Department of education

Section 122(d) (14 Del.C. §122(d))

PUBLIC NOTICE

PROPOSED

Education Impact Analysis Pursuant To 14 Del.C. Section 122(d)

930 Supportive Instruction (Homebound)

A. Type of Regulatory Action Required

Re-authorization of Existing Regulation

B. Synopsis of Subject Matter of the Regulation

The Secretary of Education intends to amend 14 DE Admin. Code 930 Supportive Instruction (Homebound) in order to clarify the wording in 2.4 and 3.0 concerning supportive instruction which is in the school setting and supportive instruction that takes place at the student’s home. The regulation defines Supportive Instruction, describes who is eligible for services and how to implement the program.

C. Impact Criteria

1. Will the amended regulation help improve student achievement as measured against state achievement standards? The amended regulation will continue to help improve student achievement as measured against state achievement standards by providing Homebound Instruction when needed.

2. Will the amended regulation help ensure that all students receive an equitable education? The amended regulation will continue to help insure that Homebound students receive an equitable education through supportive instruction services.

3. Will the amended regulation help to ensure that all students’ health and safety are adequately protected? The amended regulation will continue to contribute to the health and safety of Homebound students.

4. Will the amended regulation help to ensure that all students’ legal rights are respected? The amended regulation will continue to help to ensure that homebound students’ legal rights to an education are respected.

5. Will the amended regulation preserve the necessary authority and flexibility of decision making at the local board and school level? The amended regulation will preserve the necessary authority and flexibility of decision making at the local board and school level.

6. Will the amended regulation place unnecessary reporting or administrative requirements or mandates upon decision makers at the local board and school levels? The amended regulation will not place unnecessary reporting or administrative requirements or mandates upon decision makers at the local board and school levels.

7. Will the decision making authority and accountability for addressing the subject to be regulated be placed in the same entity? The decision making authority and accountability for addressing the subject to be regulated will remain in the same entity.

8. Will the amended regulation be consistent with and not an impediment to the implementation of other state educational policies, in particular to state educational policies addressing achievement in the core academic subjects of mathematics, science, language arts and social studies? The amended regulation will be consistent with and not an impediment to the implementation of other state educational policies, in particular to state educational policies addressing achievement in the core academic subjects of mathematics, science, language arts and social studies.

9. Is there a less burdensome method for addressing the purpose of the regulation? There is no less burdensome method for addressing the purpose of the regulation.

10. What is the cost to the State and to the local school boards of compliance with the regulation? There is no additional cost to the State and to the local school boards for compliance with the regulation.

930 Supportive Instruction (Homebound)

1.0 Definition.

Supportive instruction is an alternative educational program provided at home, in a hospital or at a related site for students temporarily at home or hospitalized for a sudden illness, injury, episodic flare up of a chronic condition or accident considered to be of a temporary nature.

1.1 Procedures for eligibility shall be limited to appropriate certification that the student cannot attend school.

1.2 Services for children with disabilities as defined in the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and the State Department of Education's regulations on Children with Disabilities shall be provided according to the Administrative Manual: Special Education Services, and shall be processed under the district's special education authority. Nothing in this regulation shall prevent a district from providing supportive instruction to children with disabilities in a manner consistent with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Administrative Manual.

1.3 Nothing in this regulation shall alter a district's duties under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or the Americans with Disabilities Act to students who are qualified individuals with disabilities. Nothing in this regulation shall prevent a district from providing supportive instruction to such students.

2.0 Eligibility.

A student enrolled in a school district is eligible for supportive instruction when the school receives the required certification documentation that an accident, injury, sudden illness or episodic flare up of a chronic condition will prevent the student from attending school for at least ten (10) school days.

2.1 A physician must certify absences due to a medical condition.

2.2 Absences due to severe adjustment problems must be certified by a psychologist or psychiatrist and confirmed through a staff conference.

2.3 A physician must certify absences due to pregnancy complicated by illness or other abnormal conditions.

2.3.1 Students do not qualify for supportive instruction for normal pregnancies unless there are complications.

2.3.2 Students who remain enrolled in school are eligible for supportive instruction during a postpartum period not to exceed six weeks. Postpartum absences must be certified by a physician.

2.4 When the request for supportive instruction is for transitional in-school programs immediately following supportive instruction provided outside school, the request must be certified through a staff conference. Supportive instruction can be requested as an in-school transitional program that follows a period of supportive instruction that was provided outside of the school setting. If the supportive instruction is provided as an in-school transitional program, it must be approved through a staff conference.

3.0 Implementation. Supportive instruction for students shall begin as soon as the certification required by 2.0 is received and may continue upon return to school only in those exceptional cases where it is determined that the student needs a transitional program to guarantee a successful return to the school program as in 2.4. Supportive instruction for students shall begin as soon as the documentation required by 2.0 is received. Supportive instruction may continue upon the return to school setting only in those exceptional cases where it is determined that a student needs a transitional program to guarantee a successful return to the school program as delineated in 2.4.

3.1 Supportive instruction shall adhere to the extent possible to the student's school curriculum and shall make full use of the available technology in order to facilitate the instruction.

3.1.1 The school shall provide a minimum of 3 hours of supportive instruction each week of eligibility for students K-5th grade, and a minimum of five hours each week of eligibility for students 6-12th grade. There is no minimum for in-school transition.

3.1.2 Nothing in this regulation shall prevent a school district from providing additional hours of supportive instruction to eligible students from either its Academic Excellence allotment or other available funding sources.

3.2 Summer instruction is permitted for a student who is otherwise eligible for supportive instruction and as determined by the student's teachers and principal, needs the instruction to complete course work or to maintain a level of instruction in order to continue in a school program the following school year.