Full Menu Close Menu

Individualized Education Programs (IEPs)

Overview of IEPs

The Individualized Education Program (IEP) is the cornerstone of the special education process for each student, serving as a comprehensive strategic plan that shapes the educational experience and outcomes for students with disabilities. 

What IEPs Do 

  1. Leverage strengths: IEPs identify each student’s unique strengths and outline strategies for how these strengths will be used to address their needs. 
  2. Specially-designed instruction: They specify how instruction will be tailored to support the student within the general education curriculum, aiming to help them reach the same learning standards as their nondisabled peers. 
  3. Resource allocation: IEPs guide the configuration and utilization of a school’s special education resources to effectively meet the needs of students with disabilities. 
  4. Preparation for adult living: They detail how the student will be prepared for life after school, including further education, employment, and independent living. 
  5. Progress monitoring: IEPs set measurable goals and objectives, allowing schools to track progress and assess whether resources are being used effectively to achieve the desired outcomes for the student.

To ensure that students can engage with and progress in the general education curriculum, the IEP team must align the IEP with both the  state’s next generation learning standards and the school’s curriculum. 

Recent Shift to Strength-Based IEP Development

While the fundamental components of the IEP have remained consistent for decades, there has been a growing movement toward a strength-based approach to IEP development. Traditionally, IEPs have focused on identifying and addressing deficits because students qualify for special education based on their disabilities and educational needs. However, a strength-based approach begins by recognizing what students do well—their strengths, abilities, interests, and preferences—and incorporating these into the present levels of performance. This approach also develops strength-based goals that not only target areas for growth but also build on the student’s existing skills. 

Benefits of Strength-Based IEPs
  • Promotes self-awareness: Helps students understand their strengths and how they can use them to overcome challenges. 
  • Increases student agency: Encourages students to take an active role in their education and the IEP process. 
  • Fosters a growth mindset: Shifts the focus from deficits to possibilities, reinforcing the idea that all students can learn and grow. 
  • This evolving approach helps create more meaningful, personalized, and effective educational plans that empower students and better support their long-term success.
Learn more about strength-based IEPs

Every student with a disability must have an IEP in effect by the beginning of each school year. Federal and state laws and regulations specify the information that must be documented in each student’s IEP. The electronic IEP in the NYC DOE’s Special Education Student Information System (SESIS) is designed to meet the state requirements.

Source: State Guide to Quality Individualized Education Program (IEP) Development and Implementation, pp. 1-4

Tape recording IEP meetings

Parents have the right to request that an IEP meeting be audiotaped. However, they must provide the school principal or the Committee on Special Education Chairperson with 24-hour written notice before the meeting. If a parent requests to tape the meeting, the IEP team may also choose to tape the meeting.

IEP resources