HF 2140 (LSB 5177YH (3) 87)

HOUSE FILE 2140

BY  STAED

(COMPANION TO SF 2076 BY HOGG)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to language and literacy development for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  256B.10  Deaf and hard-of-hearing children —— language developmental milestones.
   1.  Language developmental milestones —— selection.  The director of the department of education, in cooperation with the department of public health and the state school for the deaf, shall select language developmental milestones from existing standardized norms for purposes of developing a resource for use by parents or guardians to monitor and track deaf and hard-of-hearing children’s expressive and receptive language acquisition and developmental stages toward English literacy. In selecting the language developmental milestones, the director shall consider recommendations from the advisory committee established under subsection 6.
   2.  Parent resource.  The parent resource developed pursuant to subsection 1 shall meet all of the following requirements:
   a.  Include the language developmental milestones selected under subsection 1.
   b.  Be appropriate for use, in both content and administration, with deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth to five years of age, inclusive, who use American sign language or English, or both. 
   c.  Present the language developmental milestones in terms of typical development of all children from birth to five years of age, by age range.
   d.  Be written for clarity and ease of use by parents and guardians.
   e.  Be aligned to the department of education’s existing infant, toddler, and preschool guidelines, the existing instrument used to assess the development of children with disabilities pursuant to federal law, and state standards in English language arts.
   f.  Clearly specify that the parent resource is not a formal assessment of language and literacy development, and that the observations of a child by the child’s parent or guardian may differ from formal assessment data presented at an individualized family service plan or individualized education program meeting.
   g.  Clearly specify that a parent or guardian may bring the parent resource to an individualized family service plan or individualized education program meeting for purposes of sharing the parent’s or guardian’s observations regarding the child’s development.
   3.  Selection of tools or assessments.  The department of education shall select existing tools or assessments for educators that can be used to assess the language and literacy development of deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth to five years of age, inclusive.
   a.  Educator tools or assessments selected under this subsection shall meet the following criteria:
   (1)  Be in a format that shows stages of language development.
   (2)  Be selected for use by educators to track the development of deaf and hard-of-hearing children’s expressive and receptive language acquisition and developmental stages toward English literacy. 
   (3)  Be appropriate in both content and administration for use with deaf and hard-of-hearing children.
   b.  Educator tools or assessments selected under this subsection may do either of the following:
   (1)  Be used, in addition to any assessment required by federal law, by the child’s individualized family service plan or individualized education program team, as applicable, to track deaf and hard-of-hearing children’s progress in improving expressive and receptive language skills, and to establish or modify individualized family service or individualized education program plans.
   (2)  Reflect the recommendations of the advisory committee convened under subsection 6.
   4.  Dissemination.  The department of education shall disseminate the parent resource developed pursuant to this section to parents and guardians of deaf and hard-of-hearing children and, consistent with federal law, shall disseminate the educator tools and assessments selected pursuant to subsection 3 to area education agencies, school districts, and accredited nonpublic schools for use in the development and modification of individualized family service or individualized education program plans, and shall provide materials and training on the use of such materials to assist deaf and hard-of-hearing children in becoming linguistically ready for kindergarten using American sign language or English, or both.
   5.  Plan modification.  If a deaf or hard-of-hearing child does not demonstrate progress in expressive and receptive language skills, as measured by one of the educator tools or assessments selected under subsection 3, or by the existing instrument used to assess the development of children with disabilities pursuant to federal law, the child’s individualized family service plan or individualized education program team, as applicable, as part of the process required by federal law, shall explain in detail the reasons why the child is not meeting or progressing toward meeting the language development milestones, and shall recommend specific strategies, services, and programs that shall be provided under a modified individualized family service plan or individualized education program, as appropriate, to assist the child in achieving English literacy proficiency.
   6.  Advisory committee.
   a.  The department of education shall establish and consult with an advisory committee for purposes of soliciting input from experts on the selection of language developmental milestones for children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing that are equivalent to those for children who are not deaf or hard-of-hearing, for inclusion in the parent resource developed and disseminated to parents and guardians pursuant to this section. The department of education shall provide the committee with a list of existing language developmental milestones from existing standardized norms, along with any relevant information held by the department regarding those language developmental milestones for possible inclusion in the parent resource developed pursuant to this section.
   b.  The advisory committee may do any of the following:
   (1)  Make recommendations on the selection and use of the educator tools or assessments selected pursuant to subsection 3.
   (2)  Advise the department or its consultants on the content and administration of the existing instrument used to assess the development of children with disabilities pursuant to federal law, and to assess deaf and hard-of-hearing children’s language and literacy development to ensure the appropriate use of that instrument with such children, and may make recommendations regarding future research to improve the measurement of progress of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in language and literacy development.
   (3)  The advisory committee shall consist of thirteen volunteers, the majority of whom shall be deaf or hard-of-hearing, and all of whom shall be working within the field of education for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. The advisory committee shall include all of the following members:
   (a)  One parent of a child who is deaf or hard-of-hearing and who uses both American sign language and English.
   (b)  One parent of a child who is deaf or hard-of-hearing and who uses only spoken English, with or without visual supplements.
   (c)  One licensed teacher who holds an American sign language endorsement or a deaf or hard-of-hearing endorsement under chapter 272.
   (d)  One licensed teacher who holds an American sign language endorsement or a deaf or hard-of-hearing endorsement under chapter 272 and who teaches at an accredited nonpublic, nonsectarian school.
   (e)  One person with expertise in the latest research relating to language outcomes for deaf and hard-of-hearing children using American sign language and English.
   (f)  One person with knowledge of the latest research relating to language outcomes for deaf and hard-of-hearing children using spoken English with or without visual supplements.
   (g)  One licensed teacher who holds an American sign language endorsement or a deaf or hard-of-hearing endorsement under chapter 272 and whose expertise is in curriculum and instruction in American sign language and English.
   (h)  One licensed teacher who holds an American sign language endorsement or a deaf or hard-of-hearing endorsement under chapter 272 and whose expertise is in curriculum and instruction in spoken English, with or without visual supplements.
   (i)  One advocate for the teaching and use of both American sign language and English.
   (j)  One advocate for the teaching and use of spoken English, with or without visual supplements.
   (k)  One early intervention specialist who works with deaf and hard-of-hearing infants and toddlers using both American sign language and English.
   (l)  One licensed teacher who holds an American sign language endorsement or a deaf or hard-of-hearing endorsement under chapter 272 and whose expertise is in American sign language and English language assessment.
   (m)  One speech pathologist whose expertise is in spoken English, with or without the use of visual supplements.
   c.  The director of the department of education shall convene the advisory committee by March 1, 2019, and as frequently thereafter as the director deems necessary for purposes of this section. The advisory committee shall submit recommendations to the state board of education by July 1, 2019, and shall submit recommendations thereafter as the director of the department of education deems necessary.
   7.  Activities —— consistent with federal law.  All activities of the department of education in implementing this section shall be consistent with federal law for the assessment of children from birth to five years of age, inclusive.
   8.  Annual report.  The department of education shall annually compile, and publish on the department’s internet site, a report using existing data reported in compliance with the state performance plan on pupils with disabilities, required under federal law, that is specific to language and literacy development in deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth to five years of age, inclusive, including those children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and have other disabilities, relative to the children’s peers who are not deaf or hard-of-hearing.
   9.  Definitions.  For purposes of this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
   a.  “English” includes spoken English, written English, or English with the use of visual supplements.
   b.  “Federal law” means the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, as amended by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Improvement Act, Pub. L. No. 108-446, 20 U.S.C. §1400 et seq., as amended.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill provides for the development and dissemination of a parent resource for the parents and guardians of children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing; provides for the identification of tools or assessments educators can use to assess the language and literacy development of such children from birth to five years of age; requires, if such a child is not meeting language development milestones, that the child’s individualized family service plan (IFSP) or individualized education program (IEP) team explain in detail the reasons why the child is not meeting the milestones and submit modifications to the plan to assist the child in achieving English literacy proficiency; and provides for the establishment of an advisory committee for purposes of soliciting input from experts on the selection of language developmental milestones for such children that are equivalent to milestones for children who are not deaf or hard-of-hearing. The bill provides that “English” includes spoken English, written English, or English with the use of visual supplements. 
   LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES —— SELECTION. The bill requires the director of the department of education to cooperate with the department of public health and the state school for the deaf in selecting language developmental milestones from existing standardized norms for purposes of developing a resource parents or guardians can use to monitor and track a deaf or hard-of-hearing child’s progress toward English literacy.
   PARENT RESOURCE. In addition to the milestones, the parent resource must be clearly written and appropriate for use with deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth to five years of age who use American sign language or English, or both; present the milestones in terms of typical development of all children; be aligned to the state’s existing infant, toddler, and preschool guidelines and standards in English language arts, and with federal law, regarding the assessment instrument. Under the bill, the term “federal law” means the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as amended. Further, the resource must clearly specify that it is not a formal assessment of language and literacy development, that the observations of a child by the child’s parent or guardian may differ from formal assessment data, and that a parent or guardian may bring the parent resource to an IFSP or IEP meeting.
   ASSESSMENTS —— TOOLS. The department of education must select existing tools or assessments for educators that can be used to assess the language and literacy development of deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth to five years of age.
   DISSEMINATION. The department of education must disseminate the parent resource to parents and guardians of deaf and hard-of-hearing children and, consistent with the federal IDEA, shall disseminate the educator tools and assessments to area education agencies, school districts, and accredited nonpublic schools for use in the development and modification of IFSPs or IEPs, and provide materials and training on the use of such materials.
   PLAN MODIFICATION. If a deaf or hard-of-hearing child does not demonstrate progress in improving expressive and receptive language skills, as measured by an educator tool or assessment, the child’s IFSP or IEP team, as applicable, shall, as part of the process required by the federal IDEA, explain in detail the reasons why the child is not meeting or progressing toward meeting the language development milestones, and shall recommend specific strategies, services, and programs that must be provided under a modified IFSP or IEP, as appropriate, to assist the child in achieving English literacy proficiency.
   ADVISORY COMMITTEE. The department of education is directed to establish and consult with an advisory committee to receive input for inclusion in the parent resource. The department must provide the committee with a list of existing language developmental milestones from existing standardized norms, along with any relevant information held by the department regarding those milestones.
   The advisory committee may make recommendations on the selection and use of the educator tools or assessments, may advise the department or its consultants on the content and administration of the existing instrument used under the federal IDEA to assess deaf and hard-of-hearing children’s language and literacy development to ensure the appropriate use of that instrument with such children, and may make recommendations regarding future research to improve the measurement of progress of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in language and literacy development.
   The advisory committee shall consist of 13 volunteers, the majority of whom shall be deaf or hard-of-hearing, and all of whom shall be within the field of education for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. The bill specifies the level of expertise or experience each individual member must bring to the committee.
   The director of the department must convene the advisory committee by March 1, 2019, and thereafter may convene the committee as the director deems necessary. The advisory committee shall submit recommendations to the state board of education by July 1, 2019, and shall submit recommendations thereafter as the director of the department deems necessary.
   ACTIVITIES. All activities of the department of education in implementing the requirements under the bill must be consistent with the federal IDEA for the assessment of children from birth to five years of age.
   ANNUAL REPORT. The department of education must annually compile, and publish on the department’s internet site, a report using existing data reported in compliance with the state performance plan on pupils with disabilities, required under the federal IDEA, that is specific to language and literacy development of deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth to five years of age, inclusive, including those children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and have other disabilities, relative to the children’s peers who are not deaf or hard-of-hearing.