As you become more familiar with the philosophy of the law, I would urge you to go to some of the fine sites listed in my links to learn more about the letter of the law. Knowledge is power.

ADD: Attention Deficit Disorder.

ADHD: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Alternative Educational Setting: If you have a child with ADHD, be sure to understand what such a setting entails before agreeing to it for your child. Some districts are placing "troublemakers" into makeshift classrooms with the equivalent of a guard for a teacher. IEP's are not followed, and sometimes there's only a partial day of instruction. One community used its police station for an alternative education setting. This is entirely inappropriate and is not what is meant by an alternative setting.

On the other hand, in our community we have an exemplary model alternative high school where the children are taught individually, their strengths are utilized, and their dignity kept intact. Some of the at-risk youngsters go onto early graduation and higher education. Also know, that at this time, every child, even if suspended or expelled, is guaranteed a free, appropriate education even if it's within an alternative setting.

Special Education: Services and supports offered under the umbrella of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA. Every child is to receive all services and supports necessary to make meaningful academic progress and to reach his or her full potential.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): The binding special education law for any public school. This act, originally passed over 20 years ago, was just reauthorized in 1997. The new regulations were just issued this spring. So you need to familiarize yourself with what protections you and your child might have under this law. The new law requires the participation of parents in all decisions regarding their child's education.

Free appropriate public education, or FAPE: Memorize this one folks. It's a very common term in special ed and is the driving force behind special education law. Every child is supposed to receive FAPE.

Individualized Education Plan, or IEP: Once a child is evaluated and qualifies for special ed services, a team, which includes the parent, meets to plan the year's program.

The IEP addresses only the areas where the child has a disability. Detailed information is listed as to what this child needs to be successful in a given area. A formal document is written, and with the new law comes a requirement that the child's teachers will all have access to the IEP. In the past, teachers often didn't see the IEP or know of its contents, which rendered it practically useless. I recommend that parents ask teachers if they have a copy and if they've had a chance to familiarize themselves with it. If not, it's wise to set up a brief conference to go over the content.

Parents shouldn't sign the IEP until they've had sufficient time to go over the language and makes sure that it says what was decided verbally at the meeting. Miscommunications are common at IEP meetings, and parents tend to not pay close attention to every detail that's written.

Don't ever hesitate to ask to take a copy home to review overnight. At the same time, I tell parents they have the responsibility to give a speedy answer. If there are portions of the document which you disagreement with, you have the right to write a dissenting opinion and have it attached to the back of the document. Then sign it, and if you want, you might add in parenthesis: "see my attached dissenting opinion". The portions of the IEP that everyone agrees upon go into effect as soon as possible. The portions in disagreement should be worked out promptly between you and the district.

Present Levels of Educational Performance, or PLP, or PLEP: Each year, or more often if necessary, the teachers are responsible for assessing the performance of your child in special education. This description sometimes is very brief, stating only a grade level for a child in a particular area of disability.

In reality, the PLEP should describe the whole child, including the strengths, weaknesses, emotional well-being, the areas of strong interest, and your child's dreams for the future. This is a new, alternative way of writing PLEPs and I understand it's accepted by the U.S. Department of Education as one way to look at the whole child.

I didn't like the idea at first, but after parents tried it, we were all sold on it. The district will bring proposed PLPs to the meeting. You also can write your own proposed PLP to read. It's also great when your child will write their own brief proposed PLP, which can then also be read. The team then joins to make a group decision on what to include in the official PLP.

Annual Goals: Once the PLP is written and reviewed, the team decides where it believes the child could be in a year's time. While it's important to be realistic, very often the abilities are underestimated and no really meaningful progress is expected. Goals should be set that a child can reach if given plenty of support and services during the year.

Short Term Objectives: Once you know where you want your child to be in a year, the team should then break down into steps what it will take to get there. What is the logical first step? What will happen next in that progression? Usually we see at least three or four short-term objectives for each annual goal. They're dated chronologically, so that the team knows when each objective should be mastered in order to meet that annual goal.