Benchmarks are major milestones which specify skill or performance levels a student needs to accomplish toward reaching their annual goal. They should not be confused with the standards and benchmarks school districts have identified for school improvement. Short-term objectives are measurable, intermediate steps between a student's present level of educational performance and the annual goals established for the student. Their development is based on a logical breakdown of the major components of the annual goals and they measure progress toward meeting the goals. They set the general direction to be taken by those who will implement the IEP and are the basis for developing a detailed instructional plan for the student.
Goals provide a system for measuring the student's progress toward long-range expectations.
As appropriate, the team revises the IEP consistent with the student's needs. The IEP Team must also consider the importance of the goal in light of social relevance. The IEP Team discusses formal and informal assessment data to determine annual goals. The student with a disability is either a part of the IEP Team or is consulted during the decision-making process, as appropriate. Information about the student's likes, dislikes, interests, preferences, and vision for the future must be considered in writing IEP goals.