An Analysis of Parent Involvement in the Individual Education Program Process

This collective case study was designed to analyze the perspective of parents in Texas about their involvement in the Individual Education Program (IEP) process. Federal law mandates parent involvement in the development of their child’s IEP and states are required to report how parents perceive their involvement. Texas currently utilizes a quantitative survey that is outsourced to a consulting group to administer and analyze. The survey results for Texas from 2019-2020 through 2021-2022 school year reports that were available at the time this study was conducted showed a downward trend. This study sought to obtain the parents’ voices behind the reasons for the ratings they are providing to provide additional information that could help school personnel better facilitate parental involvement in the development of their children’s IEP. The study asked about their experiences including the barriers they encountered and strategies they found helpful. Twenty-seven individuals completed a questionnaire managed using Survey Monkey that included 16 prompts with rating scales, comments as to reason for ratings, and two open-ended questions. Six individuals participated in semi-structured interviews conducted virtually to gain deeper insight into their experiences. All participants were parents of students currently receiving special education services in Texas or parents of students that received special education services in Texas from 2019-2020 school year to the present time. The results of the study identified five overarching themes that could assist schools in their activities designed to facilitate parent involvement. The five themes are 1) communication, 2) parents as equal partners, 3) parents not valued as partner, 4) lack of understanding, and 5) need for paperwork in advance.