Technology: Work Smarter, not Harder on Your IEPs (article appeared in the CARS + February/March 2000 Edition)

Carl E. Treutle

As a special education teacher within the Vista Unified School District, I appreciate how IEP forms and meetings help us be accountable to our students, parents, and yes, to our State and Federal governments.  However, filling out and updating IEP forms can be a frustrating experience, especially if you complete your forms by hand.  If you are one of the many teachers who complete your forms in this manner, and then “passes” them around at an IEP meeting, I have some ideas using computer technology which will help you work smarter.

A few years ago I became convinced that technology could not only be a great resource within the classroom, but also outside the classroom in meeting my IEP administrative and team meeting needs.  I first asked myself whether the “new and improved” IEP software program was ever going to “knock on my door and jump into my computer” to help me on those late nights while preparing for an IEP meeting.  The answer was “no.”  Since our IEP forms are changing in format and content, in some cases on a quarterly basis, you can hardly fault a software vender for not committing to designing and developing dedicated IEP software.

I decided to look at what “off the shelf” software was available.  I needed software that would allow me to quickly update a revised IEP form, design a “user friendly” template for that form, and provide me with the flexibility to build and maintain a simple database for my student IEP templates.

About three years ago, I purchased a software product from The Caere Corporation that enabled me to do all of the above.  That software is OmniForm 3.0 recently upgraded to 4.0 for Windows users.  OmniForm 2.0 is also available for Mac users.  I was impressed at how easy it is to scan a complex IEP form such as the annual goals and objectives page.  I had to do some editing to the form itself to ensure that my template was a mirror image of the District form. 

Currently, I have access to ten different IEP templates in preparing for an IEP meeting. Before an IEP meeting, I can efficiently access and update a student’s information such as personal data, i.e., front page, present levels, goals and objectives.

With these templates, I am able to quickly fill in information on a student before an IEP meeting and, most importantly, fill in and adjust key information during the meeting using a laptop computer and printer.  I also use a 21 inch monitor connected to my laptop so that everyone on the IEP team can have a “bird’s eye” view of the IEP form being discussed.  This helps keep everyone focused on the task at hand.  At the conclusion of the meeting, I print out the completed forms, sign, and copy the forms using colored paper as per a given distribution on the form itself.  This ensures that the parent, and the rest of the IEP team, receives legible copies during the meeting.

Having completed numerous IEP meetings, I have built up a nice template library of my goals and objectives.  Other teachers at my school and within the Vista Unified School District, are beginning to enjoy the convenience of using IEP form templates, now that I have made them available on our school web sight (www.preschoolfun.com).  

I also use Microsoft Power Point for an IEP meeting in presenting a nice visual agenda and “thumb nail” sketch of the student.  If you want to download a copy of an IEP agenda done in Microsoft Power Point, CLICK HERE. I have found it very effective to include photos and movie clips of the child performing the skills addressed in the IEP.  Without an exception, my parents always leave an IEP meeting with the comfort level we as teachers strive for in communicating the progress of a student in our classrooms.

In closing, if what I have said is of interest to you, then you can learn more about how technology, and in particular, OmniForm, can help you work smarter, not harder, in meeting your IEP needs.  You can learn more about OmniForm (www.caere.com) Microsoft Power Point (www.microsoft.com) via their respective web sites on the Internet. 

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