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Subject: Data Collection/U. S. Department of
Education Proposed Changes/ECSE
Source: Mary Corey, Director, Data Coordination
Intended Audience: Directors of Special Education and Early Childhood
Special Education
Date: August 21, 2007
The U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs
(OSEP) is inviting comment on proposed changes to the special education
early childhood educational environments. These changes, if approved, will
go into effect for the 2008-09 school year. Districts are encouraged to look
at this information carefully and provide comment to OSEP in regard to the
feasibility, burden, and usefulness of these changes.
Currently, the first step in determining a child's educational environment
is to know if the child is enrolled in a regular early childhood program,
regardless of where special education services are provided. If so, the
percentage of time spent in the regular early childhood program is
calculated. OSEP is proposing that the regular early childhood categories be
divided into two sets, one for programs with at least 70 percent nondisabled
children and one for programs that include between 50 percent and 69 percent
nondisabled children.
OSEP's supporting statement includes the following: "The revision to the
criterion for defining regular early childhood program was driven by input
from experts and stakeholders in the field to better reflect an inclusion
environment. Interest in revising the definition of 'regular early childhood
program' to increase the criterion proportion of typically developing
children from a minimum 50 percent to a minimum of 70 percent typically
developing children would effectively address the need to reflect more
inclusive environments, but would not accurately reflect the composition of
special education programs -- as that category would then refer to all early
childhood programs that included less than 70 percent typically developing
children.
OSEP's response to that conflict was to add an intermediate category where
SEAs can report children who attend regular early childhood programs that
contain 50 percent to 69 percent typically developing children."
The proposed indicators can be viewed by going to the following web site:
http://edicsweb.ed.gov/browse/unapproved.cfm. Click on the collection
numbered 03427, and then click on the link to download attachments. The most
pertinent document is Att 1820-0517 (Pt B T3) form.doc.
Instructions for providing comment to OSEP about these changes are included
in the 60 Day Federal Register document. Comments must be
submitted to OSEP on or before October 15, 2007.
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