Compensatory Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic
A Brief Guide for Parents #5
Many students with disabilities have not made progress or have lost skills during the
COVID-19 pandemic because their individualized education programs (IEPs) have not
been implemented fully during virtual learning. These students may qualify for
compensatory (make-up) education to get them to where they would have been
educationally if they had received services in accordance with their IEPs. If you think
your child may need compensatory education, please see the tips below to learn how to
navigate this process.
What are compensatory education services?
Compensatory education is special education instruction and/or related services owed to a
student with disabilities as a result of a school system’s failure to provide them with
services in accordance with their individualized education program (IEP). Compensatory
education is not unique to the pandemic; a student may be entitled to compensatory
education any time the school system fails to provide them with services. At this time,
your child may be entitled to compensatory education as a result of services lost because
of the shift to virtual learning during pandemic-related school building closures.
What are some examples of when compensatory education could be appropriate?
Example 1: Student A’s IEP includes 30
minutes of speech therapy a week, but
Student A did not receive this service for
3 months during the pandemic and started
speaking in 2-3 word phrases instead of
complete sentences. Student A may be
entitled to compensatory services as a
result of the school system’s failure to
implement the IEP.
Example 2: Student B is unable to access
distance learning without in-person
support and was unable to participate in
any classroom activities, work
assignments, or related services until
school buildings reopened on a hybrid
basis. Student B’s IEP is implemented on
the days Student B is in school but not on
the days when Student B is home.
Student B may be entitled to
compensatory education for the lack of
IEP implementation when school
buildings were closed, and may still be
accruing (building up) an entitlement to
compensatory education because the IEP
is not being fully implemented.
