A Practical Guide to Implementing Student-Led IEP Meetings

By Carli Haskovec, MA, Ed.S.

I WAS TIRED AND EXTREMELY OVERWHELMED. IT WAS MY SECOND DAY AT THE AUBURN TRANSITION CONFERENCE IN AUBURN, ALABAMA. MY HEAD WAS PRACTICALLY SPINNING AS I PROCESSED THE AVALANCHE OF INFORMATION PRESENTED. EVEN SO, I KNEW MY TIME THERE WAS BRIEF, AND THERE WAS MORE I COULD LEARN. I TOOK A DEEP BREATH AND HEADED TO A BREAKOUT SESSION TITLED “STUDENT-LED IEPS.” I TOOK MY SEAT IN AN EMPTY CHAIR. MY GUT FEELING WAS THAT I HAD CHOSEN A SESSION FOR A NEW PRACTICE TO ADD TO MY NEVER-ENDING TO-DO LIST. HOWEVER, THE SESSION’S TITLE SPARKED MY INTEREST, SO I STAYED.

Ready to take notes and write reminders of things I needed to do, I heard the presenter say something I had always dreamed of hearing. They had a way of making Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings smoother, easier, and more efficient. It was at this point they had my undivided attention.

They explained how they incorporated student-led IEPs into their “IEP Season.” I bounced between excited and doubtful as I could not wrap my brain around how this could possibly be easier. My students didn’t know how to lead an IEP meeting! On top of that, it was almost time to begin my spring IEP meetings, so I didn’t have time to implement something new. Regardless, I WANTED and NEEDED a way to help the IEP season be more streamlined. Once the session ended, I had questions—lots of questions. Luckily the presenter was available, willing to explain things while encouraging me to give it a try.

I drove home ready and eager to give student-led IEPs a chance. I made a mental plan to implement this new process with my students and introduce the newly implemented IEP meeting procedures to my high school special education students. When I made it home, I was genuinely excited to figure out how to make this work. I called my co-worker and told her all about it. She was just as enthusiastic about the challenge ahead as I was.

Creating a new, student-led meeting style

I began by creating a template in Microsoft Word that was a straightforward, fill-in-the-blank format that followed the IEP template my state uses. As each student’s IEP meeting approached, I would develop a draft IEP and sit down with each of my students individually to help them fill out their student-led IEP form. We did several practice runs of their student-led meetings, which led to the troubling realization that many of my students needed more awareness of their own IEPs. Based on this discovery, I experienced my first success. My students learned what was in their IEPs, making me an incredibly proud teacher! My co-worker implemented the student-led IEP meetings along with me, and she experienced equal success with it.

The next challenge came when my students realized what a “student-led” IEP meeting meant. As more and more students realized that THEY would be doing the talking, I heard comments such as “I can’t talk in front of a group of people” or “I get so nervous talking to adults.” I quickly responded with something along the lines of “I don’t like speaking in front of people, either!” I have a horrible fear of public speaking, and having to lead discussions during IEP meetings always makes me nervous. I’m still unsure how someone with a fear of public speaking becomes a teacher, but I did. I promised my students that I would be with them during the whole meeting, and in no time, I found myself telling my first student that they were free to begin their student-led IEP meeting.

Time after time, my co-worker and I had parents, teachers, and administrators tell us how impressed they were with the student-led IEP meetings. It had nothing to do with us and everything to do with the students. We heard comments such as, “That’s the most I’ve ever heard that student talk,” and, “I had no idea this student was such a good reader.” Students could show their true personalities while summarizing their IEP during their meetings. Some read straight from the template we used, and some felt the need to present their IEP goals in a somewhat theatrical manner…which was fine with me. To my surprise, having the students lead their IEP meetings made the meetings fun! You could also see a sense of pride in both the students and the parents, which was another huge bonus.

Over time, I discovered that the best part of student-led IEP meetings is that the student IS the “star of the show”... the meeting is all about them. Who better to lead the IEP meeting than the person the meeting is about? Our special education students in middle school, and especially in high school, need to know what is in their IEP. They need to know what accommodation they should be receiving. They need to understand how to advocate for themselves.

When students conduct IEP meetings, it’s hard for anyone to disagree with what they say. If Susie sits in her IEP meeting telling all participants she needs extra time on tests, it’s hard for anyone to disagree…She knows what she needs. Likewise, if Johnny tells his IEP team he does not require copies of notes, but his parents have been insisting throughout the year that he does, how can anyone argue with this? Johnny knows what he does NOT need.

A momentous breakthrough

In closing, I developed a passion for this student-led style of IEP meeting that eventually helped me face one of my biggest fears. Two years after I doubted that anyone would ever have time to implement this into practice, I had a breakthrough within myself. With the support of my sidekick (an incredibly beloved co-worker), we stood at that same conference…in a room full of people…and shared the benefits of implementing student-led IEP meetings. It was a day I will never forget. As students with disabilities approach young adulthood, we must prepare them so they can accurately and appropriately relay their needs to those around them. Giving our students with disabilities a valid role in the decision-making process during IEP development shows them how to be their own advocates and reinforces to them that their voices do matter.

Carli Haskovec, MA, Ed.S., began her career as a high school special education teacher. She now serves her local Board of Education as a Countywide Behavior Specialist. She works as a special education adjunct professor at several universities and teaches GED classes at her local community college. Carli is also pursuing her Doctor of Education in Special Education. She lives in Florence, Alabama with her husband of 23 years. She has two sons, a Sophomore at Mississippi State University and a Junior in high school.