Full Text of SB0451 101st General Assembly
SB0451sam001 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant Filed: 3/28/2019
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| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 451
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 451 by replacing | 3 | | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
| 4 | | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 | | Language Equality Acquisition for Deaf Kids Act . | 6 | | Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: | 7 | | "American Sign Language" or "ASL" means a complete visual | 8 | | and manual language with its own grammar and syntax. ASL is | 9 | | used by a deaf individual as the native language of the deaf | 10 | | community. | 11 | | "English" means a method of human communication, either | 12 | | spoken or written, consisting of the use of words in a | 13 | | structured and conventional way. "English" includes spoken | 14 | | English, written English, and English with or without the use | 15 | | of visual supplements or dual language services or tactile use. | 16 | | "English literacy" means the ability to read and write. |
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| 1 | | "IEP" means an individualized education program. | 2 | | "IFSP" means an individualized family service plan. | 3 | | "Kindergarten readiness" means a child who is ready | 4 | | linguistically for kindergarten. | 5 | | "Language developmental milestones" means milestones of | 6 | | development aligning with the State instrument used to meet the | 7 | | requirements of federal law for the assessment of children from | 8 | | birth to 5 years of age. | 9 | | "State Board" means the State Board of Education. | 10 | | Section 10. Language assessment program. | 11 | | (a) The State Board must establish a language assessment | 12 | | program for deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind children and | 13 | | must select language developmental milestones from existing | 14 | | standardized norms for the program. The scope of the program | 15 | | must include language developmental milestones in American | 16 | | Sign Language, English, or both. The purpose of the program is | 17 | | to assess, monitor, and track the language developmental | 18 | | milestones of children who are deaf, hard of hearing, or | 19 | | deaf-blind and to (i) develop a resource for use by parents or | 20 | | guardians of those children to monitor and track a child's | 21 | | expressive and receptive language acquisition and his or her | 22 | | developmental stages toward English literacy and kindergarten | 23 | | readiness under Section 15 and (ii) select tools or assessments | 24 | | for educators under Section 20. | 25 | | (b) Under the program, the State Board must refer deaf, |
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| 1 | | hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind children to early intervention | 2 | | services at 3 months old and must implement early intervention | 3 | | services for those children by 6 months old. If a child is | 4 | | referred to early intervention services under this subsection | 5 | | at 3 months old, the State Board must implement a formal | 6 | | assessment. | 7 | | Section 15. Parent resource. | 8 | | (a) The parent resource developed as part of the language | 9 | | assessment program under Section 10 must do all of the | 10 | | following: | 11 | | (1) Include the language developmental milestones | 12 | | selected by the advisory committee created under Section | 13 | | 25. | 14 | | (2) Be appropriate for use, in both content and | 15 | | administration, with deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind | 16 | | children from birth to 5 years of age who use American Sign | 17 | | Language, English, or both. | 18 | | (3) Present the deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind | 19 | | child's language developmental milestones in terms of | 20 | | typical development of all children, disaggregated by age | 21 | | range. | 22 | | (4) Be written for clarity and ease of use by parents | 23 | | or guardians. | 24 | | (5) Be aligned with any State guidelines on early | 25 | | intervention, early childhood education requirements |
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| 1 | | pursuant to federal law, and State standards in English | 2 | | language arts. | 3 | | (6) Make clear that the parent or guardian has the | 4 | | right to select the language, either ASL, English, or | 5 | | another language, for his or her child's language | 6 | | acquisition and language developmental milestones. | 7 | | (7) Allow a parent or guardian to bring the parent | 8 | | resource to an IFSP or IEP meeting for purposes of sharing | 9 | | his or her observations about his or her child's | 10 | | development. | 11 | | (8) Make clear that the parent resource is not a formal | 12 | | assessment of language and literacy development and that a | 13 | | parent's or guardian's observations of his or her child may | 14 | | differ from the formal assessment data presented at an IFSP | 15 | | or IEP meeting. | 16 | | (9) Make clear that resources provided to a parent or | 17 | | guardian include fair, balanced, and comprehensive
| 18 | | information about American Sign Language, English, and | 19 | | other communication modes and available services and | 20 | | programs. | 21 | | (b) The State Board must disseminate the parent resource | 22 | | developed under this Section to all parents or guardians of | 23 | | deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind children. | 24 | | Section 20. Educator tools and assessments. | 25 | | (a) The State Board must select tools or assessments for |
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| 1 | | educators that may be used to assess the language and literacy | 2 | | development of deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind students. | 3 | | These educator tools or assessments must comply with all of the | 4 | | following: | 5 | | (1) Be in a format that shows stages of language | 6 | | development. | 7 | | (2) Be selected for use by educators to track the | 8 | | development of a deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind | 9 | | student's expressive and receptive language acquisition | 10 | | and developmental stages toward literacy. | 11 | | (3) Be selected from a list of instruments or | 12 | | assessments used to assess the development of all children | 13 | | from birth to 5 years of age. | 14 | | (4) Be appropriate, in both content and | 15 | | administration, for use with deaf, hard-of-hearing, or | 16 | | deaf-blind students. | 17 | | (5) Be used, in addition to the assessment required by | 18 | | federal law, by the deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind | 19 | | student's IFSP or IEP team, as applicable, to track the | 20 | | student's progress and to establish or modify his or her | 21 | | IFSP or IEP plan. | 22 | | Additionally, the educator tools or assessments may | 23 | | reflect the recommendations of the advisory committee | 24 | | established under Section 25. | 25 | | (b) The State Board must, pursuant to federal law, | 26 | | disseminate the educator tools or assessments selected under |
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| 1 | | this Section to local educational agencies for use in the | 2 | | development and modification of IEP plans and must provide | 3 | | those agencies materials and training on the use of those tools | 4 | | or assessments to assist deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind | 5 | | children in becoming linguistically ready for kindergarten. | 6 | | (c) If a deaf, hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind child does | 7 | | not demonstrate progress in expressive and receptive language | 8 | | skills, as measured by one of the educator tools or assessments | 9 | | selected under subsection (a), the child's IFSP or IEP team | 10 | | must explain, in detail, the reasons why the child is not | 11 | | meeting the language developmental milestones or progressing | 12 | | toward them and must recommend and implement specific | 13 | | strategies, services, and programs that will be provided to | 14 | | assist the child's success toward American Sign Language, | 15 | | English, or both. The child's IFSP or IEP team must conduct a | 16 | | follow-up assessment within 60 days after the strategies, | 17 | | services, and programs have been implemented to determine the | 18 | | effects of those changes on the child. | 19 | | (d) No later than July 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, a | 20 | | language assessment must be given to each child who is deaf, | 21 | | hard of hearing, or deaf-blind and who is less than 6 years of | 22 | | age. The language assessment shall be provided through an early | 23 | | intervention service or, if the child is 3 years of age or | 24 | | older, through the school district in which the child resides. | 25 | | The assessment must be provided in accordance with the | 26 | | provisions of and any rules adopted pursuant to this Act. |
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| 1 | | Section 25. Advisory committee. | 2 | | (a) The State Board must establish an advisory committee | 3 | | for the language assessment program established under this Act. | 4 | | The advisory committee shall consist of all of the following | 5 | | members appointed by the State Board: | 6 | | (1) One parent or guardian of a child who is deaf or | 7 | | hard of hearing and who uses the dual languages of ASL and | 8 | | English. | 9 | | (2) One parent or guardian of a child who is deaf or | 10 | | hard of hearing and who uses only spoken English, with or | 11 | | without visual supplements. | 12 | | (3) One educator licensed under Article 21B of the | 13 | | School Code who teaches deaf or hard-of-hearing pupils who | 14 | | use the dual languages of ASL and English. | 15 | | (4) One educator licensed under Article 21B of the | 16 | | School Code who teaches deaf or hard-of-hearing pupils from | 17 | | only an English-spoken school. | 18 | | (5) One expert who researches language outcomes for | 19 | | deaf or hard-of-hearing children using ASL and English. | 20 | | (6) One expert who researches language outcomes for | 21 | | deaf or hard-of-hearing children using spoken English, | 22 | | with or without visual supplements. | 23 | | (7) One educator licensed under Article 21B of the | 24 | | School Code who teaches deaf or hard-of-hearing pupils and | 25 | | whose expertise is in curriculum and instruction in ASL and |
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| 1 | | English. | 2 | | (8) One educator licensed under Article 21B of the | 3 | | School Code who teaches deaf or hard-of-hearing pupils and | 4 | | whose expertise is in curriculum and instruction in spoken | 5 | | English, with or without visual supplements. | 6 | | (9) One advocate for the teaching and use of the dual | 7 | | languages of ASL and English. | 8 | | (10) One advocate for the teaching and use of spoken | 9 | | English, with or without visual supplements. | 10 | | (11) One early intervention specialist who works with | 11 | | deaf or hard-of-hearing infants and toddlers using the dual | 12 | | languages of ASL and English. | 13 | | (12) One educator licensed under Article 21B of the | 14 | | School Code who teaches deaf or hard-of-hearing pupils and | 15 | | whose expertise is in ASL and English language assessment. | 16 | | (13) One speech pathologist of spoken English, with or | 17 | | without the use of visual supplements. | 18 | | (14) One deaf-blind person who represents the | 19 | | deaf-blind community. | 20 | | (15) One deaf-blind specialist or educator whose | 21 | | expertise is in deaf-blind advocacy or education. | 22 | | (b) The advisory committee shall first meet on or before | 23 | | July 1, 2020, at which meeting it shall elect a chairperson and | 24 | | a vice chairperson. Each subsequent meeting shall be at the | 25 | | call of the chairperson. The State Board shall provide | 26 | | administrative and other support to the advisory committee. |
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| 1 | | Members of the advisory committee shall serve without | 2 | | compensation, but may be reimbursed for travel and related | 3 | | expenses from funds appropriated for that purpose, subject to | 4 | | the rules of the appropriate travel control board. A quorum of | 5 | | the advisory committee shall be 9 members. All actions of the | 6 | | advisory committee shall be by motion adopted by a majority of | 7 | | those members present when there is a quorum. Any vacancy in | 8 | | the committee shall be filled in th same manner as the original | 9 | | appointment in accordance with subsection (a). | 10 | | The State Board must provide the advisory committee with a | 11 | | list of language developmental milestones from existing | 12 | | standardized norms, along with any relevant information held | 13 | | regarding those language developmental milestones, for | 14 | | possible inclusion in the parent resource developed under | 15 | | Section 15. These language developmental milestones must be | 16 | | aligned with the State's infant, toddler, and preschool | 17 | | guidelines, the instrument used to assess the development of | 18 | | children with disabilities pursuant to federal law, and State | 19 | | standards in English language arts. | 20 | | (c) On or before June 1, 2021, the advisory committee must | 21 | | develop and submit to the State Board specific action plans and | 22 | | must propose any rules necessary to fully implement this Act. | 23 | | The specific action plans and proposed rules developed by the | 24 | | advisory committee must include, but are not limited to, all of | 25 | | the following: | 26 | | (1) Language assessments that include data collection |
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| 1 | | and timely tracking of a child's development to provide | 2 | | information about the child's receptive and expressive | 3 | | language compared to the child's linguistically | 4 | | age-appropriate peers who are not deaf, hard of hearing, or | 5 | | deaf-blind. | 6 | | (2) Language assessments conducted in accordance with | 7 | | standardized norms and timelines to monitor and track | 8 | | language developmental milestones in both receptive and | 9 | | expressive language acquisition and developmental stages | 10 | | toward English literacy for all children who are deaf, hard | 11 | | of hearing, or deaf-blind from birth to the age of 5. | 12 | | (3) Language assessments delivered in ASL and English | 13 | | that have been validated for the specific purpose for which | 14 | | each assessment is used and appropriately normed. | 15 | | (4) Language assessments administered by individuals | 16 | | who are proficient in: | 17 | | (A) ASL; | 18 | | (B) both ASL and English; | 19 | | (C) English, with or without visual supplements; | 20 | | (D) reading developmental stages; or | 21 | | (E) language developmental stages of ASL and | 22 | | English. | 23 | | (5) Use of assessment results for guidance on the | 24 | | language developmental discussions by IFSP and
IEP teams | 25 | | when assessing the progress of a child's language | 26 | | development in ASL, English, or both. |
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| 1 | | (6) Reporting of assessment results to the parent or | 2 | | guardian of a child who is deaf, hard of hearing, or | 3 | | deaf-blind, and, on an aggregated basis, reporting those | 4 | | results to the State Board and the Department of Public | 5 | | Health for publication to ensure accountability and | 6 | | provide
information on how the education of those children | 7 | | may be improved. | 8 | | (7) Reporting of assessment results to the members of a | 9 | | child's IFSP or IEP team, as appropriate, to assist the | 10 | | team in ensuring that appropriate language growth remains a | 11 | | priority and continues to be monitored by the team. | 12 | | (d) In carrying out its duties under this Section, the | 13 | | advisory committee must do all of the following: | 14 | | (1) Solicit input from experts on the selection of | 15 | | language developmental milestones for American Sign | 16 | | Language and English. | 17 | | (2) Review, select, and monitor the use of language | 18 | | assessments for children who are deaf, hard of hearing, or | 19 | | deaf-blind. | 20 | | (3) Identify criteria for qualified ASL and English | 21 | | experts who may be advocates at initial and periodic IFSP | 22 | | or IEP team meetings. This includes role models of deaf, | 23 | | hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind professionals in similar | 24 | | fields. | 25 | | (4) Identify criteria for qualified language | 26 | | assessment evaluators and resources for locating those |
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| 1 | | evaluators. | 2 | | (5) Identify methods for communicating language | 3 | | assessment results, language developmental milestones, | 4 | | assessment tools, and the progress of a deaf, | 5 | | hard-of-hearing, or deaf-blind child to the parent or | 6 | | guardian of that child, teachers, and other professionals | 7 | | involved in the early intervention and education of the | 8 | | child. | 9 | | Section 30. Report. On or before July 1, 2022, and on or | 10 | | before each July 1 thereafter, the State Board must produce and | 11 | | make available on its website a report using data reported in | 12 | | compliance with the federally required State performance plan | 13 | | on pupils with disabilities that is specific to the language | 14 | | and literacy development of deaf, hard-of-hearing, or | 15 | | deaf-blind children from birth to 5 years of age relative to | 16 | | those children's peers who are not deaf, hard of hearing, or | 17 | | deaf-blind. | 18 | | Section 35. Application and implementation of Act. This Act | 19 | | applies only to children from birth through 5 years of age. Any | 20 | | activities of the State Board in implementing this Act must be | 21 | | consistent with federal law regarding the education of children | 22 | | with disabilities and federal law regarding the privacy of | 23 | | pupil information. Implementation of this Act is subject to | 24 | | appropriation.
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| 1 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 2 | | becoming law.".
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