[IEP_guide] Program creates IEPs for all students

[Guest guest]

Passing this on from IEP_guide”

kathyR

Program creates IEPs for all students

State's internet site helps students plan their studies and careers

From eSchool News staff and wire service reports advertisement

Call for Nominations: 2007 Tech-Savvy Superintendent Awards

Does your superintendent " get it " when it comes to technology? Does

he or she demonstrate exemplary vision for the use of technology to

improve all facets of education--and show outstanding leadership in

working to make this vision a reality?

Nominees must be general superintendents of a K-12 school system. Ten

national finalists will be chosen by the editors of eSchool News in

consultation with last year's winners. The 2007 winners will be

honored in a ceremony held at the same time as the American

Association of School Administrators annual conference in New Orleans

and in the March 2007 issue of eSchool News..

Nominations will be accepted online through Friday, December 1.

Please go to:

Call for Nominations: 2007 Tech-Savvy Superintendent Awards

Kentucky has launched a new web-based system that automatically

creates Individual Learning Plans for every middle and high school

student. The program will allow students to begin planning their

futures as early as the sixth grade--from exploring colleges and

careers to learning about financial aid.

November 15, 2006—You could call it " MySpace " meets " Monster " :

Kentucky has introduced a web-based program that will help students

map out their academic careers and give them an idea of what career

path they'd like to explore--all while teaching them how to write a

resume and apply for financial aid.

The program, called Individual Learning Plans, is a revamped version

of the Individual Graduation Plan, a system the state introduced in

2002 but that failed to catch on with students.

The new program, run by Toronto-based Career Cruising, is already

earning raves.

" I've already had more kids in the last week say things about this

than I've ever had in 13 years of education, " said Todd Mullins, a

guidance counselor at Oldham South Middle School.

Each student will have his or her own page, complete with test scores

and the results of surveys designed to help students figure out what

they're interested in.

" It's pretty cool, " said Ray Grijalba, 13, an eighth grader at Oldham

South who said he wants to be an engineer. " I've been looking at the

money you make and stuff. "

The site also allows parents to log in and check on their child's

progress. Parents can leave students a message on the site or send a

note to the school's guidance counselor. The plan is available in

both English and Spanish.

Sawyer, executive director of admissions at the University of

Louisville, said the

system makes students better prepared for

dealing with the pressure of applying to college.

" I think it levels the playing field for students who may be first-

generation college-goers, or who have parents who are not as

experienced about applying to college, " she said.

The state Board of Education wants to make sure schools are using

some form of the program. Pittinger, director of the division

of secondary and virtual learning at the Kentucky Department of

Education, said the program is designed to get students involved in

planning their future, regardless of their aspirations.

" Every single child needs to be stretched and challenged, even our

most high-performing students, " she said.

The program will include a survey that students can fill out, which

educators hope will give them a better idea of how to cater to

students' needs. To help matters, Kentucky

is beginning the program

in the sixth grade. The previous version waited until students were

on the verge of high school, though Pittinger stressed it's not

designed to give students concrete ideas about what they should do

with their lives.

" This is not about looking at every sixth-grader and saying, 'OK.

What are you going to be when you grow up?' " she said. " This is about

the process with those students and their parents to begin talking

about the purpose of education, what their goals are going to be,

that high school is important, and that it is important to get ready

for high school. "

She added: " The most important thing is to make sure no child is cut

off from the opportunity to go to college. ... That happens to too

many kids. "

Dozens of middle and high schools began training with the new program

when school began in September. Some schools have already started

using it, with others should be up to speed by the end of the year.

The program's career-matchmaker function lets students complete an

interest survey that matches them to 40 professions. The site then

shows students information about those careers, including video

interviews with people in those professions, and it allows them to

see the corresponding college majors, along with the colleges that

offer them.

Schools are not required to use the web-based system, but they are

required to complete plans for each student as part of the state's

new graduation requirements. And the state education board is

considering holding schools accountable for the plans by including

students' completion rates in the state's student testing system.