Child Find (Indicator 11)

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Child Find (Indicator 11)
Meeting the 60 School-Day Requirement for
Initial Evaluations
Colleen Stover / Steve W. Smith 2009 COSA
Conference October 2009
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OBJECTIVES

• Understand the Importance of Child Find
• Understand the Importance of Accurate and Timely
  Data
• Understand the Reason Codes and How They Can
  Inform Improvement Planning
• Understand the Exceptions to the 60 School-day
  Timeline
• Understand the Changes to the Child Find
  Collection

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Meeting the 60 School-Day Requirement for Initial
Evaluations - Child Find

• What Is Child Find and Why Is It So Important?
• Looking at The Data
• IDEA Assurances Timely and Accurate
• Compliance
• Are We Getting Closer?
• Understanding the Reason Codes
• Now Its Your Turn
• Looking at the Changes
• Take-aways

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What Is Child Find and Why Is It So Important?

• The Purposes of the Child Find Collection are
• To locate, evaluate, identify, and serve in a
  timely manner
• To meet reporting requirements for Indicator B11
  - State Performance Plan (SPP) regarding
  compliance with IDEA
• To identify
• the number and percent of children with parental
  consent to evaluate whose initial evaluations
  were completed within or exceeded the 60
  school-day timeline.
• the range of days evaluations were delayed and
  the reasons for these delays.
• includes children found eligible and not eligible.

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Looking At The Data IDEA Assurances
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Looking At The Data Timeliness

• Timely
• An agency will be considered untimely if they do
  not submit any data by the close of the
  Collection or have uncorrected errors after the
  close of the Collection.
• An agency will also be considered untimely, if
  they do not complete the correction process
  during the Electronic Correction period.

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Looking At The Data Timeliness

• Districts Submitting Late
• 2007-2008 13 Districts, 6.57
• 2008-2009 0 Districts, 0.0

100
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Looking At The Data Accuracy

• Accurate
• An agency will be considered inaccurate, if the
  Collection had to be opened or left open after
  the Electronic Correction period closed.
• An agency will also be considered inaccurate if
  they submit a Post-Submission Correction Form.

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OOPS ERRORS
Looking At The Data Accuracy
Number of Districts 07/08 08/09
14 75 40 43
32 77 45 41
Mis-counting gt60 school-days? Students were
claimed on Child Count but found eligible after
December Child Count. Students were reported
as not-eligible or no consent for initial
services, but were reported on December Child
Count. Duplicate records submitted for same
student.
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Reason Timeline Not Met Reasons for exceeding 60 School-Days 2007-2008 OriginalNumber / OriginalNumber / Other RecodedNumber / Other RecodedNumber /
Prolonged student absence 84 8.2 91 8.9
Parent/guardian did not present child/student for testing 33 3.2 44 4.3
Parent/guardian did not attend eligibility meeting 138 13.5 178 17.4
Initial testing results indicated need for additional testing not identified through initial evaluation planning 140 13.7 147 14.4
Delay by doctor/medical personnel 91 8.9 99 9.7
Delay by district/program evaluation staff 316 30.9 413 40.4
Within extended timeline by written agreement for a transfer student 33 3.2 33 3.2
Within extended timeline by written agreement to determine if a student has a specific learning disability 9 0.9 11 1.1
Other (Comment Required) 178 17.4 6 0.6
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Reason Timeline Not Met 2007-2008 2008-20009 2008-2009 Recodes ? Maybes
Prolonged student absence 91 (8.9) 57 (7.71 1 ?2
Parent/guardian did not present child student for testing 44 (4.3) 36 (4.87) 2 ?4
Parent/guardian did not attend eligibility meeting 178 (17.4) 94 (12.72) 11 (14.2)
Initial testing results indicated need for additional testing not identified through initial evaluation planning 147 (14.4) 71 (9.61) 0
Delay by doctor/medical personnel 99 (9.7) 55 (7.44) 0
Delay by district/program evaluation staff 413 (40.4) 293 (39.65) 57 (47.36)
Within extended timeline by written agreement for a transfer student 33 (3.2) 35 (4.74) 0 ?11
Within extended timeline by written agreement to determine if a student has a specific learning disability 11 (1.1) 27 (3.65) 0
Other (Comment Required) 6 (0.6) 71 (9.61) -71 (9.61)
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Looking At The Data Accuracy
107 fewer OTHERS to recode
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Looking At The Data Accuracy
Accurate and consistent data within/across
districts.
Decrease duplication of staff time and tasks.
Improved professional development planning.
What it means for Districts and ODE?
Reduction in paperwork.
Increased understanding of exceptions to the
Child Find timeline.
Fewer correction reports to complete.
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Looking At The Data Accuracy

• Leads to
• 100 Compliance

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COMPLIANCE

• Compliance means 100 of initial evaluations
  completed were within the 60 school-day timeline.

• Are we getting closer?
• Understanding and Using the Reason Codes

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Compliance Are We Getting Closer?

• Number and Percentage of Compliant Evaluations
  and Districts 100 of evaluations completed
  within the 60 school-day timeline.

(2006-2007, 2007-2008, 2008-2009)
Evaluations Reported Evaluations Compliant Districts in Compliance District Non- Compliant
2006-2007 108 (54.55)
2007-2008 16,168 15,602 (94.87) 86 (43.7) 111(56.35)
2008-2009 17,106 16,522 (96.59) 112 (56.9) 85 (43.15)
Difference between 07/08-08/09 661 920(1.72) 26(13.2) -26(13.2)
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Compliance Understanding the Reason Codes

• How Can the Reason Codes Help Us Reach
  Compliance?
• Informs Professional Development Improvement
  Planning
• A Closer Look at a Few Reason Codes
• Know the exceptions to the timeline
• The two non-exception Reason Codes used most
  often

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Compliance Understanding the Reason Codes
Informs Professional Development Improvement
Planning Who Individuals, teachers,
service providers, administration, all staff,
general education staff Where Provider
Specific, Classroom Specific, School Specific,
School-level Specific, District-wide What Which
child find issues need greatest focus.
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Reason Timeline Not Met 2008-20009 2008-2009 Recodes ? Maybes
Prolonged student absence 57 (7.71 1 ?2
Parent/guardian did not present child student for testing 36 (4.87) 2 ?4
Parent/guardian did not attend eligibility meeting 94 (12.72) 11 (14.2)
Initial testing results indicated need for additional testing not identified through initial evaluation planning 71 (9.61) 0
Delay by doctor/medical personnel 55 (7.44) 0
Delay by district/program evaluation staff 293 (39.65) 57 (47.36)
Within extended timeline by written agreement for a transfer student 35 (4.74) 0 ?11
Within extended timeline by written agreement to determine if a student has a specific learning disability 27 (3.65) 0
Other (Comment Required) 71 (9.61) -71 (9.61)
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Compliance A Closer Look at Two Non-exception
Reason Codes

• 14.2 of non-compliance could disappear if
  districts follow OARs 581-015-2120 and 2190
• The district makes all efforts to arrange a
  mutually-agreed upon date to hold the
  Eligibility Meeting within the 60 school-day
  timeline and provides appropriate notice to the
  parent. If the parent cannot attend or cannot
  participate via an alternative mode, the district
  holds the Eligibility Meeting in accordance with
  OAR 581-015-2190.
• OAR 581-015-2120 (1)(a)
• OAR 581-015-2190 (1)

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Compliance A Closer Look at Two Non-exception
Reason Codes

• Delay by district/program evaluation staff
• Evaluation staff errors
• (2007-2008) 413/ 40.4
• (2008-2009) 293/39.65
• Approximately the same
• BUT

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Compliance A Closer Look at Two Non-exception
Reason Codes

• 57 Other comments recoded
• 350/47.36 Evaluation staff errors
• 6.96 Slippage from 2007-2008
• With more information,
• 17 Others could be exceptions
• 11 Others could be lt 60 days
• 28 Others could be exceptions or within the
  timeline

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YOUR TURN Ask Yourselves
Should these evaluations really be out of
compliance?

• Do you need more information in order to recode
  these? If so, what information would be helpful?
• Is it possible these evaluations were exceptions
  to the timeline?
• What could the district have done to prevent
  non-compliance?
• If the district did what they could have done,
  which Reason Code could the district have used?
  Would it still be non-compliant?

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YOUR TURN Should These Evaluations Really Be
Out of Compliance? Easy

• What could the district have done differently?
• If they had, which Reason Code could the
  district have used?
• Student withdrew from school after permission to
  test was signed. Re-enrolled and testing was
  resumed.
• Student enrolled 3/2/09 Testing was started at
  another school district.

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YOUR TURN Should These Evaluations Really Be
Out of Compliance? Hard

• What could the district have done differently?
  If they had, which Reason Code could the
  district have used?
• Had to schedule meeting when parent could attend
  she chose the date according to her work.
• Parent rescheduled meeting due to vacation.
  Parent did not attend rescheduled meeting and a
  3rd meeting was scheduled and attended.

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YOUR TURN Should These Evaluations Really Be
Out of Compliance? HARDEST

• What could the district have done differently?
  If they had, which Reason Code could the
  district have used?
• School has a 4 day week. Due to SLP lack of
  availability and time, the time was 62 days after
  counting Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and
  Christmas.
• It took awhile for all the evaluations to be
  completed. School days were missed for inclement
  weather. Parent signed for re-evaluation consent
  on 2/18/09.

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Changes for 2009-2010

• Reason Codes Changes
• ECSE Developmental Delay
• Child Find Q A

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Reason Code Changes

• WHY?
• Student not available for testing
• Prolonged student absence included in
  Parent/guardian did not present child/student
  for testing
• Comments required for 1 and 2
• To ensure data quality
• Monitor districts understanding and consistent
  use of these Reason Codes
• Inform Technical Assistance to districts

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Changes for 2009-2010

• ECSE Developmental delay transition to school
  age Initial or re-evaluation

Currently Evaluations for these students are
considered Initial Evaluations and are included
in the Child Find Collection Change Evaluations
for these students are considered Re-Evaluations
and will not be included in the Child Find
Collection.
WHY?

• Align with the CFRs, Federal guidance, and OARs.
  
• Accurately reflect districts compliance
  regarding timely initial evaluations
• Reduce paperwork and data-reporting for
  districts and programs

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Take-aways

• Great job improving number and percentage of
  evaluations completed within the 60 school-day
  timeline.
• Great job meeting the IDEA assurance of timely
  submittal.
• Know the exceptions to the timeline and how to
  use them when appropriate.
• Remember to provide parent with proper notice,
  accommodate needs as much as possible and hold
  the eligibility meeting within the 60 school-days
  even if parent cannot attend.
• Know and train on the changes to ECSE DD
  transitions to school age. (No longer reported on
  Child Find Collection.)

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Take-aways Continued

• Look at the Reason Codes you have selected and
  ask how they can inform professional development.
• If you exceed the 60 school-day timeline
• Know the definition of each Reason Code and when
  to use it.
• When you have to make a comment, be specific.
• Count only school days (Excel workday function).

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HOW CAN ODE HELP?

• Colleen Stover, Education SpecialistChild Find,
  Indicator 11
• 503.947.5705
• colleen.stover_at_state.or.us

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