Source: https://dpi.wi.gov/sped/laws-procedures-bulletins/bulletins/10-07
Timestamp: 2019-04-19 09:14:37+00:00

Document:
The Department of Public Instruction (DPI) is responsible for ensuring local educational agency (LEA) compliance with state and federal special education requirements. DPI’s oversight responsibility is explicitly established in 20 USC 1212(a)(11)(A)(i) and s. 115.762 (3)(g), Wis. Stats. As part of its general supervision system to ensure compliance with state and federal special education requirements, DPI monitors approximately 440 LEAs through the use of a procedural compliance self-assessment cycle. The purpose of this bulletin is to provide technical assistance on common procedural errors related to describing special education, related services, supplementary aids and services, and program modifications or supports (most commonly found on DPI Model Form I-9, Program Summary).
Special education is specially designed instruction to meet the unique needs of a student with a disability which is provided at no cost to the student or the student’s parent by appropriately licensed staff. It is provided in the classroom, in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and in other settings. [34 C.F.R § 300.39 (2006) and Wis. Stat. § 115.76 (15) (2006)].
Related services are transportation and such developmental, corrective, and other supportive services required to assist a student with a disability to benefit from special education. [34 C.F.R § 300.34 and Wis. Stat. § 115.76 (14)].
Supplementary aids and services are aids, services, and other supports provided in general education classes or other education-related settings to enable a student with a disability to be educated with students without disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate. [34 C.F.R § 300.34 and Wis. Stat. § 115.76 (16)].
Program modifications or supports for school personnel are services or activities needed by school personnel to meet the needs of the student. [34 C.F.R § 300.320(a)(4) and Wis. Stat. § 115.787(2)(c)].
Special education services must enable the student to advance appropriately toward the annual goals in the individualized education program (IEP), to be involved in and make progress in the general education curriculum, to participate in extracurricular and other nonacademic activities, and to be educated and participate with their nondisabled peers. The special education, related services, and supplementary aids and services must be based on peer-reviewed research to the extent practicable. [34 C.F.R § 300.320(a)(4)].
The IEP must include the projected dates for implementation of all services and their anticipated amount (how much) and frequency (how often), location (physical space/environment), and duration (period of the IEP when it will be in effect). [34 CFR §300.320(a)(7)].
Each IEP team is responsible for developing an IEP that includes a statement of the special education, related services, supplementary aids and services, and program modifications or supports for school staff based on each student’s unique needs. The examples contained in this bulletin are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as appropriate for all students under all circumstances.
1. How must the IEP describe the services to be provided?
2. What is the LEA's responsibility when sessions are missed because of student absence?
3. Is it ever appropriate to write special education services as a range of time?
4. What if it is impossible to describe the special education service in daily or weekly allotments of time?
5. If we can’t write special education services “upon student request,” where should we address student self-determination and self-advocacy skills in the IEP?
6. How should location be documented in the IEP?
7. What does duration mean?
8. If we decide the student will receive specially designed physical education, do we need to include a frequency/amount, location, or duration?
The student’s unique educational needs drive the IEP team’s determination of the special education services to be provided. An IEP must be written in a way that clearly states the amount of time committed to each service. The level of the LEA’s commitment of resources must be clear to the parent and all involved in developing and implementing the IEP. The description of the amount, frequency, location, and duration must be appropriate to the specific special education service. A clear description of amount, frequency, and location clarifies the extent, if any, to which the student will not participate with students without disabilities in the general education class and other environments.
Some districts described regularly scheduled special education services as a total number of minutes per month or year. The amount and frequency should describe when the special education services will occur, most often by including the number of sessions and amount of time per session. Describing special education services as a monthly allotment is only appropriate in the rare situation where it is appropriate to the specific service and made by an IEP team based on a determination of a student’s unique needs. In this case, the IEP must also describe the number and length of sessions and when the sessions will occur. Regularly scheduled special education services should not be listed with a frequency and amount of a certain amount of time per year. Special education services that will only occur once per month or once per year may be listed in monthly or yearly allotments.
The LEA must provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to each student with a disability by developing a program that meets the student’s unique needs, documenting that program in the IEP, and implementing the program articulated in the IEP. LEAs should consider the impact of a student’s absence on the student's progress and performance and determine how to ensure the continued provision of FAPE in order for the student to continue to progress and meet the annual goals in his or her IEP. Whether an interruption in special education services constitutes a denial of FAPE is an individual determination that must be made on a case-by-case basis. [Letter to Clarke, 107 LRP 13115 (OSEP 2007)]. If the student is absent from school for a prolonged period of time, or there is a pattern of repeated short-term absence from school for reasons associated with the student’s disability, it may be appropriate for the LEA to reconvene the IEP team to discuss the student’s current IEP to determine if it is necessary to modify the student’s current program or placement. [Letter to Balkman, 23 LRP 3417 (OSEP 1995)].
The amount of special education services to be provided must be stated in the IEP so the level of the agency’s commitment of resources will be clear to parent and all involved in developing and implementing the IEP. The amount of time to be committed to each of the special education services to be provided must be appropriate to the specific service and stated in the IEP in a manner that is clear to all who are involved in both the development and implementation of the IEP.
Annual Goal: Given a problem involving math calculation of more than two column subtraction, student will recognize his need for calculator and ask math teacher for it, 7/10 opportunities, as measured by the teacher checklist.
The location is the physical space where the special education services will take place. A detailed description of special education service location clearly indicates when and where the student will be in a particular environment and how the student will spend her or his instructional time. The extent of removal from the general education environment, if any, must be clear.
In some situations, a special education service is not related to the amount of time a student spends in a particular location. In these situations, it is appropriate to list the use of this special education service with more than one location. If the student will have access to this special education service under all circumstances and in all school environments, a statement such as “across the entire school day” or “in all school environments” is appropriate.

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