What Is an IEP in Nunavut? Understanding the ISSP

You've just come out of a meeting with your child's teacher. She mentioned something called an ISSP. You nodded along, but you've been searching online for "IEP" and nothing quite matches what the school is describing. The American websites talk about IDEA and due process hearings. The Ontario guides mention IPRC committees. None of it maps to anything you recognize from your child's school in Iqaluit, Rankin Inlet, or Arviat.

Here's the reason: in Nunavut, IEP is one type of plan within the broader ISSP framework. The territory has its own system, grounded in its own legislation and its own set of values. Once you understand the local terminology, everything starts to make sense — and you'll be in a much stronger position to advocate for your child.

Nunavut's Word for an IEP: The ISSP

In Nunavut, the umbrella term is Individual Student Support Plan, or ISSP. This is the educational roadmap under the Nunavut Education Act (2008) for adjustments or supports tied to a student's learning needs. When southern parents or websites use "IEP" as a generic term, the closest Nunavut framework is the ISSP, which may include an IAP, IEP, or IBP.

But the ISSP is actually an umbrella term that covers three distinct types of plans. Which type your child has matters enormously — especially for their future.

Individual Accommodation Plan (IAP)

An IAP is developed for a student who has difficulty accessing the curriculum but is cognitively capable of meeting standard academic outcomes. The curriculum itself does not change — the student is still working toward the same grade-level expectations as their classmates. What changes is how they access that curriculum.

Common IAP accommodations include:

• Extra time on tests and assignments
• Text-to-speech software
• A scribe or reader
• Preferential seating in the classroom
• Reduced noise environments
• A sign language assistant

Crucially, IAP accommodations do not appear on a student's final high school transcript. The approved curriculum competencies are preserved, unlike an IEP's modified competencies.

Individual Education Plan (IEP)

An IEP is for students whose needs mean they cannot access the standard approved curriculum through routine accommodations. Under an IEP, the learning competencies themselves are modified and individualized — the student is working toward different, highly personalized goals rather than the standard curriculum outcomes.

This distinction carries a significant consequence: courses completed under an IEP are identified on the student's transcript. This can significantly restrict direct admission to certain university degree programs.

This is why the conversation about which type of plan your child needs is one of the most important conversations you will have with the Student Support Team. Parents sometimes discover too late that their child spent high school on a modified IEP when accommodation-only supports might have been sufficient.

Individual Behaviour Plan (IBP)

An IBP is a targeted sub-plan focused specifically on behavioral support. It identifies the triggers for a student's challenging behaviors and establishes consistent, positive strategies for the whole school team to use. An IBP typically sits alongside either an IAP or an IEP, rather than replacing them.

Who Creates an ISSP?

The ISSP is developed by the Student Support Team (SST) — known in Inuktitut as Ilinniarniqsaksiurutiit. This team is led by the school principal and the Student Support Teacher, and it includes the classroom teacher, any available itinerant specialists, and the parents.

Under IQ principles — specifically Piliriqatigiinniq (working together for a common purpose) — parents are not passive recipients of whatever the school decides. They are full members of the team. You have the right to bring a support person, a community Elder, or an advocate to any ISSP meeting. You can participate in Inuktitut or Inuinnaqtun, and the school is obligated to provide interpretation if needed.

Does My Child Need a Diagnosis First?

This is one of the most important things to understand about Nunavut's system: no, a formal diagnosis is not required before your child can receive an ISSP.

The Education Act mandates that supports must be based on demonstrated need, not a medical label. In a territory where wait times for a psychoeducational assessment routinely stretch to two or three years — because itinerant specialists must fly into fly-in communities from Iqaluit or southern Canada — requiring a diagnosis before providing support would leave hundreds of children with nothing during those years.

If your child is clearly struggling, you can ask the SST to develop or review an ISSP based on the teacher's formative assessments and observations. Do not let anyone tell you your child must be formally diagnosed before supports can be considered.

How Nunavut's System Differs From Southern Canada

If you've moved to Nunavut from Ontario, Alberta, or British Columbia, the differences are significant:

• No 504 plans. The 504 plan is an American concept under US federal law. It does not exist in any Canadian province or territory, including Nunavut. The IAP serves a similar purpose.
• No IPRC committees. Ontario uses an Identification, Placement and Review Committee process. Nunavut uses the Student Support Team model.
• No due process hearings. The US Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) creates a formal legal hearing process. Nunavut has its own dispute resolution pathway through the DEA, the Minister of Education, and the Nunavut Human Rights Tribunal.
• IQ principles are legally mandated. Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit is not optional background context — it is written into the Education Act as the philosophical foundation of the entire educational system.

The Tumit Levels

Nunavut uses a tiered intervention framework called the Tumit levels (Inuktitut for "footprints" or "steps"). Students with mild needs receive universal classroom supports at Tier 1. Students with more significant needs receive targeted interventions at Tier 2. Tier 3 is used for intensive, highly individualized needs. The level of support and plan type should reflect observed need, not an automatic diagnosis-to-tier rule.

Understanding where your child sits in the Tumit framework helps you discuss the level of support that matches their observed needs.

What a Good ISSP Looks Like

A well-written ISSP is not a vague document full of good intentions. It should contain:

• Measurable, time-bound goals. Not "the student will improve reading" but "the student will decode 50 Inuktitut sight words with 80% accuracy by the end of Term 2."
• Specific support allocations. Not "access to SSA support" but "4 hours of 1:1 Student Support Assistant time per day for mathematics and language arts."
• Clear review timelines. Policy calls for annual reviews, but advocates recommend requesting term-by-term reviews so the plan stays responsive.

If the ISSP on the table doesn't meet these standards, you have every right to push back before signing.

Your Next Step

Understanding the difference between an IAP, an IEP, and an IBP is the first piece. The next is knowing your rights as a parent — what you can demand, when you can escalate, and how to navigate the system when the school says there's nothing more they can do.

The Nunavut IEP & Support Plan Blueprint is a step-by-step guide built specifically for this territory, covering the ISSP process, parent rights under the Education Act, how to request specialist assessments, and what to do when the system stalls. Get the full guide at /ca/nunavut/iep-guide/.

See more Nunavut guides →