FTCE ESE IEP Development and Implementation 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following is a required component of every IEP under IDEA?
- A description of the student's learning style preferences
- A statement of the student's present levels of academic achievement and functional performance (PLAAFP) (Correct answer)
- A list of all medications the student takes
- A summary of the student's social relationships with peers
Correct answer: A statement of the student's present levels of academic achievement and functional performance (PLAAFP)
PLAAFP (Present Levels of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance) is a mandatory IEP component that describes the student's current performance and how the disability affects participation in the general curriculum.
Question 2: A well-written IEP goal must be measurable. Which goal is written most measurably?
- The student will improve reading skills during the school year
- The student will demonstrate understanding of grade-level text
- Given a grade-3 passage, the student will correctly answer 4 of 5 comprehension questions with 80% accuracy across 3 consecutive trials (Correct answer)
- The student will try harder on reading comprehension assignments
Correct answer: Given a grade-3 passage, the student will correctly answer 4 of 5 comprehension questions with 80% accuracy across 3 consecutive trials
A measurable IEP goal includes the condition, the behavior, the criterion, and the evaluation method — making it possible to objectively determine whether the goal has been met.
Question 3: The PLAAFP statement in an IEP should:
- Focus exclusively on the student's academic deficits and weaknesses
- Describe both strengths and needs, using objective data, and explain how the disability affects educational performance (Correct answer)
- Be written by the school psychologist alone based on evaluation results
- Remain unchanged from year to year unless a new evaluation is completed
Correct answer: Describe both strengths and needs, using objective data, and explain how the disability affects educational performance
An effective PLAAFP describes the student's strengths and needs using objective data from multiple sources, and clearly explains how the disability impacts access to and progress in the general curriculum.
Question 4: Which of the following individuals is NOT a required member of the IEP team under IDEA?
- The student's parent or guardian
- The student (when appropriate)
- The student's physician (Correct answer)
- A general education teacher
Correct answer: The student's physician
IDEA does not require the student's physician to be an IEP team member; required members include parents, a general education teacher, a special education teacher, a district representative, someone who can interpret evaluation results, and the student when appropriate.
Question 5: An ESE teacher notices that a student is not making adequate progress toward an IEP goal mid-year. The most appropriate response is to:
- Wait until the annual IEP review to address the concern
- Inform parents via a progress report and convene the IEP team to consider revising the goal or services (Correct answer)
- Remove the goal from the IEP and replace it with an easier one without parental input
- Continue the current approach for the rest of the year to allow more time
Correct answer: Inform parents via a progress report and convene the IEP team to consider revising the goal or services
IDEA requires that parents be notified of progress and that the IEP team reconvene when a student is not making expected progress, to consider whether the goal or services need to be revised.
Question 6: When writing IEP goals, the special educator should primarily draw from which data source to establish the baseline?
- Anecdotal observations from the previous year's teacher
- The student's PLAAFP, which is based on current evaluation and classroom data (Correct answer)
- Standardized grade-level curriculum benchmarks without individualization
- The student's performance compared to the class average
Correct answer: The student's PLAAFP, which is based on current evaluation and classroom data
IEP goals should be directly tied to the baseline information in the PLAAFP, which uses current evaluation results and classroom performance data to establish where the student currently performs.
FTCE ESE IEP Development and Implementation 1
Which of the following is a required component of every IEP under IDEA?