An Extensive List of Student Strengths and Weaknesses for IEPs

Individual education programs (IEPs) are legal documents that ensure that students with disabilities that negatively impact their education receive appropriate, tailored educational support and access to specialized services. 

Establishing a list of student strengths and weaknesses for an IEP is crucial. The document should emphasize their strengths, highlighting them as key motivators and focal points in their education. 

However, weaknesses also need to be identified, as they highlight students’ educational needs, which help drive the goals set for them in their IEPs. 

Understanding IEPs

The IEP is a key part of the 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which ensures children with disabilities receive appropriate education.

Under IDEA, school districts must provide free, suitable, and customized education for children with disabilities (such as autism) if their educational progress is affected.

An IEP should focus on academic achievement and social and emotional education. It should also consider the autistic child’s strengths and the family’s concerns about education.  

An IEP should comprise the following key components:

• Present level of academic achievement: A narrative statement of the child’s current levels and functional performance within the curriculum. This includes how the child’s disability impacts their attainment and ability to access the curriculum.
• Annual goals: These should be based on their academic and functional needs.
• Measurement information: A description of how the child’s annual progress will be measured and the timing of their progress reports.
• Special education and services: A statement of the student’s special education provision and the related services/aids to be provided. 
• Modifications and/or supports: A statement of the necessary program modifications to enable the child’s progression and participation (academically and non-academically).
• Accommodations: A statement (and, if necessary, a justification) of the individual accommodations necessary to measure the student’s academic achievement and functional performance in formal assessments.

When writing an IEP, you should use language that’s specific, succinct, clear, and easy to understand. For example, when writing goals, ‘understand’ or ‘know’ will not lead to observable goals, whereas verbs like ‘explain’ or ‘solve’ will.

The importance of understanding students’ strengths and weaknesses

Both a student’s strengths and weaknesses impact their learning and development. Because of that, both should be established during the IEP process and integrated into their plan.

Weaknesses highlight areas of need and drive annual goals. However, focusing on strengths is crucial for developing a growth mindset, where students see their abilities as something they can improve. This mindset motivates them to achieve their goals and guides the support and planning they need.

Taking a strengths-based approach to IEPs involves the following:​

• Focusing on the strengths, interests, and preferences of the child. ​
• Acknowledging the child’s successes and improvements. ​
• Encouraging caregivers to share information about what the child enjoys or excels in. ​
• Documenting caregivers’ priorities, concerns, and strengths throughout the IEP process.​
• Involving students in their IEP meetings to empower them and shape their educational experience. ​

In addition, when identifying a student’s strengths, you should recognize and acknowledge their preferences, abilities, and passions.

You should then apply these by encouraging them to use their strengths to overcome their learning barriers and by building on their existing strengths.

This approach can advance their academic, emotional, and social education. 

For example, if a student is a gifted artist, art could be utilized to address behavior concerns. For instance, the student could paint/draw to express their feelings as a calming activity, which could then be used to discuss their feelings/behaviors.

The benefits of a strengths-based approach in education can include the following:

• Supports a life-long love of learning 
• Builds confidence
• Encourages positive learning behaviors 
• Improves engagement and perseverance
• Increases achievement
• Increases motivation to learn
• Encourages a growth mindset

List of student strengths for IEP

There are many areas to consider when evaluating a student’s strengths for their IEP, including the following:

• Academic strengths: e.g., reading comprehension, problem-solving skills, or non-fiction writing.
• Social strengths: e.g., teamwork, verbal and non-verbal communication, or cooperative play skills.
• Emotional strengths: e.g., resilience, empathy, or ability to cope with change.
• Physical strengths: e.g., fine motor skills and athletic abilities.
• Creative strengths: e.g., artistic talent, innovative thinking, or musical ability.
• Organizational strengths: e.g., organizing their work into folders or making lists of daily tasks.
• Interests and preferences: e.g., the Harry Potter franchise or working at their own individual workstation.
• Sensory preferences: e.g., the feeling of soft furry rugs or cushions is calming.
• Child’s successes: e.g., interactions with peers have really improved over the last year.

List of student weaknesses for IEP

As with the strengths, the weaknesses that could be incorporated into an IEP also cover many areas, like the following: 

• Academic weaknesses: e.g., telling the time, reading fluency, or applying descriptive language techniques.
• Social weaknesses: e.g., peer interactions, social awareness, or initiating friendships.
• Emotional weaknesses: e.g., anxiety and difficulty managing emotions or empathizing.
• Physical weaknesses: e.g., coordination issues, health-related challenges, or pen grip/letter formation.
• Organizational weaknesses: e.g., time management or organizing thoughts in writing tasks.
• Creative weaknesses: e.g., writing from different perspectives or mixing colors.
• Self-care: e.g., doing up/undoing their own buttons.
• Sensory aversions: e.g., the feeling of paint on their hands or loud noises. 

Strategies for assessment and documentation

Thorough assessments are important as part of the IEP process to identify the strengths and weaknesses. All assessments should be inclusive, holistic, and culturally sensitive, considering diverse backgrounds and experiences.

Methods of assessment

There are many methods that you can use to assess students’ strengths and weaknesses. Using a variety of assessment tools and methods will help you gather comprehensive information about the student’s abilities and challenges.

Some of the tools that you can use are as follows: ​

• Standardized assessments: Used to assess specific skills/abilities.
• Direct observations: Involves observing the student in a range of settings to gather information about their behavior, social interactions, and/or performance.
• Checklists: Structured lists of behaviors, skills, and/or characteristics that can be used to assess abilities, progress, and/or social interactions.
• Interviews: Conversations with caregivers, teachers, specialists, and the student to gather information about their strengths, weaknesses (needs), and preferences.
• Portfolios: Examples of a student’s work and assessments to track progress and demonstrate growth.
• Curriculum-based assessments: Assessments that align with the curriculum and measure the student’s progress in specific academic areas.
• Functional behavior assessments: Help to understand the reasons behind a student’s behavior.
• Adaptive behavior scales: Measure a student’s everyday living skills, social skills, and communication abilities.
• Speech and language assessments: Assess a student’s speech, language, and communication skills.
• Occupational therapy assessments: Assess a student’s fine motor skills, sensory processing, and ability to perform daily activities.
• Physical therapy assessments: Assess gross motor skills, mobility, and physical abilities.
• Psychological assessments: Assess cognitive abilities, emotional well-being, and behavioral concerns.
• Assistive technology assessments: Determine the student’s need for assistive technology devices or services.
• Parent/teacher rating scales/surveys: Provide information from caregivers and teachers about a student’s behavior, skills, and progress
• Functional assessments: Measure a student’s performance of functional tasks that affect their social and academic achievement.

Documenting assessment results

When documenting IEP assessments, practitioners should treat caregivers and students as equal participants, integrating their concerns, preferences, and priorities. Research shows that family input is often limited to checklists or signatures, which is concerning as a holistic understanding of a child is crucial for their progress and achievement.

Moreover, when documenting the attendant annual goals for the IEP, you should follow the SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, results-oriented, and time-bound) approach.

For example, if a caregiver highlights following instructions as a weakness for their child, a corresponding goal could be for them to independently follow a two- or three-step instruction from their teacher using a visual cue.

Well-documented strengths and weaknesses in IEPs should be as follows:

• Individual: Tailor the description of the strengths/weaknesses to a student’s individual needs/traits.
• Specific: Define them in detail, with specific instances where they have been observed.
• Relevant: Demonstrate how the strengths/weaknesses impact learning/behavior in an educational setting and link them to the identified goals and needs.
• Measurable: Allow for objective measurement or observation of progress over time when describing the strengths/weaknesses.
• Aligned with goals: Clearly link the strengths/weaknesses to appropriate goals and interventions in the IEP.
• Actionable: Identify clear strategies, interventions, or accommodations based on the strengths/weaknesses to support progress and success.
• Collaborative: Engage caregivers, teachers, specialists, and the student in documenting strengths/weaknesses comprehensively and clearly.
• Clear: Document strengths/weaknesses clearly, in an organized and accessible manner.
• Impactful: Show how the strengths/weaknesses influence the student’s learning, behavior, social interactions, or overall functioning within educational settings.
• Consistent: Demonstrate that the strengths/weaknesses have been consistently observed across different situations or settings.

It’s also important to review and update the assessment data and documentation regularly to track students’ progress and adjust the IEPs as necessary.

Embrace the strengths-based approach in IEPs 

In recent years, there has been a welcome move away from deficit-model IEPs, which emphasize and encourage educators, students, and caregivers to focus on weaknesses. This approach can be demotivating and turn students against learning.

Conversely, the strengths-based approach celebrates a student’s strengths, building on them and leveraging them to overcome their weaknesses, helping to instill resilience and a life-long love of learning. It allows them to see that their strengths and weaknesses aren’t innate or unchanging; they can be overcome or developed.

FAQs 

Q: What are examples of students’ strengths and weaknesses?

A: Students’ strengths and weaknesses for IEPs can fall under many different areas, like the following: 

• Academic (e.g., difficulty with/skilled in reading comprehension)
• Social (e.g., struggles/excels in peer interactions)
• Emotional (e.g., struggles to/is good at managing emotions)
• Physical (e.g., poor/strong coordination)
• Organizational (e.g., disorganized/very organized)
• Creative (e.g., talented story writer/struggles to access creative writing tasks)

Q: What are some weaknesses in writing an IEP?

A: Some weaknesses in writing an IEP include vague language, jargon, and overuse of checklists, making the document hard to understand and potentially reductive. Setting unachievable goals and creating repetitive, overly wordy reports can also hinder the effectiveness of the IEP.

Q: How do you write a strong IEP?

A: To write a strong IEP, identify the learning team, including the child, family, teachers, and specialists, and clearly present the child’s current performance levels, goals, and steps to bridge any gaps. Emphasize the student’s strengths while addressing areas of need, and use clear, easy-to-understand language.

Q: What is a strong IEP goal?

A: A strong IEP goal should not be vague but SMART: specific, measurable, attainable, results-oriented, and time-bound. It should also be succinct and ambitious.

References:

Kozikoğlu, İshak and Albayrak, Ezgi Nur (2022). ‘Teachers’ attitudes and the challenges they experience concerning individualized education program (IEP): A mixed method study.’ Participatory Educational Research, 9(1), 98-115. https://doi.org/10.17275/per.22.6.9.1

Kurth, Jennifer A.; McQueston, Jessica A.; Ruppar, Andrea L.; Gross Toews, Samantha; Johnston, Russell; and McCabe, Katie M. (2019). ‘A Description of Parent Input in IEP Development Through Analysis IEP Documents’, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities 57 (6): 485–498, https://doi.org/10.1352/1934-9556-57.6.485

Pounds, Lauren and Cuevas, Joshua (2019). ‘Student Involvement in IEPs’, Georgia Educational Researcher, v.16 n.1, Article 4, p23–47, https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1206045 

Siegel, Lawrence M., (2020). The Complete IEP Guide: How to Advocate for Your Special Ed Child, 10^th ed. https://books.google.ba/books?hl=en&lr=&id=6czxDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=IEP&ots=c-5Rruajzb&sig=42Xvbakm64Xn9_bbfur6jMKDQq8&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=IEP&f=false