Collection of progress is important and can help accomplish two things:
1. Determine if the activities being developed for the child are developmentally appropriate.
2. Determine if the objectives are developmentally appropriate.
A system is needed to monitor progress of a child with an IEP. The system is usually created or set up by the professional. What ever system that is used shows two things: progress being made or progress not being made. If progress is being made, the activities seem to be working and are appropriate. If progress is not being made, it is obvious something has to be done. It could be the activities or it could be the objectives. From the progress chart, the professional can make adjustments as necessary to the activities being provided to the child.
The same goes with the objectives. Collection of progress on an IEP can give the professional an indication of whether or not the objectives are appropriate. The text states, “Children should be able to demonstrate proficiency performance or 80% accuracy one on objective before moving to the next.” When a system is set up to measure that particular objective, it let’s the professional know if the objective is too hard or inappropriate for the child based on their progress performance.
Reference:
Cook, Ruth E., Klein M. Diane, & Tessier, Annette. (2008). Adapting Early Childhood Curricula for Children with Special Needs (7th Edition). Columbus, OH: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Yes, I agree that the data collected can help us determine if the activities are appropriate as well as whether the objectives are appropriate. It may be that the activities are either not addressing the specific objectives, or they may not be implemented with enough frequency, or they may be too challenging or not challenging enough. It is through data collection that we can see whether there is a mismatch somewhere along the way.
ReplyDeleteData collection is very important! A teacher can learn a lot based on their own observation collections. If a teacher has monitoring forms that obviously show the child is not learning their goals, the teacher can look at other ways to implement the goals and ask others for suggestions on how to help the child with particular goals. Teachers should always look at other teachers for suggestions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment about progress monitoring as a tool to see what doesn't work regarding the IEP goals, I made the same point in my post. It is important for the teacher and professionals working with the child to monitor the goals and "regroup" to set new goals, call in new professionals or provide adaptive equipment, or maybe even change the educational setting if needed.
ReplyDelete