Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

House File 244 - Introduced
                                  HOUSE FILE 244
                                  BY JACOBSEN, STAED, and SALMON
                            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:
                                         TLSB 1776HH (4) 89
                                         kh/jh
                                H.F. 244
    Section 1. NEW SECTION. 256B.10 Deaf and hard-of-hearing
 children —— language developmental milestones.
    1. Language developmental milestones —— selection.
    a. The director of the department of education shall appoint
 an early language development consultant to work with the
 state school for the deaf, the area education agencies, school
 districts, and the early hearing detection and intervention
 program in the department of public health, and 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 American sign language and English
 literacy. In selecting the language developmental milestones,
 the early language development consultant shall consider
 recommendations from the advisory committee established under
 subsection 5.
    b. The duties of the early language development consultant
 appointed by the director pursuant to paragraph “a” shall, at a
 minimum, include all of the following:
    (1) Developing and managing language milestones for each
 age, from birth through age eight, in American sign language
 and English pursuant to subsection 3.
    (2) Staffing the advisory committee established pursuant
 to subsection 5, including but not limited to organizing and
 facilitating the advisory committee meetings.
    (3) Developing and distributing resources for parents
 pertaining to language development pursuant to subsection 4.
    (4) Developing and distributing resources for early
 interventionists, educators, hospitals, and health care
 providers pertaining to language development.
    (5) Exercising general supervision over follow-up contacts
 with parents and guardians regarding the need for valid and
 reliable language assessments and distribution of resources
 toward language development in American sign language and
                                           LSB 1776HH (4) 89
                               -1-         kh/jh                 1/10
                                H.F. 244
 English.
    (6) Planning a parent-friendly procedure for outreach and
 follow-up.
    (7) Exercising general supervision over annual or biannual,
 at the consultant’s discretion, milestone assessments for deaf
 and hard-of-hearing children.
    (8) Managing and summarizing data outcomes for parents,
 guardians, and partner agencies to use, including the annual
 report published pursuant to subsection 7.
    (9) Arranging for and exercising general supervision over
 the appropriate training for language assessment personnel.
    (10) Maintaining valid and reliable two-fold language
 assessment approach, utilizing both American sign language and
 English, in selecting milestones, compiling data, employing
 qualified personnel, and distributing resources.
    2. Parent resource. The parent resource developed pursuant
 to subsection 1 shall meet all of the following requirements:
    a. Include American sign language and English 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 through age eight 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 through age
 eight, 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, standards for
 evaluating eligibility and progress for early intervention or
 special education under 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
                                           LSB 1776HH (4) 89
                               -2-         kh/jh                 2/10
                                H.F. 244
 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 early language
 development consultant, in consultation with the state school
 for the deaf, the area education agencies, school districts,
 and the early hearing detection and intervention program in the
 department of public health, shall select existing tools or
 assessments for educators that can be used to assess American
 sign language and English language and literacy development of
 deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth through age eight.
    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 American sign language and 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 plans or individualized
                                           LSB 1776HH (4) 89
                               -3-         kh/jh                  3/10
                                H.F. 244
 education programs.
    (2) Reflect the recommendations of the advisory committee
 convened under subsection 5.
    4. Dissemination. The early language development
 consultant 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 early hearing detection and
 invention programs, area education agencies, school districts,
 accredited nonpublic schools, and the state school for the deaf
 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
 kindergarten readiness using American sign language or English,
 or both, from birth through age eight.
    5. Advisory committee.
    a. The department of education shall establish and consult
 with an advisory committee for purposes of soliciting input,
 including 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 early language development
 consultant shall provide staffing and administrative support
 to the advisory committee and shall provide the committee
 with a list of existing language developmental milestones
 from existing standardized norms, along with any relevant
 information the department has regarding those language
 developmental milestones for possible inclusion in the parent
 resource developed pursuant to this section.
    b. The advisory committee shall do all of the following:
    (1) Make recommendations on the selection and use of the
                                           LSB 1776HH (4) 89
                               -4-         kh/jh                  4/10
                                H.F. 244
 educator tools or assessments selected pursuant to subsection
 3.
    (2) Advise the department or its consultants on the content
 and administration of existing evaluation and assessment tools,
 instruments, and procedures 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 such
 tools, instruments, and procedures 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) Develop a process in compliance with federal law for
 plan modifications if a deaf or hard-of-hearing child does not
 demonstrate adequate yearly progress in improving expressive
 and receptive language skills, as measured by an educator tool
 or assessment selected pursuant to subsection 3.
    (4) The advisory committee shall consist of seven
 volunteers, the majority of whom shall be deaf or
 hard-of-hearing, and all of whom shall have experience
 or involvement within the field of education for the
 deaf and hard-of-hearing or relating directly to deaf and
 hard-of-hearing children. The advisory committee shall include
 all of the following members:
    (a) One parent or guardian of a child who is deaf or
 hard-of-hearing and who uses both American sign language and
 English or who uses spoken English.
    (b) One licensed teacher who uses American sign language and
 English.
    (c) One licensed teacher who uses spoken English.
    (d) One person who shall be the parent or guardian of a deaf
 or hard-of-hearing child or an interpreter, speech pathologist,
 teacher of the deaf, human rights advocate, child advocate, or
 licensed education administrator.
    (e) One advocate for the deaf or an advocate of American
                                           LSB 1776HH (4) 89
                               -5-         kh/jh                 5/10
                                H.F. 244
 sign language.
    (f) One American sign language specialist, American sign
 language professor, or native signer recommended by the Iowa
 association of the deaf and the office of deaf services of the
 department of human rights.
    (g) One speech pathologist whose expertise is in spoken
 English, or an early interventionist who uses spoken English.
    c. The early language development consultant shall
 convene the advisory committee by March 1, 2022, and as
 frequently thereafter as the consultant deems necessary
 for purposes of this section. The advisory committee shall
 submit recommendations to the state board of education by
 July 1, 2022, shall submit recommendations relating to plan
 modifications developed pursuant to paragraph “b”, subparagraph
 (3), to the state board of education and to the general
 assembly by December 1, 2022, and shall submit recommendations
 thereafter as the consultant deems necessary.
    6. Activities —— consistent with federal law. All activities
 of the department of education in implementing this section
 shall be consistent with federal law for the education of
 children from birth through age eight.
    7. 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 through age eight, 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.
    8. 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
                                           LSB 1776HH (4) 89
                               -6-         kh/jh                 6/10
                                         H.F. 244
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; requires the director of
 the department of education to employ an early language
 development consultant; provides for the identification of
 tools or assessments educators can use to assess the language
 and literacy development of such children from birth through
 age eight; 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 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.
    EARLY LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANT. The bill lists
 the duties of the early language development consultant,
 including but not limited to staffing the advisory committee;
 developing and distributing resources; exercising general
 supervision over follow-up contacts with parents and guardians
 regarding the need for valid and reliable language assessments
 and distribution of resources toward language development in
 American sign language and English; planning a parent-friendly
 procedure for outreach and follow-ups; arranging for and
 exercising general supervision over the appropriate training
                                                        LSB 1776HH (4) 89
                                       -7-              kh/jh                       7/10
                                H.F. 244
 for language assessment personnel and serving as a supervisor
 to such personnel; and utilizing both American sign language
 and English in selecting milestones, compiling data, employing
 qualified personnel, and distributing resources.
    LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES —— SELECTION. The
 bill requires the early language development consultant to
 cooperate with the state school for the deaf and area education
 agencies, school districts, and the early hearing detection
 and intervention program in the department of public health,
 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 through age eight
 who use American sign language or English, or both; present the
 milestones in terms of typical development of all children;
 and be aligned to the state’s existing infant, toddler, and
 preschool standards for evaluating eligibility and progress for
 early intervention or special education in English language
 arts. 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