When developing an Individualized Education Program (IEP) for a student with a disability we have to create a program that allows the student access to the general education curriculum and that ensures the student makes progress in that curriculum. One of the decisions we have to make is how much support to provide a student. While there may be times when the Committee on Special Education (CSE) chooses to support a student using a 1:1 aide, the goal of that aide must be to promote student independence.  For that reason, a plan for fading the support of the aide must be discussed from the very beginning. Fade plans are highly individualized to the student but there are a few things you can do when creating one:

• Discuss and plan for fading support from the beginning: Having that conversation early helps all the individuals involved work with urgency to ensure that the student reaches a level of performance that doesn’t require such a restrictive level of support.
• Consult the data: A decision to provide such a high level of support is based on what is revealed in the data. When not enough data are used to make the decision, the fade plan is harder to develop.
• Set a specific fade goal: Discuss what the baseline data shows as a need and how to measure whether progress is being made in addressing that need. These data will help parents and educators understand the improvements that have been made and those that still must develop.

For more guidance read “Guidelines for Determining a Student with a Disability’s Need for a One-to-One Aide” at http://www.p12.nysed.gov/specialed/publications/1-1aide-jan2012.pdf