ACTION ALERT

June 2007

PROPOSALS TO USE THE IEP FOR ACCOUNTABILITY ISSUE

One of the recommendations for the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind made by House members to members of the Education and Labor Committee is that progress of students with disabilities towards meeting the law's Adequate Yearly Progress requirements be measured by their progress toward meeting goals in their individualized education programs, rather than on the grade-level tests given to their peers In response to these recommendations, the Advocacy Institute, Our Kids Count made the following points:

The IEP outlines agreed upon services and supports required to address the individual needs of a student that enable him or her to participate in the regular education curriculum aligned to the standards set for all and with his or her peers without disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate.

The IEP serves as a tool for monitoring an individual child's progress based only on the effectiveness of the individualized services and supports developed to address the student's disability related educational needs.

The IEP is not designed or utilized as a tool for holding schools accountable for ensuring that students with disabilities are taught to the academic content and achievement standards established by the state for all students.

It is not possible to aggregate performance data from IEP goals to use as valid, reliable data in determining accountability at a school, district or state level.

There are no consequences attached to a student's failure to attain individual IEP goals.

IEP teams do not make curriculum decisions

LDA is opposed to the use of the IEP to measure the progress of student with a disability because, as President Charles Giglio pointed out in his letter to Committee Chairman George Miller:

"The IEP lists goals - and the services and supports needed to achieve those goals - that are designed to enable the student to be involved and make progress in the general education curriculum. The IEP is not the curriculum for that student, but rather the means to access the general curriculum. IEP goals do not have to correlate in any way with state academic content standards, but, again, are designed to provide supports for students to participate and learn to those standards. Using the IEP as the accountability measure would amount to decreasing the rigor and the high standards that ESEA has established for all students."

ACTION NEEDED

Your Congressman and his/her staff may not realize that using the IEP to measure student progress would eliminate the promise that students with disabilities would not be left behind. Please contact him or her, especially if he or she is on the Education and Labor Committee* and let him/her know of your opposition to the use of IEP goals to measure proficiency under No Child Left Behind. You may contact your representative through the local office (listed in the phone book) or the Washington Office through the Congressional switchboard (202) 224-3121. Ask for the legislative aide on education and point out that the IEP under IDEA describes how students with disabilities are to be taught. It does not ensure that these students have access to same curriculum and have their progress measured as their peers without disabilities.

EDUCATION AND LABOR COMMITTEE

DEMOCRATS
* George Miller, Chairman (CA-07)
* Dale E. Kildee (MI-05)
* Donald M. Payne (NJ-10)
* Robert E. Andrews (NJ-01)
* Robert C. Scott (VA-03)
* Lynn C. Woolsey (CA-06)
* Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15)
* Carolyn McCarthy (NY-04)
* John F. Tierney (MA-06)
* Dennis J. Kucinich (OH-10)
* David Wu (OR-01)
* Rush D. Holt (NJ-12)
* Susan A. Davis (CA-53)
* Danny K. Davis (IL-07)
* Raul M. Grijalva (AZ-07)
* Timothy H. Bishop (NY-01)
* Linda T. Sanchez (CA-39)
* John Sarbanes (MD-03)
* Joe Sestak (PA-07)
* Dave Loebsack (IA-02)
* Mazie Hirono (HI-02)
* Jason Altmire (PA-04)
* John Yarmuth (KY-03)
* Phil Hare (IL-17)
* Yvette Clarke (NY-11)
* Joe Courtney (CT-02)
* Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01)

REPUBLICANS
* Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, Ranking Member (CA-25)
* Thomas E. Petri (WI-06)
* Peter Hoekstra (MI-02)
* Michael N. Castle (DE-At Large)
* Mark E. Souder (IN-03)
* Vernon J. Ehlers (MI-03) * Judy Biggert (IL-13)
* Todd Russell Platts (PA-19)
* Ric Keller (FL-8)
* Joe Wilson (SC-02)
* John Kline (MN-02)
* Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05)
* Kenny Marchant (TX-24)
* Tom Price (GA-06)
* Luis G. Fortuno (PR)
* Charles W. Boustany, Jr. (LA-07)
* Virginia Foxx (NC-05)
* John R. "Randy" Kuhl, Jr. (NY-29)
* Rob Bishop (UT-01)
* David Davis (TN-01)
* Timothy Walberg (MI-07)
* Dean Heller (NV-02)

Learning Disabilities Association of America
4156 Library Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15234-1349
Phone (412) 341-1515 Fax (412) 344-0224
www.LDAAmerica.org