IEP Accommodations, Modifications, and the Fine Line

Dr. Sarah Pelangka, special education advocate and owner of KnowIEPs, explains the differences between accommodations and modifications and why it's important to know these differences during this Undivided Learning event.

Check out the recap here, and see the full transcript below.

Lindsay Crain
Welcome to Undivided Learning! Today we'll be talking about some essential elements of accessibility for our children: accommodations, modifications, and the fine line between the two. And what are the implications when that line is crossed? We're going to find out.

I’m Lindsay Crain and I head the content and community teams at Undivided. With me today we welcome back educational advocate, owner of Know IEPs and lucky for us a frequent contributor to undivided Dr. Sarah Pelangka. Sarah, good to see you as always.

Dr. Sarah Pelangka
Hi, everyone. Happy to be here. This is our first one together.

LC
That's right. Yeah. 2022 has already felt eternal. Happy new year.

So Dr. Pelangka, accommodations and modifications. So these terms are frequently used interchangeably or incorrectly sometimes. So can you explain the basic difference between the two and give us some common examples of each?

Dr. P
Yeah, so I think the kind of overarching word is adaptations, right? So how can instruction be adapted and the underlying goal being that how can it be adapted to ensure that the student is able to access the general education curriculum? And so accommodations are less intrusive, right? And that would be changing how the student is accessing the curriculum. It's not changing what they're learning but it's changing how they are showing that they understand what's being taught to them, basically, and it can also be accommodating how the instruction is presented to them or the content is presented to them, but it's not changing what is being presented to them whereas modifications would, in some way, shape or form, be altering either the instruction or how the student is responding. There's input and output, right, how it's being taught, the curriculum. So it's changing what the student is learning in some way, shape, or form. So we have accommodating: changing how they're accessing same content, modifying: changing what that content is, if that makes sense.

03:22 LC
Yeah, I think it would be really helpful if you could give us a scenario using an accommodation and then explain, you know, what would have to happen for that to cross the line and become a modification?

Dr. P
Yeah, so hopefully in my mind this is an easy one. But you know, oftentimes, there's, for instance, reading or access to a novel that's being read or studied in a class. So an example of an accommodation could be that instead of reading that book, you know, to themselves, they may have an audiobook or they may have it read aloud to them. Whereas a modification would be they have a modified version of that text, maybe it's, you know, shorter chapters, and it's really just getting straight to the point, the main idea of the text. And so that's really the difference between how you can accommodate access to that content and that novel versus completely modifying access to that content in that novel.

LC
So what if a student receives a reduced workload and the option to present the work in a different way meaning audio or voice to text versus written, but the course level content is grade level and unchanged? Is that an accommodation?

Dr. P
So hopefully I'm following, and I will give you guys a fact about me. My listening comprehension is not great.

LC
And I talk fast!

Dr. P
A second part of the question you said was if they can, I think, dictate or hear it, those are accommodations. So an another example of a common accommodation is for a student who maybe struggles with writing, be it handwriting or typing, just getting the thoughts out in a written form. They can have a scribe, so they can dictate their response to a scribe or they can have speech to text, they can dictate their response to the computer. I think that was part of the question. The first part, can you repeat that again?

LC
It was the reduced workload. Yes, and that was really the only extra.

Dr. P
So reduce workload can kind of go either way. So a common accommodation, I would say a frequent reduced workload accommodation would be like in math, you'll see, you know, maybe every other problem or only the odd problems, only the even and so what we really try to with my clients encompassing and capture is ensuring that the student has access to every type of problem. Because sometimes at the bottom, there's only one extra word problem and then if they have every other, they don't get the word problem at all, for example. So as long as the student is accessing all types of content and showing and reflecting that they can produce, you know, understanding or mastery of all of the content, but say they're doing fewer problems, that's an accommodation whereas if they have a reduced workload, and they're not being asked to reflect mastery of all of the standards, right, or the content, that would be a modification. So does that make sense? I just feel like reduced workload is like a broad statement. So there is a modified version and an accommodated version if that makes sense.

LC
It does make sense and if anybody has any follow-up questions, just throw those in the chat if any of that didn't make sense, or you want any clarifications, and I know we'll get to some more examples in a bit. And feel free to throw any examples you want in the chat because I think I know it helps me. I think it helps a lot of people to sort of talk through the real-world scenarios. But I did want to jump in first on accommodations. So what are some of the most common accommodations that you've seen used to ensure that a child can access their curriculum?

Dr. P
Yeah, again, a pretty big question. There's, I think, a plethora of pretty common, “standard” if you will, accommodations that you kind of see across most IEPs, preferential seating or seated near the teacher to maybe ensure the student is less distracted. Another common one would be like the reduced workload, extended response time or increased verbal response time, extended time on tests, extended time on assignments. You know, access to movement breaks or access to breaks, frequent breaks. Those are all you know, pretty common ones. Others under teacher directions that I see often: frequent checks for understanding directions presented in a variety of ways. You know, pairing the visual with the verbal directive, again, audiobook, scribe, access to manipulatives. All of these things are not changing what the student is learning, but they're changing how the student is able to access that content. And some of those examples I really, when I have, you know, my clients like to highlight making sure that they're worded really specifically, like for extended time, you know, how much time? To make sure that teachers are really translating that and understanding what that means and it's not subjective, you know, if they need extended verbal response time again, how much time are we expecting the teacher to wait? One teacher might wait 2 seconds and one teacher might wait 10 seconds. So what are we expecting? That's important information. Movement breaks: are these for a sensory need or is it you know, what is the purpose and what should those look like? So you know, the standard drop down, kind of accommodation that comes up isn't necessarily always going to be individualized for that particular student's needs. So really making sure that they're as subjective as possible, and that they really clearly articulate kind of the purpose of that accommodation.

And I think another thing, sorry I'm kind of going off on a tangent, but making sure they never say “as needed,” as needed should never be written into an IEP. It should be clear, like, when is it needed or should it always be accessible, right? Because then again, that's subjectiv, who's to determine when it's needed? And lastly, another common kind of mishap, that's not the right word I'm trying to think of right now, but maybe confusion is, is the student responsible for requesting the accommodation or is the teacher supposed to be the one to offer the accommodation? And so looking for that in your IEP as well? Does it say upon student request? And if so, if that's not the intent, because there are students who need to start learning to self-advocate, especially in the higher grades, then really making sure you correct that in the IEP if that's not what the expectation is.

LC
You have a child maybe who is nervous or they don't know how or they don't know why, we don't want someone else, a teacher coming back and say, Well, they didn’t ask.

Dr. P
Exactly. And that happens all the time.

LC
We also had a follow up to something you said before, but I think it goes in here perfectly. Someone asked regarding word problems which you had mentioned, if someone is helping them break it down, is that a modification?

Dr. P
Regarding word problems, like for example, the math word problem, if someone is prompting them or chunking, maybe chunking it? Is that a modification? No. I mean, again, if we're talking about during the work piece, like during assignments and working through, if they just need that kind of guidance, and they're still producing the work on their own, and they're still, you know, doing the same content that the rest of the class is doing, it's not modified, it would be accommodated, maybe they need redirection, or they need it chunked, or they they need, you know, highlighting of keywords, but ultimately, working towards being able to do it independently. Yeah, I don't consider that a modification per se. And again, that's listed in your accommodation drop down, you know, redirection to task, chunking, prompting.

LC
I would love to know some of the most unique accommodations that you've seen. And if anyone out there has any, you know, anything that's worked in your child's IEP, I think it's good for all of us to hear, you know, of course, everything's individualized, but like, you know, throw it in the chat window. We'd love to hear, but Dr. Pelangka, some of the things maybe the parents don't automatically think about when thinking about accommodations that they should.

Dr. P
Some of the most unique or I would say maybe more individualized is the better word. I don't know, I think obviously it always depends on the student. But you know, we add things in like, obviously, self-monitoring visuals. And again, usually it just says self-monitoring checklist and it's more specific to what the purpose is, so self-monitoring for response, raising their hand or you know, whatever that is, organization. Organizational visuals at the student's desk or an organizational system is one that sometimes is used and can be helpful. Also agenda checks with teacher initials so that parents know when they're getting those home that it's correct, because they don't know if what their student is writing is accurate or not. And nowadays, with things being more online on like Canvas and Google Classroom, just having like the directed studies teacher be responsible for verifying that the student has that, you know, correctly. Either a photograph of it or written down.

That’s another one you can put in the accommodations pages, students allowed to take photos of like the assignments due in each class. That's kind of, I guess, a unique one. Allowing the student to have earbuds in is one that could be considered unique. That could be like a calming strategy, especially for kids that have like ADD, sometimes just having that mechanism helps them actually to focus where sometimes teachers think it's the opposite, right? And there was another one in my head and now I'm forgetting it. There's so many, but really just looking at whatever your student needs in order to be successful and accessing but the least amount necessary, and also ensuring that you know if accommodations are needed to ensure access, or I'm sorry, to ensure the student can meet their goals that those specific accommodations are also translated into the goal. So that it's clear that whenever they're tracking data and progress on that goal, the student should have always had those things accessible to them while they're tracking that data, because, you know, you'll hear districts or the team say a lot of times, well, that's already on the accommodations page. But if it's also written into the goals specific for that goal you're targeting, then it really holds the staff accountable for really making sure they had the highlighters when they were working on identifying the main idea. And they had the graphic organizer, and they had, you know, whatever else they need while we were looking at their performance on this skill and tracking this data.

LC
That’s a great point. I mean for so many things, you know, supports, accommodations recommended the goals, so it's very clear. We also had somebody just want clarification, can you get modifications as part of 504s or only with IEP?

Dr. P
That’s a good question. Accommodations are primarily what 504 covers. Sometimes you can actually get standalone services on the 504 as well. So like counseling, for example, but modifications wouldn't be part of the 504 plan— that would come to strictly through an IEP.

LC
But how can parents envision what's possible or really what their kids need? You know, when we're not therapists, like the things you're saying, they make sense, but how, what can parents do to really figure out, or should the IEP team come with all of those ideas in their head?

Dr. P
Yeah, so there's definitely not an all-encompassing menu, but there are a number of sites out there that actually have a pretty extensive list of accommodations and different types of accommodations. I know out here for our SELPA in Ventura County, the IEP template actually breaks it down across six different types of accommodations, if you will, so it has teacher directions, student response, you know, personal care, setting, organization. And when you go into the IEP, there actually are dropdowns that you can ask them to go through so you can see all the different items that they could potentially put in there, but it's definitely not all exhaustive. And I've actually had IEP teams tell me, Oh, well, that's not in the drop-down so we can't add that, and I literally had to say well, actually you can type into it.

LC
Functionally and, you know, legally.

Dr. P
But an accommodation, again, it's really just based on, I mean, you always at the end of the day know your child best, better than any specialists out there. So yes, it's true that you may not know all the fancy jargon or the terminology, but you know your child, and so if there's ever something you think could potentially help them to access, just throw it out there like hey, what about something like this? And it’s definitely worth starting a discussion as to whether or not it is an accommodation, maybe it's a modification and maybe that's not what you're wanting, but at least you know, any ideas you have just throw them out there. And like I said, there's a number of websites out there if you just type in you know, sample accommodations and a number of great books as well.

LC
So we're talking about the difference between the two, and the really important question is, you know, what are the implications of having classwork modified?

Dr. P
So the difference between the two again is just changing how they're able to show their knowledge or how they are able to access the content versus accessing something different altogether. And so when you're talking about modifying, you're really talking about changing what the student is learning at that point. And so there's definitely like milder, you know, modifications, if you will, that maybe aren't even necessarily going to be in place long term. And so, an example of that, you know, could be like using a calculator for calculation, you know, and ultimately, maybe they won't need to do that. But for now, it's just something that they need to access, so it's not necessarily the case that if your child's work is being modified, it means like that they're, you know, the gap is going to widen and they're never going to get caught up for sure, and it's just going to get bigger and bigger. However, I do think that once modifications start to occur, the likelihood of that happening is much higher, right? Because it is changing what your child is accessing in terms of, you know, content. And so there are different types of modifications. You know, are we talking about modifying curriculum, are we talking about modifying the instruction? You know, are we talking about altering completely the curriculum? So, I think, you know, it depends on kind of the pervasiveness of the modification, but the earlier it happens, the higher the likelihood that it can be harder for your child to stay caught up and to be able to continue to access general education curriculum. And so I always say, and I know, Lindsay, I've said this to you many times that whenever those conversations occur, be that you know, first grade, second grade, simultaneously, I think parents should be warned that if we're talking about a severe or a significant change to like a completely modified altered curriculum, know that should that continue, you know, through higher grades, that we could potentially be looking at a difference between diploma and certificate of completion, and I think too often parents aren't aware of that, you know, piece of the discussion, and then it does become the case that oh, now we're in high school and I had no idea that you know, that that could not be a possibility anymore.

LC
And when you're talking about the different levels of modifications, does it matter if it's modified curriculum, or if it's a temporary modification, do all of those have the same implications as like, and we'll get a little more into the graduation requirements later, but if any of those modifications and you're getting those in high school, does that mean you're not going to earn a diploma?

Dr. P
No, absolutely not. So it's definitely, you know, possible for students to be in general education and have, you know, smaller level modifications to their curriculum and only even maybe in just one subject, right. So maybe their struggle is really mostly with math, for example. And so, maybe then the rest of the class is already working on division. And for you know, for math, your child is still kind of working on multiplication. So that's technically modified. They're not working on, you know, necessarily the same standard as the rest of the class. Maybe they're a grade level behind at this point, but they're still able to remain in the class on a little, you know, modified work with, you know, the possibility that they still may be able to catch up and whatnot and so, absolutely not, it's possible for students to have modifications, and you know, not necessarily then not be able to access like a diploma, later on, you know, maybe they get to a point where they no longer need those modification.

LC
And if you need the modifications in elementary and middle school, it's not affecting anything, right. Like you said, the gap. I mean, the results of if you're not, you know, getting access to grade level standards, you know, throughout the years is obviously going to have, you know, a huge ripple effect, but legally, it really matters once they get into high school, right?

Dr. P
So yes and no, I think it depends, again, on the level of the modification. So there's a difference between, sorry, it’s my dog! There’s a difference between talking about a student in elementary school, like I said, who's in general education and is just working on maybe accessing the grade level standards but with not a grade level book or versus a student in elementary school that's being placed on a completely alternate curriculum. And so I would argue that when that happens, which is a much more significant level of modification, being on an alternate curriculum or a functional skills curriculum, whatever your district refers to it, as there's a much higher likelihood that that gap is going to widen much quicker. And I do think that, you know, parents need to be aware that it's going to be really challenging for your child to be able to close that gap if they continue on that road by the time they're in high school, and then you cannot access a diploma, if you're not able to, you know, reflect mastery of grade-level standards and access the grade-level curriculum at that point. Does that make sense?

LC
It does make sense and I will follow up in just a minute. But I wanted to also just really touch on something that you said a minute ago about a lot of parents are approached in their IEPs when their kids are maybe kindergarten, sometimes first and second grade, second grade, especially third as they're starting to test, and districts are pushing them to be on a certificate track at that age. So what do you recommend parents do even if they don't know if that's going to be a possibility for their child? You know, they're uncomfortable, right? You know, even if that feeling, what do you recommend parents do?

Dr. P
So I don't think that districts should be, you know, saying to parents, we need to make that decision now, in kindergarten, first grade, second grade. I don't think that's the appropriate time to have the discussion, just so you know, we need to make a choice between the certificate tech track or the diploma track what I do think should be happening is if the team the school-based team is recommending a move to an alternate curriculum that early on, that they explain the potential implications of that, that your child is not going to be accessing general education curriculum. This is what the curriculum is going to look like, you know, a common curriculum, a popular one that you see is like Unique, and I'm constantly asking in the IEP, knowing the answer, okay, so when we're looking at present levels, what grade level is the student at like, in compare, you know, what grade level content are they accessing? And that's one of the big problems with Unique is it's not based on grade level, it's strands and so it's not a, you know, anyways, I digress. That's a whole separate conversation.

But point being, if they're not working towards any specific grade level, then what does that speak to in terms of what your child is doing at school and in the classroom, right, and if you can't tell the parent what grade level they're performing at, or what grade level content they're accessing, and what are they doing in the classroom, and how are they ever going to be able to have the opportunity to catch up? So if that's starting to happen as early as kindergarten, first, and second grade, then I think the bigger concern is, you know, or question in parents minds is and should be, if it's not, is what are we doing to ensure that my child is going to be able to work towards, you know, accessing that grade level curriculum, and not just giving up on that child and just kind of saying, Well, this is where we're putting them and this is where they're going to stay, because if there is no expectation of them to continue to work towards those standards, and/or, you know, okay, let's say your child's in fourth grade, but they're at first grade right now, and they can't tell you after they move them to you know, the functional skills class, now she's at second grade or she's, you know, maybe a year’s growth, and they're just saying, well, she's in this strand, that's not really, you know, it's not really showing that they're working towards any substantial progress. And so the gap widens. And it widens significantly.

I just feel like, you know, the law says that, you know, students have the right to be in their least restrictive environment and moving them to a completely different curriculum, and which is obviously now at that point, generally, a separate environment, it's an SAI class, is pretty restrictive, and then you're taking away that students opportunity to really work towards the opportunity to be in a diploma track ultimately one day because the expectations are lessened. And that's not fair to the student. And definitely the earlier that happens, it's just, it's hard. And I feel like everything should be done. Well, I don't feel like, the law says: everything should be done before we get to that point, right. And I just think that's where it becomes hard for parents is how do they know that everything has already been done? Right? How do they know what else could be done? That's the hard part.

In second grade. I hardly think of everything you know, for most kids has been done.

LC
Do you think that that happens frequently because staff and teachers aren't properly trained to know how to modify and include kids that might have more significant support needs, and so it's an easier thing to say, we're gonna put you on, you know, we're gonna put you on this different track, instead of supporting you at grade-level standards, you know, in all the ways that are possible?

Dr. P
Well, absolutely. I mean, I think that's a loaded question. I think there's a lot of reasons it happens, and I think that I don't think putting the onus on the teachers necessarily is fair, because I think what about their credentialing programs, right? Why are we not having gen ed, teachers, teacher candidates, and SpEd teacher candidates in the same program from the get go and doing the same stuff and so they're all exposed to the same stuff? Like that's been a question in my mind since I did my credential. Some of the things I heard from gen ed teacher candidates when we went in and recorded them an “IEP student” was just mind blowing. And I thought in my head oh my god, these people are going to be teachers and they just said that. I think it starts from there. I think it starts obviously from funding, the lack of ability and access to training and just time, right now with COVID, everything is just a mess. You know, there's just so many factors.

I also think, to your point a moment ago about third grade and state testing, if you're, you know, have kids in gen ed classes, and doing state testing, and that's a reflection of the reviews of the schools, you know, that speaks to a lot of it too, as far as timing, oftentimes, when we start to see this recommendation for pushing these kids out because what happens with state testing when students are on an alternate curriculum? Generally they are then moved to an alternate state test. And so it shows a lot of interesting factors right.

LC
When my daughter entered third grade, other parents just warned me, like this conversation might start coming up in your IEP, and you talk to a lot of parents in the same situation. And that's when it comes to know that conversation come up, but in no way do you have to make a decision when the child is that young. If you want them learning the state standards, they can do that with accommodations or modifications, whatever is appropriate for them.

Dr. P
Yeah. Inclusion specialists, I mean, that should be like a position that every district has on deck, at least one. Most should have more than one and it's like unheard of. I mean, there's just a lot of factors that I think could help.

LC
And it’s important for us to continue talking about them just because everyone needs to start having a conversation and pushing for change. And also there seems to be a lot of assumptions, obviously, you know, we're hitting on a lot of myths about modifications. And standard practice can be stated like it's fact or law, when in fact it's really just a bad dangerous habit. So we'd like to clear up some of these assumptions. And so we're gonna play a little game of true and false. So if you're listening, write your answers in the chat window and then Dr. Pelangka is going to tell us why these are true or false, common things that we hear. So something that you know, we've already kind of touched on alternate curriculum.

So some think that you can only receive modifications if you're on an alternate curriculum, is true or false?

Dr. P
False. Am I supposed to elaborate or just say so?

LC
Yes, yes, elaborate, please.

Dr. P
You can have modifications in general education class when you're, like I said earlier, they can be minor modifications, like having access to a calculator during math. So no, that's false. My dog’s going to start barking. And you know, again, in our SELPA, on our template, and really in any IEP, the team is supposed to go through the hierarchy of placement, and the least restrictive would be placement in a general education classroom with you know, modifications or accommodations, consult, collabs. So, no, that's false.

LC
Sadly, something frequently I know a lot of parents hear. Okay, next if you're if classwork or homework is modified, you're automatically on certificate, true or false.

Dr. P
If your classwork or homework is modified, I would say no, false because again, modifications don't necessarily stay in place indefinitely.

It could be some sort of minor modification, but as long as the student is able to pass the course with a passing grade, and they're, you know, meeting whatever the requirements are for passing that course,

and working towards whatever the diploma standards are, then they would be able to access a diploma. They still have to show that they are able to master the grade level standards and that they're able to complete whatever the requirements are for the diploma, but you can still have modifications and be able to do that.

LC
I know we’ve said that several times but it’s important for people to hear. So if you're in a mild to moderate special ed class, that means your work is modified and you will be certificate bound. True or false?

Dr. P
No. False. Mild to moderate, and again terms are not necessarily always the same across districts and states, but here when we refer to mild to moderate classes, that's a general education curriculum, just at a slower pace, you know, a smaller class size. Obviously student has access to any necessary accommodations, and they may have some you know, again, minor modifications, but the curriculum itself, meaning the curriculum they're accessing, is still the general education curriculum. So students who are in high school who may be in a mild to moderate SAI class would still be on a diploma track.

LC
Really, really important thing to point out. And what about, you know, I hate these labels, but that's the call a lot at schools, so what about the mod to severe or the life skills class?

Dr. P
So that, is that a true false question?

LC
No, that was a follow-up question.

Dr. P
That would be what we would refer to again here as the moderate to severe classroom that would be on an alternate curriculum. I'm assuming you're referring to in high school would not be diploma bound. That is not access to general education curriculum, therefore, they wouldn't be working towards the requirements for a diploma just merely due to the fact that they aren't accessing that or being asked to produce that level of work in those classes. Does that make sense?

LC
Yeah. I think it's also important to point out– What's your dog's name, Sarah?

Dr. P
Koa.

LC
Koa likes to talk during our Facebook Lives as well. Koa wanted to join, that’s great. But I think it's also important to point out that if a child starts like in a mod to severe class in elementary, and I know a lot of parents that are fighting to get them out into a different class, obviously, just because they’re starting, and we’ve talked about the longer they're off, they're going to be behind because they’re not being given access. But just because you're starting there, if you don't want your child to be there, you can fight, you can make sure they are getting grade level standards in whatever way they can. So just because you're starting there, don’t think there’s no hope.

Dr. P
Yeah, definitely. You can always fight for your child. That’s not to say you can just go into the meeting and make it change like that. In the state of California it is an IEP team decision, things cannot happen without your consent, but I always express to parents that when something does happen, in order to undo that, if you will, it also requires their consent, right, unless you end up in due process or what have you. So that's again, well, I think parents just need to be as informed as possible and know as much as possible before that change happens because unfortunately, I do see in my work that it's harder to go back than it is to put students in those placements. Not to say that it's not possible, but it does require the team’s consent.

LC
Of course. By the way, Koa is getting some shout outs in the Facebook comments. It’s going to make everyone’s day better, look at that face. Okay, another true and false. If you receive modified grades, you can’t earn a diploma. True or false?

Dr. P
True, if I understand, you're receiving a modified report card or you're being graded. And this frustrates me the way this is kind of worded in the law. But basically if your child is in a function skills class or whatever the district refers to it as, the law kind of leaves it up to the district as far as how things will be graded. And I’ve seen things like graded on effort, like what does that even mean, that they’re there so they pass? Or graded on fewer standards. There’s different options. It’s really frustrating, I feel, and I feel like our law has to kind of be beefed up as far as what are we holding these educators accountable for in terms of what they’re educating our children in and on, and also what are the expectations of our children? They should still be graded, and they should still be held accountable, and they should still be going to school and learning.

And so yeah, unfortunately if your child is receiving a modified or alternate report card, I'm assuming that's what you mean, they would not be on the deployment track because again, you have to be able to meet the grade level standards and pass all the necessary requirements to access a diploma.

LC
If your work is being heavily modified, and you're in a gen ed class, are you automatically put on an alternate report card and you still earn a diploma even if your work is being heavily modified?

Dr. P
Well, if your work is being heavily modified in a gen ed class, you would probably not. I mean, I don't know that would be a discussion up to to the team. I think it depends on are they still working towards grade level standards? So again, are they in a high school class, let's say high school English gen ed class, and this class is working on, oh gosh, I'm not going to use the right texts, The Hunger Games, which I know is not the high school level text, but let's just pretend it is and that your child has an abridged version of that, you know, kind of a less intensive version of it, fewer words much shorter, but they're still able to, you know, show that they understand the story and maybe they also listened to the audiobook with that. I think that could be open for discussion as far as whether or not they're able to receive and pass the class. It just depends on how much modifications are occurring. Sorry, I don't I don't know that there's a black and white answer. And it just depends.

LC
When you said before about, you know, are they getting a modified grade on effort, is there something that parents should think about if they're, if their children, maybe the team is talking about modifying grades? Is there language that parents should consider putting in about what they are getting graded on so there is still a standard?

Dr. P
Yeah, I think, you know, in our meetings where I have those discussions, we always obviously push to have the student graded on, you know, obviously their goals should be considered and making sure the goals are written to show substantial growth. And obviously, it's a case by case basis, but not just life skills. There's social growth and there's academic growth and that depends on the family too, what their priorities are for their child as far as their education, but definitely putting in language as far as what you want that grading to be based off of. So like out here, there's a drop down. And so I always make sure it's personally never on effort and that there's some higher level of expectation for the students. So we usually put fewer standards or modified standards. But I think every other district I've seen actually doesn't have that and they just type it in. And so that can be frustrating. And so as a parent, or if you have your advocate, definitely pushing for and ask how is my child being graded? What are they being graded on? When you're receiving the report card, if it's an alternate report card, or whatever your district calls it, you know, making sure you're kind of questioning that and asking for data. I love data. So show me the data that supports this grade, you know, what is this grade based off of? What is your child producing? What are they doing while they're at school, particularly if they're, you know, on an alternate report card, right?

LC
And we also had a parent ask, she said how you know how should teachers grade our child if they received, you know, modifications or accommodations? She said their teachers regularly struggle with how to grade amidst the unadapted work of other kids.

Dr. P
So accommodations should never reflect an alternate or any type of modified report card whatsoever. So there's that piece. Accommodations don't change that your child is working towards the same standards, nor does it change the curriculum that your child is working on. So they should receive a regular report card if we're just talking about accommodations.

LC
I think the intent, we got another question about this as well, is gen ed teachers who really feel like maybe getting this favor there, even if it's an accommodation, that they're getting something other kids aren't, and so they struggle with how to grade that child.

Dr. P
So the legal answer is the IEP dictates what type of report card your child should be receiving, and it should state in the IEP that they're on a regular report card and/or that they're on regular district criteria for promotion and retention. So you can say to the gen ed teacher, My child should be receiving a regular report card, and they should have access to these accommodations, and these accommodations shouldn't be bringing their grades down in any way. This is what my child needs and has their legal right to access in order to access what you're teaching in your classroom. However, I do understand, and I see it all the time in meetings, and I appreciate actually when gen ed teachers ask these questions and speak up because it shows that they are involved. You know, maybe they want to understand better because again, if we go back to the credentialing program, they're not getting access to what your special ed teachers are, and so oftentimes they don't know. So I always hold the case manager accountable too. How was this communicated to my child's teacher? Have you gone in and reviewed this page with them? Have you given examples of how these accommodations can and should be implemented and when and where? Affording the teacher opportunities to ask those questions, to practice, or to reach out to you. The case managers is still supposed to be, particularly when your child is primarily in ged ed classes, they're still responsible for ensuring the IEP is being implemented. So, unfortunately, again, right now due to COVID there's so many shortages, and it’s really hard, but it’s not an excuse. We have to hold that relationship accountable in making sure that it’s happening, and it’s even harder when you get to middle school and high school because that’s six teachers, not just one, and so really making sure you’re checking in and asking what are those conversations looking like? How is it going? Do my child’s teacher’s understand when and where and how these accommodations should be happening?

LC
Another true or false about A to G classes. In California, A to G classes are graduation classes, you know classes that are going to help you earn a diploma. So you can’t take an A to G class if you require modifications. True or false?

Dr. P
A quick correction, so A to G requirements are required for students who want to go to a four-year university.

LC
That was going to be my follow-up too.

Dr. P
You can still get a diploma, but you don’t necessarily have the like A through G level diploma if you will. A through G courses again, same answer as before: as long as the student is performing at the level that would be required of the general student and they're showing the same level of understanding for the standards and they're passing the class, it may be minor modifications, yes they can achieve a diploma. But when it changes the standards for the expectation, that's when we talk about shifting to not a diploma if they aren't able to pass that class.

LC
But a child still can actually be in a class even if you're getting modifications, they can't earn the credit towards graduation, but they can still actually be in the class.

Dr. P
Oh yeah. Yeah, there’s a difference between being in a class, so of course.

LC
A friend of mine just reached out the other day because her IEP team was saying that her son with Down syndrome couldn’t be in an A to G class because he has modified work, so they weren’t even going to let him be in the class. So sadly, and that’s something, and I think even the high school that we have, they used to say the same thing, so it’s important for parents to know again, if you are modifying your child's work, they still can be in those classes. But then the expectation after might be different. Is that right?

Dr. P
Yeah, and I guess I would just say too, so when we talk about higher classes and AP classes, just the class, if the student wouldn't be able to access the much higher rigor and pace of you know the higher class or the AP class, but they still want to be in the gen ed or or obviously have the right to be in the gen ed class if that’s what the IEP team decides, they’re probably not going to put them in the AP version, but they can be in the regular version of those classes, it just wouldn't make sense. I think that's definitely a point of discussion, and then when you get to like AP classes, then you're talking about college credit too. So you cannot modify that piece because modifications don't happen in college, only accommodations. So I think that's where it also gets a little tricky, but just general, general education level classes, absolutely. Just like elementary and middle.

LC
Two follow ups to that, first clarification. What does a student need to, what are the differences with certificate, diploma can make? Because I know there are certain things you have to get for four years to be eligible for a four year college. And I think maybe different is it for a two year college or community college and then there's vocational school as well or are there any differences in what a child has to earn? Can a student go on to any of those options if they don't earn a diploma?

Dr. P
Yes, if I understand your question correctly, so a couple of things, students don't have to acquire a diploma, they can acquire a certificate of completion and still go on to a community college. And I think I think I was talking with you, maybe it was Lexi. But there are also universities now, I want to say UC Davis was the first of its kind, where there actually there's a four year program and even dorm life and all of that for students with significant intellectual impairment. And so opportunities are definitely opening up and shifting, which is exciting. But you do not need a diploma in order to continue on to college. There are definitely, and again, even for students who are on an alternate curriculum and may, you know, be on that functional life skills curriculum, if you will, again, there are now a number of colleges that are specifically catering to that population of students, and there are more opportunities for them to go on to that college, college life.

LC
In a specific program. Is there any difference? This is just in the back of my head, but so anybody, it doesn't matter if you get a certificate or diploma, that's what you said, right, to go on to a community college? Any student, right? So then the only difference is getting those graduation requirements if you could go to like UCLA or if you go to the UCLA program, possibly for students with intellectual disabilities if you don’t have your diploma.

Dr. P
Right.

LC
Okay. Great. Now, one other thing, what when you're saying, you know, absolutely. If your child needs modifications, they can be in a gen ed in class. However, it's something often that IEP teams say, you know, as we've discussed, that can happen, what can a parent say to their IEP team if they're saying sorry, you know, you have to go into this, like, what are some tips that parents can take into that IEP if they're being told their child can't be included because they received modifications?

Dr. P
So ultimately, what it comes down to and what the law says is the least restrictive environment is the environment in which the child is as close to their gen ed peers as possible. And that the child or the student is making significant progress on their goals. The law does not say that in order for a student to be or remain in a gen ed class that they have to be able to access general education curriculum. So what parents should be referring to and looking at is progress on goals and also making sure that their goals are written to ensure that your child is making substantial progress, and so what I should say school based teams like to kind of point out or refer to, at least what I see, you know, in my experience is you know, let's say Bobby is just, he can't identify his letters, he’s already in second grade. We're working on you know, reading and he's still working on letter sounds and letter identification, and if he keeps in general education, he's just not going to be able to learn, and we don't feel that it's fair to him to not be able to make that progress. And if he were in a smaller setting, yada yada yada, right? That's kind of what parents hear, whereas if we look at Bobby's goals, did I say Bobby, was that the name? He is making progress, and he's meeting all of his goals, that’s what the parents argument should be. Well, I understand that he's going to be behind and honestly, more than likely he's going to continue to be behind. However, you must have been doing a great job Mrs. Smith because he met his goal this year. And not only did he meet it, he exceeded it, so that tells us a great setting and he is learning and not to mention socially, he is surrounded by these great peers who also love to play with Bobby and they're including Bobby and he's learning through his peer models. Social emotional is a huge piece, right, to inclusion. And part of, you know, just the reason I believe why LRE is written the way that it is.

And so school isn't just about academic growth, and that's the reason why the IEP includes social emotional as part of, you know, the IEP in and of itself. So parents just have to kind of highlight those pieces and really look at the progress on goals. If your child is progressing substantially, if we're talking about 5% growth, 10% growth, maybe it isn't the right placement, or maybe they aren't, you know, doing all of what they're supposed to be doing. But if they are progressing, and they're making substantial growth, in their goals, that is what the law says is the least restrictive environment.

LC
And I know we've touched on testing, sort of in and out, there's a lot of questions about testing and some clarifications. So I wanted to jump to those. How do I advocate for my child differently when he or she starts third grade? Because we kind of talked about that testing in third grade, I'm referring to the state tests. What should I add to his IEP to address to address the state tests?

Dr. P
So again, kind of a broad question, but I will just say, state testing doesn't start until third grade, so that's when you'll see it introduced as part of the IEP. There's a whole page, and so it's called the CAS, or Smarter Balance, but in the IEP it says CAS, so there's language arts or English, math and science, and PE eventually. They don't all start in the same grades. And so, on that page, if they are taking the same test as their gen ed peers, that page will express what accommodations your child will have access to. And it's important to know that whatever accommodations are reflected on that page, and that should be written in the IEP as well. But oftentimes, the school team misses this too.

Like let's say you want your child to have a calculator, but they don't have a calculator every day in class. That can't happen. Like they can only have what they need if they need that on the daily. Does that make sense? So you need to make sure those pages match. Again, there's a drop down, and you can ask to see that if you're not sure. There's so many accommodations for the test. So just ask to look through them so you're more educated, but realistically, if you find something on that page, and you're like, whoa, I didn't know this was a thing, make sure your child has it on the other page so they can have it in class too. If you're talking about modifications to testing, that would be an alternate state test, which is the CAA, California alternate assessment, and that's that's for students who have a significant intellectual impairment and basically when a student is placed on an alternate curriculum or functional skills curriculum, the recommendation is made that to switch it to the CAA. And so that test is already heavily modified. And you know, again, accommodations can be noted, but it's pretty much kind of embedded.

LC
If a student does qualify for the CAA, does that automatically mean does they can’t earn a diploma? Does the testing have anything to do with what happens at school?

Dr. P
Well, I guess I would say if the student is diploma bound and they're capable of accessing or obtaining a diploma, I should say then there's no reason they should ever be taking the CAA. So I guess that would be my answer to that. It’s specifically intended for students who have pretty significant intellectual impairment and wouldn't be able to, like the state test just really wouldn't be an accurate reflection of their true ability.

LC
There was this question, are the requirements for the certificate of completion outlined by the state department of ed, the district, or the individual IEP?

Dr. P
Yeah, okay. So I'll kind of answer it in two parts. So the kind of requirements as far as what's required to earn a certificate of completion, it can be found on the California Department of Education website, as can also could be found that the diploma. That didn't come out in proper English, but you know what I mean. The diploma requirements as well, that would be dictated from the CDE. Who determines if a student should be on a certificate track versus a diploma track is an IEP team decision.

LC
And I know we are we are coming up on time. So there's so many things, so many other questions that I'd like to get to, but I think an important thing to cover is how can a family ensure, like if they want their child to have accommodations, they want to make sure that nothing's happening at school, that this isn't a surprise, right? That oh, all of a sudden they show up with the idea that we’ve been modifying everything for your child? How can a family, you know, how can a team ensure that a child is only receiving accommodations if that's what they're shooting for? What can a parent request for the IEP?

Dr. P
So modifications should never occur unless it's written into the IEP and the parent has consented to that, that's point number one, and I will say what you just shared, I've seen happen where we get to a meeting and I'm like, wait a second, why did the teacher just say, you know, he's been receiving modified, you know, coursework or classwork, or why does it stay on the accommodations page modified classwork? So, again, sometimes I will say to be fair, teachers use the terms interchangeably and they may actually be accommodating and just calling and modifying. So, as a parent, you want to make sure like hold on. Did you just say modify? What does that look like? Show that to me. Because when something is modified, it means that content that your child is learning is now not the same as it would be for a student that’s accessing general education curriculum. What your child is learning has changed, and so the longer that happens, the higher the likelihood that they will struggle to keep up, so you just want to make sure. That may very well be what your child needs, and that's not a bad thing. But if that's not what your child needs, and what they really need is just an accommodation, you know that's the case and so all of that should be clearly spelled out in the IEP. Did I answer the question?

LC
Yes, definitely, definitely. If there’s any last minute questions, you can throw them in, but we are coming up on an hour. There's so much more ground to cover, you know, we might have to do a separate, second part to this. We are in a couple of weeks going to be talking about alternate curriculum with Dr. Solone as well. We’re working on an article right now and I know we've reached out to you, Dr. Pelangka. It’s going to be coming out. And I know it was the very beginning of where we started talking, but Donna put in something. Finally, we finished editing it this morning, but it's all about what we're talking about today, and it gets a little deeper in some of the subjects as well, about where's that fine line? Sometimes it still feels a little murky.

But I think the important thing, everything that you kept really driving home, is that regardless of your child's perceived abilities from from a young age, right, let's presume competence, let's try everything we can, make sure that our teens are trying creative accommodations, not crossing that line without talking to families. Making sure that families look at their IEP and know and state that they only want accommodations for their child unless, there needs to be a conversation, because I also want to say there’s nothing wrong with modification. For lots of children that’s how they’re accessing gen ed, and that's fabulous thing and it's giving them access and it’s appropriate for them. So in no way is it a bad thing for families for families that want to keep a close eye like anything else in your IEP. There needs to be open communication.

Dr. P
Just one more quick thing to help clarify really quick is when your child is in gen ed classes, and maybe they're on resource pullout, which changes in middle school and high school that terminology, but they're accessing gen ed curriculum in gen ed, and they're being exposed to all of that and being asked to do the same work. But when they're pulled out, their IEP goals may be written to a grade level standard, but they're using maybe a lesser grade level of work to work towards that standards. So that's the time that they may not be working on, you know, it may be modified in the sense that they’re still practicing a skill to ensure they can keep up in the gen ed class. And those models, yes, your child is on a regular report card, your child is still you know, “diploma bound” right? There's still within that curriculum, but then that 20 or 30 minutes day, whatever, they're working on those kinds of supplementary skills to ensure they're still able to do that. And that's what would be used to measure their IEP goals. Does that make sense?

LC
Yeah, it does. Because there are those questions, if my child is being pulled out, but that doesn't matter, right? It's okay that they're working on those skills. What counts is what’s happening in the classrooms and that they’re staying on grade level without extensive changes.

Dr. P
And what they’re accessing in resource time is modified.

LC
Right. I mean, this is not easy. It confuses me, and I like to put things in boxes and say this is how it is, and as anyone listening on this call knows, it's never that easy. So if you do want or need deeper support, or a one on one guide to talk you through your child's creative accommodations or necessary modifications, our Undivided Navigators would love to help you through it.

So thank you again to Dr. Pelangka, to Iris and Donna keeping up in the chat, I can’t wait to read through and see what you all were talking about. Thank you for stopping by Undivided Learning. Have a beautiful day. See you next week.