An Individualized Education Plan (called plan d'intervention or PI in French, sometimes PEI, and IEP in English) is the document that translates a child's learning needs into actual school-day accommodations and services. For families of a child with autism or an intellectual disability, it is one of the most important pieces of paper in the school year. This guide walks through how to request one, what should be in it, and what to do when the school is slow to act.
What an IEP / plan d'intervention is
The plan d'intervention is a written document developed by the school team for any student whose needs cannot be met by the regular program alone. It identifies the child's strengths, the specific challenges that affect learning, the goals for the school year, the accommodations and services in place to support those goals, and how progress will be reviewed.
It is not just for children with a formal diagnosis. A plan d'intervention can be opened for any student facing significant academic, behavioural, social, or communication challenges, whether or not a diagnosis has been confirmed. In practice, most plans are written for children with autism, intellectual disability, language disorders, ADHD, learning disabilities, or significant emotional regulation needs.
Who is involved
By law, the school must work in collaboration with the parents (and the student, when developmentally appropriate) to develop the plan. A typical meeting includes:
- A parent or guardian (often both, when possible).
- The classroom teacher who works with the child every day.
- The school administration, often the principal or vice-principal.
- Specialized school staff as relevant: special education teacher, speech-language pathologist, psychologist, behaviour technician, school social worker.
- External professionals, where appropriate and with parental consent: a private therapist, a CIUSSS or CISSS specialist, the child's pediatrician.
Parents are not just present as observers. They are members of the team, and their knowledge of the child outside school is part of what the plan is built on.
How to request one
If the school has not already initiated a plan and you believe your child needs one, you can ask. The request should be in writing, even if it follows a verbal conversation. Keep it short and concrete:
- Address it to the school principal, with a copy to the classroom teacher.
- Name your child and grade.
- State that you are requesting the development of a plan d'intervention.
- Describe briefly the difficulties you are seeing and any diagnoses or evaluations on file.
- Attach copies of relevant reports if you have them (medical, psychological, occupational therapy, speech, prior evaluations).
The school is required to respond within a reasonable timeframe. In practice, "reasonable" varies by school and by season, so following up is sometimes necessary.
What should be in the plan
A well-written plan d'intervention contains five core elements:
- The child's profile. Strengths, challenges, learning style, what works and what does not.
- Specific goals for the year. Measurable and connected to the actual challenges, not vague aspirations.
- The means. Concrete supports and adaptations: extra time on tests, a quiet space for breaks, visual schedules, a behaviour technician for part of the day, modified spelling lists, dictation tools, a reader, and so on.
- Responsibility and frequency. Who delivers each support, how often, and where.
- Review schedule. When the team will reconvene to assess progress, usually at least twice a year.
If the plan is mostly aspirational (lots of "the student will improve") and light on actual supports (no specific accommodations or services), it is not yet a working plan. The supports section is the part that changes the school day.
Your rights as a parent
- You participate in the development. The school cannot finalize a plan over your objections without genuine consultation.
- You sign the plan. Your signature acknowledges that you have been part of the discussion. If you disagree with parts of it, you can note that on the document.
- You can request a review. If something is not working or your child's situation has changed, you can ask for a meeting at any point during the year, not only at the scheduled review.
- You have recourse. If you and the school cannot agree, the path is first an internal complaint to the school service centre, then to the protecteur de l'élève, the body responsible for student rights in Quebec.
Common pitfalls and how to avoid them
A few patterns I see often in families I work with:
- The plan exists on paper but is not being used in the classroom. Ask the teacher specifically how the supports show up day to day. If the answer is vague, that is information.
- Goals are set without a baseline. "The student will improve reading" means nothing without a starting point. Push for measurable starting and target levels.
- External evaluations are ignored. If a private psychologist or speech therapist has documented something concrete, that documentation should be visible in the plan, not lost in a file.
- The plan is not revisited until June. Two reviews a year is the floor, not the ceiling. If something is not working in October, do not wait for the spring meeting.
If the school is slow to act
If your written request has not produced a meeting within three to four weeks, follow up in writing with the principal and copy the school service centre's special-education or complementary-services contact. If the situation is urgent (a child whose safety or attendance is at risk), say so explicitly. In Quebec, escalation paths exist precisely because the system does not always move at the speed a family needs.
Where a social worker fits in
For families of a child with autism or an intellectual disability, the plan d'intervention is one piece of a larger picture that often includes the CIUSSS specialized services, private therapy, and the family's own support network. A social worker can help you prepare for the meeting (what to ask, what to bring), attend the meeting if helpful, and translate the plan into the day-to-day systems your family uses outside school. For more on how I work with these families, see my autism and intellectual disability page.
If you would like to talk through your child's situation and how to approach the school, I offer free 15-minute consultations.