Evaluating the efficiency and effectiveness of online individual education plans: a case study from a South Texas elementary school

The purpose of this qualitative case study based upon the theories of technology adoption and technology integration planning (TIP) with the focus on design and development was to understand design features that encourage effectiveness and efficiency for using online individual education plans (IEP) along with the online IEP lived experiences of administrators, teachers, and parents in a South Texas elementary school. The case for this study was an elementary school in a suburb of a South Texas metropolitan area. The school is in a school district with a total student enrollment greater than 100,000.

Findings included four major themes in terms of the participants lived experiences in using online IEPs: • The online IEP facilitates a collaborative process in a data-driven manner with a single source of the record. • The user experience (UX) is unpleasant and a difficult process to administer. • The online IEP does not take advantage of software best practices. • The solution enables better monitoring of student performance and success.

Key online IEP efficiency benefits include system accessibility and mobility, non-paper based (for the most part), form order consistency, and process simplicity. The online IEP adds value to help promote student success and informs parents of the status of goal achievement. Features for improvement include better reuse of information, easier printing and reporting of key data, automated goal progress calculations including percentage-based calculations, and better integration with ancillary systems. The findings informed software developers and educators regarding features that would encourage broad adoption and facilitate personalized instruction for learners within and beyond the disability community.