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Session 3. Individual Education Plans, Adjustments and Modifications
Objective. Write a one-page individual education plan with a baseline, two measurable targets and classroom adjustments, and decide when a change of expectation (a modification) is justified.
A plan helps only if it changes what happens in the lesson. Many plans fail not because the ideas are wrong but because the starting point is missing, the targets are too many, or the supports never end. This lesson shows how to take a five-minute baseline, how to offer adjustments so that pupils keep their dignity, and how to review a plan in a way that builds independence instead of dependence.
Key ideas
What an individual plan is for
- An individual education plan (IEP) is a short, agreed record of a pupil's strengths, needs, targets, supports, who does what and when it is reviewed. It turns good intentions into actions that a new teacher or substitute can follow.
- It is a working document shared with the family and, as far as possible, with the pupil. It is not a label or a punishment. Use your school's or district's form if there is one; this session teaches the content that makes any form work.
- Keep it to one page. A plan that no one reads is worse than a short one that is used weekly.
Targets you can see and measure
- Write two targets, not ten. Each has a starting point (baseline), a goal, a date six to eight weeks away and a way to check. 'Improve reading' is a wish. 'Aziz reads a 50-word textbook paragraph aloud with no more than 3 errors by 15 December, checked each Friday' is a target.
- Choose targets that matter for learning in your subject, such as reading the word problem, writing a three-sentence answer, or taking part in group work. Include one target about independence or confidence, not only skills.
- Ask the pupil: 'What would you like to be able to do by Navruz?' A target the pupil wants is far easier to reach.
Adjustments and modifications
- An adjustment (also called an accommodation) changes HOW the pupil learns or shows learning; the expectation stays the same. Examples: extra time, text read aloud, large print, an oral answer, a word bank, a checklist of steps.
- A modification changes WHAT is expected: a lower-grade text, fewer outcomes, a different standard for marking. Start with adjustments. Use a modification only when adjustments are not enough, agree it in writing with school leaders and the family, and review it often, because it can close doors later.
- The standard stays your reference. If your school rules decide what may be modified, follow them; do not lower expectations quietly on your own.
Making the plan live in 45-minute lessons
- Make a one-card 'pupil passport' for every teacher who meets the pupil: three things to know, three things to do, who to ask. Put it where a substitute will find it, and keep it out of the pupil's sight and the class register.
- Build targets into routines you already have: the opening question, the exit ticket, a group role. Keep a simple tally on a card; do not write long reports.
- At each review decide for every support: continue, change or retire. Fading supports on purpose builds independence; over-helping hides what the pupil can do.
Same expectation or changed expectation?
| Area | Adjustment: same expectation | Modification: changed expectation |
|---|---|---|
| Reading a test | Questions read aloud, same questions | Easier text from a lower grade |
| Writing | Pupil speaks, adult writes (scribe) | A shorter answer counted as full marks for this pupil only |
| Time | Extra 10 minutes | An outcome removed from the unit |
| Mathematics | Fact table allowed when the outcome is problem solving | Works on Grade 3 problems while the class does Grade 5 |
The plan cycle
A five-minute baseline and a small target
You do not need special tests. Choose the skill the target is about and measure it once in the ordinary way: a 50-word paragraph read aloud with errors counted, a three-sentence answer written in ten minutes, or the number of group-work turns taken in a lesson. Write the number and the date. This is the baseline; without it, you cannot say in December whether the plan worked.
Then set a target that is a visible step forward, not a leap. If the pupil makes 8 errors in 50 words, a goal of 3 by a date is realistic; a goal of 0 is not. Share the target with the pupil in his or her words. Pupils who can say what they are working toward use their adjustments more often and more wisely.
Offering adjustments with dignity, and retiring them
Some pupils refuse help because it makes them stand out. Offer adjustments privately and as a choice: 'Would a copy in larger print or extra time help more today?' Keep them simple to use, such as a card on the desk or a folder in the cupboard, so that the pupil does not need to ask in front of others.
Plan the end of each support at the same time. Ask at each review: Is the pupil still using it? Could a smaller version do? Is the pupil ready to try without? A word bank of twenty words can become ten, then a list the pupil makes. Retiring a support when the pupil no longer needs it is a success to celebrate, not a loss.
Examples from the classroom
The baseline in five minutes
Scene. Malika in Grade 5 in Samarkand wants a target for Aziz's reading. During the last ten minutes of the lesson she asks him to read a 50-word paragraph to her quietly and counts 8 errors. She writes '8 / 50, 12 October' on the plan card. Her target: no more than 3 errors by 15 December, checked each Friday with a new paragraph of the same length.
Insight. A baseline is one simple measurement with a date.
A private choice
Scene. Jasur teaches Grade 8 history in Bukhara. Dilnoza, who has a large-print adjustment, never uses it because classmates stare. Jasur puts all handouts in two sizes in a tray at the door. Everyone takes what they like and nobody asks. Within a week Dilnoza starts taking the large print without comment.
Insight. Universal availability protects dignity better than individual permission.
Fading the word bank
Scene. Aziz in Fergana uses a twenty-word bank to write three sentences in Uzbek. After six weeks his teacher Dilnoza reviews the tally: he uses only eight words from the bank. She trims it to ten words and asks Aziz to add two of his own. Four weeks later he writes without the bank, and the plan records 'retired'.
Insight. Plan the withdrawal of help as carefully as its start.
Common pitfalls
- Writing targets with no starting point, so that progress cannot be seen.
- Listing ten adjustments, so that none is done well.
- Making the plan available to every teacher but explained to none.
- Keeping a modification because it was agreed last year without reviewing it.
Write a One-Page Plan for Aziz
- Open the Activity Kit: the SAMPLE profile of Aziz (Grade 5), a one-page plan template and 12 cards. Alone (5 min): read the profile and underline the baseline facts.
- Pairs (10 min): sort the 12 cards into adjustment or modification. Agree on one card where you disagree and explain what you would need to know.
- Pairs (20 min): fill the plan: strengths, two targets with baseline, goal, date and check, three adjustments, no more than one modification with a reason, roles, review date.
- Part B (15 min): swap plans with another pair. Use the quality checklist in the Kit: would a substitute teacher know what to do on Monday? Return feedback with one 'keep' and one 'change'.
- Alone (10 min): revise your plan and write your school-based task from the Kit.
Your facilitator will guide you through this activity in the session.
Questions to discuss
- Which target was easiest to measure and which was a wish in disguise?
- Where did your pair disagree about adjustment versus modification, and what settled it?
- What in your plan could be done in a real 45-minute lesson without extra staff?
Reflect
- Does any pupil in your class already have a plan that you have never seen? How could you find out?
- When did you lower an expectation quietly? What might an adjustment have done instead?
- Who should help you write the first target: the pupil, the family or a specialist?
Try it tomorrow
- Take a five-minute baseline for one skill of one pupil and write the number and date on a card.
- Offer a pupil two adjustments privately and ask which one helps more.
- Choose one support that has been in place for over a term and ask whether a smaller version would do.
Further reading and links
A good plan is one page: strengths, two measurable targets, adjustments first, modifications only with reasons, and a review date.