From Data to Draft: Using the FIE to Write a Defensible and Student-Centered IEP

This process begins with an initial evaluation to determine if a student is eligible for special education services. From that point forward, the law requires that your child be reevaluated at least every three years to ensure the plan continues to meet their evolving needs. 

An IEP without a clear connection to the evaluation results is not data driven. More importantly, it is a plan built on assumption, not evidence. The Full Individual Evaluation (FIE) is the cornerstone of a compliant and effective program. It is not a series of test scores to be filed away; it is the rich, detailed story of your child's unique abilities and challenges.

In my work, I focus on removing barriers to engagement. The FIE is a powerful diagnostic tool for identifying those barriers. It tells us the why behind a student's struggle, but just as critically, it illuminates the strengths we can leverage to help them succeed. A well-crafted IEP is one that is woven directly from the threads of this evaluation story.

Here’s how to ensure that connection is strong:

1. Treat the FIE as the Narrative, Not Just the Numbers.

It’s easy to get lost in the charts and percentile ranks of an evaluation report. But the real value for you, as a parent, is in the story. Flip past the scores and look for the narrative sections—the evaluator’s observations, the summary of your input, and the analysis of how your child approached a task. This is where you will find the "why." Does the evaluator note that your child excels verbally but struggles with written expression? Do they mention that your child understands big concepts but gets bogged down by multi-step directions? These qualitative details are the components that make up an individualized, effective plan.

2. Focus on Strengths as the Starting Point.

A powerful IEP is built on a foundation of strengths. The FIE is a treasure map for finding them. When you read the evaluation, use a highlighter and mark every mention of your child's abilities, talents, and interests. As I’ve learned from years of experience, focusing on building and expanding a student's strengths is a far more effective strategy than focusing only on areas for growth.  When an IEP explicitly leverages a child's strengths—using their artistic talent to demonstrate knowledge, or their verbal skills to show evidence of skill mastery—it builds a bridge to engagement and confidence.

3. Use the FIE as a Litmus Test for Every Goal and Service.

Once you have a draft IEP, hold it up against the FIE narrative you highlighted. For every goal, ask: "Which specific need found in the evaluation does this address?" For every service or accommodation, ask: "How does this tool directly help my child overcome a barrier we identified in the FIE?" If you cannot draw a clear, straight line from the evaluation data to the supports in the IEP, that part of the plan needs to be re-examined.  This knowledge enables you as the parent to partner more effectively with the school staff in developing the IEP.  

Putting It Into Practice: A Parent's Guide

Let's walk through what this looks like. Imagine your son is Alex. You know he's bright and tells amazing stories, but his grades for writing are low, and homework is a nightly battle.

You get his FIE report. It's long and intimidating.

Your first step: Ignore the scores for a minute and flip to the narrative summary. You find this statement from the evaluator:

“Alex demonstrated strong oral storytelling skills and a rich vocabulary during conversational tasks. However, when asked to write, he struggled significantly with the physical act of handwriting and organizing his thoughts on paper.”

Then you find the most important clue of all—a direct quote from your son:

Alex told the evaluator, “My hand can’t keep up with my brain.”

This one sentence is your key. The problem isn't that Alex lacks ideas; it's that he has a "traffic jam" getting those ideas onto the page.

Now, at the IEP meeting, you look at the draft goal: "Alex will improve his writing skills."

Because you understand the FIE's story, you can now ask a powerful, informed question:

"Thank you for this. The FIE shows that Alex's real challenge is the physical act of writing, not his ability to come up with ideas. How can we write this goal to leverage his verbal strengths and address that 'brain-to-hand' traffic jam?"

Suddenly, the conversation shifts. The team works together to draft a new, student-centered goal:

"Given a graphic organizer and access to speech-to-text software, Alex will produce a multi-paragraph text by first speaking his ideas and then editing the transcribed text, with 80% of sentences being grammatically complete."

You can now use your litmus test on the services:

• Accommodation: Speech-to-text software. Does it connect? Yes, it breaks up the "traffic jam" so his hand doesn't hold his brain back.

• Service: 30 minutes per week of Occupational Therapy. Does it connect? Yes, it addresses the physical handwriting challenges mentioned in the FIE.

Conclusion: You Are the Expert on Your Child's Story

The FIE is the blueprint, but you are the expert on the child at the center of it. By learning to read that blueprint—to find the story within the data—you shift your role from a passive participant to a proactive partner. You ensure that the IEP isn't just a collection of generic goals, but a strategic, sound, and personalized structure built specifically for your child.

Mastering this connection between the evaluation and the IEP is one of the most powerful things you can do as an advocate. But knowing what to do is only the first step. The next is feeling confident in how to do it in a live meeting, for your amazing child.

That is where we come in. At IEP Sensei, we specialize in helping you translate this knowledge into action. We provide the tools, expert guidance, and community support to help you analyze your child’s evaluation and build a truly defensible, student-centered plan.

Ready to move from blueprint to action? Visit us at IEPSensei.com to explore our resources and learn how we can partner with you to build an IEP that unlocks your child's potential. Let's do this together.

Citations and Further Reading

Primary Legal Sources (The Law):

• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) at 34 C.F.R. §300.301-303: These regulations outline the requirements for evaluations.
  
  

• §300.301 covers the Initial Evaluation.

• §300.303 specifies that a Reevaluation must occur at least once every 3 years, unless the parent and the public agency agree that a reevaluation is unnecessary.

• IDEA at 34 C.F.R. §300.324(a)(1): This is the specific regulation that legally requires the IEP team to consider the results of the most recent evaluation when developing the plan, along with the child's strengths and the parents' concerns.
  
  

• IDEA at 34 C.F.R. §300.320(a)(1): This regulation requires the IEP to include a statement of the child’s "present levels of academic achievement and functional performance" (PLAAFP), which must be directly informed by the evaluation data.
  
  

Authoritative Guidance and Explanation:

• U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS): Publishes guidance documents that affirm the requirement for IEPs to be based on the individual needs identified in a student's evaluation data.
  
  

• Center for Parent Information and Resources (CPIR): Provides numerous parent-friendly articles explaining the evaluation timeline and how evaluation results are used to write the IEP.
  
  

Wrightslaw: Offers extensive articles and legal analysis on the critical link between evaluations, present levels, and IEP goals, including the standards for initial and triennial reviews.