§ 300.324 Development, review, and revision of IEP.

Plain English summary

This section governs how IEP Teams must develop, review, and revise Individualized Education Programs, requiring consideration of the child's strengths, parental concerns, evaluation results, and special factors such as behavior, language, communication, and assistive technology needs. IEPs must be reviewed at least annually and revised as appropriate, with provisions for amending IEPs without a full team meeting by parental and agency agreement. Special rules apply for children incarcerated in adult prisons, including exemptions from certain IEP and LRE requirements.

Key requirements

• In developing each child's IEP, the IEP Team must consider the strengths of the child; the concerns of the parents for enhancing the education of their child; the results of the initial or most recent evaluation of the child; and the academic, developmental, and functional needs of the child.
• The IEP Team must consider the use of positive behavioral interventions and supports, and other strategies, to address behavior that impedes the child's learning or that of others.
• In the case of a child with limited English proficiency, consider the language needs of the child as those needs relate to the child's IEP.
• In the case of a child who is blind or visually impaired, provide for instruction in Braille and the use of Braille unless the IEP Team determines, after an evaluation, that instruction in Braille or the use of Braille is not appropriate for the child.
• Consider the communication needs of the child, and in the case of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing, consider the child's language and communication needs, opportunities for direct communications with peers and professional personnel in the child's language and communication mode, academic level, and full range of needs.
• Consider whether the child needs assistive technology devices and services.
• A regular education teacher of a child with a disability, as a member of the IEP Team, must, to the extent appropriate, participate in the development of the IEP of the child, including the determination of appropriate positive behavioral interventions and supports and other strategies, and supplementary aids and services, program modifications, and support for school personnel.
• The parent of a child with a disability and the public agency may agree not to convene an IEP Team meeting for the purposes of making changes after the annual IEP Team meeting, and instead may develop a written document to amend or modify the child's current IEP.
• If changes are made to the child's IEP without a meeting, the public agency must ensure that the child's IEP Team is informed of those changes.
• To the extent possible, the public agency must encourage the consolidation of reevaluation meetings for the child and other IEP Team meetings for the child.
• Upon request, a parent must be provided with a revised copy of the IEP with the amendments incorporated.
• Each public agency must ensure that the IEP Team reviews the child's IEP periodically, but not less than annually, to determine whether the annual goals for the child are being achieved.
• The IEP Team must revise the IEP, as appropriate, to address any lack of expected progress toward annual goals, results of any reevaluation, information provided by or to the parents, the child's anticipated needs, or other matters.
• If a participating agency, other than the public agency, fails to provide the transition services described in the IEP, the public agency must reconvene the IEP Team to identify alternative strategies to meet the transition objectives for the child.
• Nothing in this part relieves any participating agency, including a State vocational rehabilitation agency, of the responsibility to provide or pay for any transition service that the agency would otherwise provide to children with disabilities who meet the eligibility criteria of that agency.
• The requirements relating to participation of children with disabilities in general assessments and transition planning and transition services do not apply to children with disabilities who are convicted as adults under State law and incarcerated in adult prisons, under specified conditions.
• The IEP Team of a child with a disability who is convicted as an adult under State law and incarcerated in an adult prison may modify the child's IEP or placement if the State has demonstrated a bona fide security or compelling penological interest that cannot otherwise be accommodated.

Affected parties

• IEP Teams
• public agencies (LEAs)
• parents of children with disabilities
• regular education teachers
• children with disabilities
• children with limited English proficiency
• children who are blind or visually impaired
• children who are deaf or hard of hearing
• children with behavioral needs
• participating agencies (including State vocational rehabilitation agencies)
• children with disabilities convicted as adults and incarcerated in adult prisons

Official source

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-34/part-300/section-300.324