Special Education Acronyms Decoded
FAIRFIELD CITY SCHOOLS ABBREVIATIONS
IEP - Individualized Education Program
This is the program that is written by a team of people who have an educational interest in a child who has been identified as having an educational disability. Each IEP is custom tailored to the individual child and considers his or her strengths and weaknesses. An IEP must be reviewed at least once annually.
MFE/ETR - Multifactored Evaluation/ Evaluation Team Report
The MFE is the evaluation process used to determine if a child is to be considered as a child with an educational disability. This process gathers information from a variety of school professionals including the child's parents. The team then determines if the child qualifies to receive special education services. All of the information gather through the MFE process is then combined and summarized in an ETR which is reviewed and completed through a team meeting. A reevaluation and review of the resulting ETR is required at least once every three years.
RTI - Response to Intervention
RTI is a set of procedures through which interventions are put in place for struggling students in an effort to proactively "close the gap" before they fall too far behind. The student's response to the interventions provided helps the team of school professionals gather data and make decisions about whether or not more intensive supports are needed for individual students.
PBIS - Positive Behavior Intervention Supports
PBIS is a framework for improving student behavior, engagement, and, as a result, achievement through an emphasis on clear and consistent behavior expectations, formal acknowledgement of expected (positive) student behavior, and decisions based on measurable data.
FBA - Functional Behavior Assessment
An FBA is developed by the IEP team if a child with a disability demonstrates behavior(s) of concern. The team gathers data and meets to analyze the behavior(s) of concern and determine the function of each behavior (what the child is trying to communicate or accomplish through the behavior). An FBA is a require preliminary step for creating a Behavior Intervention Plan.
BIP - Behavior Intervention Plan
A BIP is developed for a child who has demonstrated behavior(s) of concern. The IEP team develops a BIP using the information found through the FBA and outlines specific supports and procedures to be implemented in an effort to reduce or eliminate the behavior(s) of concern.