually back down when schools say this. I actually wrote a blog about it: https://www.specialmomadvocate.com/denied-an-iep/ It goes 100% against IDEA. Grades should not in any way influence decision to provide special education services.
Does this information vary or change from state to state?
What if this occured in the past? The child is now in a different state and will probably fail 6th grade. The new school has worked with her for a year and a half, but she is frustratingly behind. We tried from headstart to 4th grade to get this going, with the process starting over each year.
I would like to jump in as a disability rights advocate, former special education student, international speaker on autism, and a PHD Student at Chapman University in the disability studies field.
I agree with all of your 12 but there are a few you forgot:
1)Saying student XYZ cannot participate in extracurricular activities, sports, dances, concerts, plays, arts, clubs, etc after school due to their disability. IDEIA clearly says they can.
2) That student XYZ cannot attend a play, dance, concert, sport or other activity after school because of a lack of transportation, liability issue, or no money to pay a paraprofessional after hours. The law says students with disabilities have a right to attend extracurricular activities that are offered for students of their grade level. Alternate support arrangements or transportation arrangements can be arranged if needed.
3) District says special ed student XYZ cannot be enroll in or take . Examples include all the core subjects like reading, math, science, and history. This also goes for electives like art, music, drama, family and consumer science, industrial arts, career technical education, physical education, and advanced level classes like AP, gifted, or ROP classes. The entire general education curriculum is available to people with disabilities under the IDEIA law.
4) That a person with a disability cannot graduate from high school or obtain a standard diploma, or must go into functional skills for transition. One can always attempt the academic requirements of high school and if they pass earn a diploma if they have a disability.
5) That unstructured times of the school day aren’t important or a person with a disability has to be dismissed early from class to change classes in an empty hall, eat lunch at a different table than his/her peers, or be loaded to the bus before the bell rings for the convenience of paraprofessionals and wheelchair bus drivers. In fact, dismissing a student 15 minutes early each day can result in exclusion for half a semester of instructional time for that period over the course of a school year!
6) That the way paraprofessional supports are delivered cannot be altered. Instead, they always can be altered and paras can be better matched or retrained. When a working relationship between para and student is not going well, this can cause a child learned helplessness, trauma, and can prevent a child from learning or making friends.
7) When a special day class setting or modified curriculum is being implemented, not having a plan to return the child to the regular classroom in the future.
8) Informing parents that a certain placement is the only option. Instead, a parent can request a different classroom placement or different teacher when available.
9) Not implementing the least restrictive environment possible and instead recommending segregated settings without evaluating if the goals and objectives can be accommodated in the general education classroom first.
10) Saying child XYZ cannot attend a school sponsored field trip based on their disability or lack of a wheelchair accessible bus. Instead, the school is required to allow them to attend and provide an accessible bus when needed.
11) District says they can do nothing about school bullying, trauma, teasing, or other issues the child is encountering related to other children in the classrooms, lunchroom, halls, restrooms, or after school activities. There is anti-bullying curriculum, discipline, and other actions they can to improve the school culture in this ways. If the problem is severe, they can appoint a therapist, counselor, other person to handle such issues.
12) If the child is not making friends, there is nothing we can to help. Instead, social skills and other curriculums can be implemented to help the child improve their communication, etiquette, and recreation skills for making friends or learning the extracurricular realm.
I love your information my grandaughter got denied a trip because of the extra costs of a wheelchair bus!
My son is 16 and has sensory processing disorder, ODD, adhd, depression I fought for 7 yrs for an IEP upon finally receiving one within 2 months he was permanently expelled. School stating that it was not attributable to his dx. Now he receives 2 hrs of education per week online even though it has been determined multiple times that he does not learn from computer. We can’t afford to move again as we did this once before because of the school. Since 6 th grade he has been out of school more than in. Any help at all would be appreciated
I have been trying to get iep for my 8 year old boy for 3 years now. They always told me he didn’t need it cuz his academic grades was high…aka A and B. They even told us to medicate our child otherwise they can’t keep him there. He’s ADHD. Reading this gives me more hope and now I have all the legal grounds to demand an iep for my son. We never wanted to medicate him.
Number 1 is why they took Jonah off of his IEP and will not put him on it. Reasoning after I said I disagree with what they said…we cannot legally keep him on an IEP because he is doing so well! Two years later he has mostly Cs and Ds! He does have a 504 plan because I insisted but no one will listen to me and the current head of special needs at our district is the quote above. They took him off before the transition to HS and puberty hitting him! I’m so frustrated but feel like I have no where to go that supports him with this, except family and friends who know him and all dont understand why he isn’t on one…yet the head lady in charge says no!
We’ve heard all these! Also, “there’s too many kids for that”, “our facility is small” and my personal favorite is sitting in a meeting and asking them to RACI an accommodation or service. In other words “who is responsible, accountable, consulted and informed”….and then the team has a flat out argument over who has the job of being responsible. And then the responsible certified teacher tells you that their TA is the personal responsible for your disabled child…..
Bonnie,
I am in Ontario, Canada and this hits home to me as a parent advocate and Education Consultant. I founded a group here called P.A.C.E Parents Advocating for Changes in Education.
Here, parents would meet with the SRT – School Resource Team, when discussing the IEP (individual education plan) for their child.
I would love to be able to tweak your list for my Canadian (Ontario specific) families, with your permission.
Thank you for your consideration
Shari
Shari, feel free to tweak my list, but please link back to my original list so they know where it came from. Thanks!
I have a questions around #4 (IDEA states that removal of services requires a formal evaluation, data and an IEP meeting.) Does this mean a formal evaluation must be done for removal from an IEP or for any individual service (such as speech)?
Connie, it doesn’t mean they have to do a formal assessment. What is means is that data must be used to make the decision. Data could be collected over a month of observation, or through progress on screening programs or some means of collecting information that shows progress. The point is that they cannot just say we *think* the child no longer needs services. They must have a measurable way of indicating that the child has improved and therefore no longer needs the service.
This is great. I have heard some of these. It would be extremely helpful if you would be able to included cites to specific IDEA sections/refs/guidance. Citing the law is even more persuasive then explaining it, as schools may think you’re wrong. I see you do have links in a couple places, which is great. Also, a shout out to the many teachers who do their caring utmost every day!
The school is not willing to provide my daughter with an activity chair stating she is to remain in her wheelchair which is best for her. My daughter is able to stand and enjoys social time with her friends but is not able to do so because the wheelchair does not allow her to be at the same level. The staff said that since my daughter has two years at that school the activity chair is not needed. They haven’t even made an effort to submit paper work to see if the district is even willing to purchase it .
Great information! Thank you! Does #10 only apply to a parent or guardian asking for and IEP, or can it be for a Gen Ed teacher? There are too many times Gen Ed teachers have requested evaluations and we are just given more things to try under the guise of RTI. Even after we have tried many strategies.
Ugh! I was told number 5 – that the services were not available that my daughter had in her IEP (of course, because of funding). Because of that, they made me come in and sign another IEP without those included services. I wish I had known this at the time. I feel that my daughter is struggling in the two classes that don’t have any support personnel in them. Wish there was some way to go back to the old IEP.
My husband and I were recently in a IEP meeting to discuss placement for my son who was just diagnosed with autism and has many underlying medical conditions. We requested a domain meeting and had it in September. We discussed that his doctors wanted him to be placed in a therapeutic school. The team said they needed to do some evaluations not all of them because he was just evaluated in May of this year. They needed to change the medical diagnosis from OHI to Autism. The school psychologist even sent us links to look at during this time. The meeting was finally scheduled for 2 months later. We get on call listen to everything they had to say and not one thing mentioned about the therapeutic school. My husband asked are we going to talk about why we called this meeting and they said go right ahead. My husband starts talking about things that the doctors recommend and the district team member interrupted us and my husband asked please let me finish. She continued to interrupt us a total of 10 times and threatened to end the call because she claims she was not ready for this discussion even though we know that’s why she was there along with a autism specialist. Please help. We went over her head and emailed her boss no response since yesterday.
My son has had an IEP since preschool with speech and finally got a full I when he was 9