Writing Culturally and Linguistically Data-Driven IEPs

Introduction

Federal legislation mandates that schools develop an Individual Education Plan (IEP) for all students found eligible for special education services (IDEA, 2004). The IEP addresses the special education services and supports. It is a plan that is individualized for each student based on their unique learning and, in the case of English learners, referred to here as with multilingual learners (MLs) and defined below, must include language support needs. The purpose of the IEP is to tailor an educational plan for the child so that he or she has access to a free and appropriate public education (FAPE; IDEA, 2004) and ideally so the child can reach his or her full potential. Developing an IEP for ML students with disabilities (MLSwD) requires consideration of how the disability impacts their education, their language development needs, as well as careful consideration of the intersection of these needs (e.g. how does the child’s disability impact their language development and vice versa). To frame the discussion of the IEPs for MLSwD, the intersection of relevant laws and disproportionality of MLs in special education frame the problem of lack of culturally and linguistically responsive (CLR) special education services followed by a process for developing CLR IEPs.