Here is the basic difference between an IEP and a 504 plan in the United States.
They are both types of support that children with disabilities or special educational needs can be given in the United States. They both are legal documents, drafted with a public school, that tell the school what support the child needs to be able to successfully access the school environment.
A 504 plan describes changes that could be set up and then not need ongoing human intervention.
An IEP describes changes that do need ongoing human intervention.
What that means is that a 504 plan might say something like, “My child needs to visit the school nurse every day at 11:00 to get their meds; have access to their phone at all times to monitor their blood glucose levels; and eat a snack anytime they need to.”
The general school rules might be that the students are in class at 11, nobody has their phones, and snack is at 9:30 only. But everybody recognizes that these 3 rule exceptions, these environmental changes, will make the child able to participate in the school day.
These don’t need ongoing human intervention (other than checking in every few months at first, and then eventually every year, to make sure it’s still working). We just need it on paper the ways in which this child’s educational experience will be unique.
An IEP might say something like, “My child needs special instruction to help with understanding math concepts that are just not clicking for him; to take standardized tests in a quiet place with extra time, so he has time to actually read the questions and think; and an extra support person in the classroom during the instruction at the end of the day when he gets most frustrated.”
These do require people to be involved, so it’s an IEP instead of a 504. Specialized instruction comes from a teacher trained in that; taking tests in a quiet, alternate environment is with a teacher who knows how to proctor them for students who need more support; a paraprofessional is supporting the student in the classroom at the end of the day.
This explanation is far from exhaustive! But if you’re wondering what the different types of supports mean, maybe this basic explanation can help you start to understand.
