Barriers and Recommendations From Parents in Rural Areas: Experiences With Individualized Education Programs

Abstract

This study explored the experiences of Head Start parents who were becoming involved in their pre-school–age children’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) process. Seven participants from the rural Midwest engaged in focus group (n = 2) or interview (n = 1) format discussions regarding barriers to involvement in the IEP process and recommendations to alleviate these barriers. Qualitative analysis with thematic coding was used to interpret the data. Results indicated that parents believed they lacked necessary information that could increase their advocacy for their children and reported the wording of the IEP was too difficult to understand. In addition, parents felt that their negative emotions barred them from being active members at IEP meetings. Parents noted that Head Start’s encouragement and positive parent–teacher communication helped alleviate some barriers but believed that a yearly class on IEPs and more frequent one-on-one meetings would help them become better advocates for their young children.