The bill seeks to enhance early childhood education in Montana by broadening the focus from solely literacy to include numeracy, thereby providing more comprehensive educational support for young children. It introduces greater flexibility in evaluating children's eligibility for early interventions, which is expected to lead to more personalized and effective educational strategies. Key amendments include the insertion of "and to perform math" in the findings related to educational success, while references to "literacy" are deleted in favor of a broader focus on "educational" interventions. The bill also establishes new reporting requirements to ensure that data on student progress and the efficacy of interventions are effectively communicated to the legislature.

Additionally, the bill amends the Average Number Belonging (ANB) calculations for public school enrollment, clarifying that students enrolled in multiple public schools will only be counted as one full-time pupil, with specific exceptions for those in jumpstart programs. It allows for the implementation of a numeracy-based evaluation methodology and incorporates numeracy into jumpstart programs. These changes aim to refine the enrollment counting process and enhance educational support, particularly for students at risk of falling behind in both reading and math, while ensuring that the state can better track and support early literacy and numeracy initiatives.

Statutes affected:
LC Text: 5-11-222, 20-3-326, 20-5-101, 20-7-1801, 20-7-1802, 20-7-1803, 20-7-1804, 20-9-311