The code favours an individual education plan (IEP) in furthering the education of children with special needs, involving targets to be achieved in a given time, thus embracing a product ideology. IEPs have long dominated special education in the USA.

For almost 20 years I have argued that the use of the behavioural objectives model and its associated IEPs give not only a most limited and limiting view of education but might be counter-productive to teaching and learning.

As some enlightened American educators tell us, educational progress is transformative, not additive and incremental and thus incompatible with a pre-specified, step-by-step approach inherent in IEPs.

ALAN GODDARD

Former head

32 Clareville Road

Darlington

Co Durham