IEP & Transition Tips

The mission of DePaul School for Hearing and Speech is to develop listening skills and spoken language in children who are deaf, hard of hearing or have spoken language communication challenges and to prepare them to transition to their home school district successfully at the earliest possible age. The last part of our mission statement is what truly sets us apart because we want your child to learn, grow, flourish, and ultimately leave DePaul. Leaving means we’ve done our job successfully and your child is ready for their neighborhood school.

We’ve put together some IEP and transitioning tips to help you better understand the average journey for a deaf/hard-of-hearing child.

What is an IEP?

An Individualized Education Program, or IEP, is a document that details the student’s plan, goals, services, accommodations, and modifications. An IEP should cover the student’s unique strengths, weaknesses, and needs to support the student’s goals.

The IEP meeting allows all parties involved to collaborate and align their understanding. Families, educators, therapists, and other professionals can share insights and expertise.

What is an IFSP?

An Individualized Family Service Plan, or IFSP, is a formal document detailing the support and services required for children with developmental delays to make progress. An IFSP outlines services tailored to support the entire family unit.

What is transitioning?

When your child has been evaluated and approved for the process of transitioning, we celebrate! Transitioning means they are now ready to leave DePaul School for Hearing and Speech and attend their neighborhood school.

Transition and IEP Planning Tips

• As your child’s advocate, you should always fight for what you think they need.
• If your child is old enough to understand what’s going on, we encourage them to sit in on the IEP meeting so they can advocate for themselves and learn the process early.
• Families should make informed choices—always ask for a copy of the IEP document prior to the meeting and understand all the rules and regulations.
• Develop relationships with your service providers (especially during the transition to the neighborhood school).

Who is included in (and, in some cases, responsible for decisions) in IEPs?

• 0-3 Years of Age
  • The Alliance for Infants and Children
  • TEIS Early Intervention Services
• 3-5 Years of Age
  • Intermediate units become responsible for a child’s education
• 5-22 Years of Age
  • Kindergarten Transition (even transition from DePaul’s Preschool to DePaul’s Kindergarten)
  • School districts will become responsible for a child’s education
  • School districts will participate in IEPs

Keys to a Successful Transition from DePaul School to a Students’ Neighborhood School

• The student participated in Self-Advocacy classes.
• Work with an educational audiologist to understand basic device troubleshooting.
• For younger students, DePaul will create a “book” for each child to share with their new friends to explain their implants/devices and hearing loss.
• Participate in constant communication to and from the home district.
• DePaul will sometimes provide in-service presentations to the home district’s teachers/staff on topics such as optimal listening environments, using a mini mic/DM system, other accommodations, etc.
• Some students will start to transition to their home district a few days a week at first.

It is important to remember that transitioning is a process!

• Focus on continuity of services.
• Prepare to have many discussions to ensure all aspects of the transition are covered.
• Sharing information and communication is key— after every conversation, put a recap in writing so both parties (neighborhood school and parent) are on the same page.
• Make sure both parties agree on timelines for each accommodation.
• Don’t forget to prepare for changes in service delivery, including:
  • new transportation,
  • external OT/PT if applicable,
  • external speech, and
  • external educational audiologist.

Evaluation Process for Transitioning to Neighborhood Schools

• Parents must sign a Permission to Evaluate.
• The initial evaluation for children up to 7 years old typically uses the Battelle Developmental Inventory.
• The student’s skills are evaluated in five categories, including:
  • cognitive,
  • communication,
  • social,
  • adaptive, and
• To be eligible for preschool services, a child must have a qualifying score in a specific domain.
• If the child is 3-5 years old, there are additional evaluations:
  • CELF Preschool,
  • Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, and
  • Goldman Fristoe.

What is LRE or Least Restrictive Environment?

DePaul School is a full-time special education placement and has one of the highest restrictive environments that a child can receive. It is always the goal of the school district to make sure the child is in the Least Restrictive Environment possible for their skill development and level of intervention. Therefore, if a child passes all the standardized assessments, the school district is probably going to try to transition the child back to their district, whether or not the child is ready. That’s where IEPs and parent advocacy come in! A parent can dispute a school district’s decision and, sometimes, it works!

Post Graduating DePaul

We have five itinerant teachers out in the school districts who teach a few of our graduates. Each school district contracts with either us or another service provider to have a Teacher of the Deaf/Hearing Support available to the child.

Questions?

We realize this information can be overwhelming. We know you only want to do what is best for your child and we are here to support you during those IEP and Transition discussions. If you have any questions about IEPs or transitioning, please let us know. We’d be happy to go over your concerns, questions, and ideas to ensure clarity and peace of mind.