BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 210|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 210
Author: Galgiani (D)
Amended: 6/2/15
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 7-0, 4/29/15
AYES: Liu, Block, Hancock, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan
NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner, Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 5/28/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
SUBJECT: Special education: deaf and hard-of-hearing
children: language benchmarks
SOURCE: California Association of the Deaf
California Coalition of Option Schools
Center for Early Intervention on Deafness
DIGEST: This bill requires the California Department of
Education to select language benchmarks to monitor and track the
language acquisition and development of children age birth to
five years who are deaf and hard-of-hearing.
ANALYSIS: Existing law requires each student's individualized
education program (IEP) team to:
1)Consider, among other things, the communication needs of the
student, and in the case of a student who is deaf or hard of
hearing, consider the student's language and communication
needs, opportunities for direct communications with peers and
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professional personnel in the student's language and
communication mode, academic level, and full range of needs,
including opportunities for direct instruction in the
student's language and communication mode. (Education Code §
56341.1)
2)Specifically discuss the communication needs of the student,
consistent with "Deaf Students Education Services Policy
Guidance" including, among other things, the following:
a) The student's primary language mode and language, which
may include the use of spoken language with or without
visual cues, or the use of sign language, or a combination
of both.
b) Appropriate, direct, and ongoing language access to
special education teachers and other specialists who are
proficient in the student's primary language mode and
language consistent with existing law regarding teacher
training requirements.
c) Services necessary to ensure communication-accessible
academic instructions, school services, and extracurricular
activities. (EC § 56345)
This bill:
1) Requires the California Department of Education's (CDE) Deaf
and Hard of Hearing unit, and the CDE's deaf education
resource centers located in Fremont and Riverside, to jointly
select language benchmarks from existing standardized norms
for purposes of monitoring and tracking deaf and
hard-of-hearing children's expressive and receptive language
acquisition and developmental stages toward English literacy.
2) Limits the scope of the language benchmarks to children age
birth to five years.
3) Requires the language benchmarks to be selected from the
language benchmarks recommended by the advisory committee
established by this bill.
4) Requires the selected benchmarks to be used by a child's
individualized family service plan (IFSP) or IEP team to
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assess the progress of the child's language development using
both or one of the languages of American Sign Language (ASL)
and English.
5) Requires each IEP and IFSP team to report progress of
students toward reaching the benchmarks to the CDE.
6) Requires the CDE to track development stages that are
equivalent to a child's linguistically age-appropriate peers
who are not deaf or hard-of-hearing, with the goal of
assisting children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing to become
kindergarten ready.
7) Requires the IEP or IFSP team, if a child does not
demonstrate progress in expressive and receptive language
skills according to the language benchmarks, to explain in
detail the reasons why the child is not meeting the
benchmarks or progressing towards the age-appropriate
benchmark, and requires the IEP or IFSP team to recommend
specific strategies, services, and programs that must be
provided to assist the child's success toward English
literacy.
8) Requires the CDE to disseminate the language benchmarks to a
child's IFSP or IEP team, including parents and guardians of
deaf or hard-of-hearing children, and requires the CDE to
provide materials and training to ensure appropriate language
growth as part of the child's existing IFSP or IEP in order
to assist the child in becoming linguistically ready for
kindergarten using both or one of the languages of ASL or
English.
9) Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to
establish an ad hoc advisory committee for purposes of
soliciting input from experts on the selection of language
benchmarks for children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing that
are equivalent to those for children who are not deaf or
hard-of-hearing.
10)Requires the advisory committee to consist of 13 volunteers,
the majority of whom must be deaf or hard-of hearing, and all
of whom must be within the field of education for the deaf
and hard-of-hearing. This bill requires the advisory
committee to include all of the following:
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a) One parent of a child who is deaf or hard-of-hearing
who uses the dual languages of ASL and English.
b) One parent of a child who is deaf or hard-of-hearing
who uses only spoken English, with or without visual
supplements.
c) One credentialed teacher of deaf and hard-of-hearing
students who use the dual languages of ASL and English.
d) One credentialed teacher of deaf and hard-of-hearing
students from a state certified non-public, non-sectarian
school.
e) One expert who researches language outcomes for deaf
and hard-of-hearing children using ASL and English.
f) One expert who researches language outcomes for deaf
and hard-of-hearing children using spoken English, with or
without visual supplements.
g) One credentialed teacher of deaf and hard-of-hearing
students whose expertise is in curriculum and instruction
in ASL and English.
h) One credentialed teacher of deaf and hard-of-hearing
students whose expertise is in curriculum and instruction
in spoken English, with or without visual supplements.
i) One advocate for the teaching and use of the dual
languages of ASL and English.
j) One advocate for the teaching and use of spoken
English, with or without visual supplements.
aa) One early intervention specialist who works with deaf
and hard-of-hearing infants and toddlers using the dual
languages of ASL and English.
bb) One professional from the dual languages of ASL and
English.
cc) One professional from spoken English, with or without
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the use of visual supplements.
11)Requires the CDE, by March 1, 2016, to provide the advisory
committee with a list of existing language benchmarks from
existing standardized norms, along with any relevant
information held by the CDE regarding those language
benchmarks.
12)Requires the advisory committee to recommend language
benchmarks for selection by June 1, 2016.
13)Requires the CDE to inform the advisory committee of which
language benchmarks were selected, by June 30, 2016.
14)Requires the CDE to develop specific action plans and
regulations to fully implement the language benchmark
assessment protocol and processes by January 1, 2018.
15)Provides that implementation of this bill is subject to an
appropriation in the Budget Act or another measure.
16)Defines "English" to include spoken English, written
English, or English with the use of visual supplements.
Background
The California Infant/Toddler Learning & Development Foundations
were developed by the CDE, in collaboration with many
researchers and stakeholders. The Infant/Toddler foundations
were released in 2009.
[http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/documents/itfoundations2009.pdf]
The California Preschool Learning Foundations were developed by
the CDE, in collaboration with many researchers and
stakeholders. These foundations include three volumes. Volume
1, released on January 22, 2008, includes language and literacy,
and English language development:
[http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/documents/preschoollf.pdf]
Children with disabilities age birth to three years are provided
with an IFSP. Students with disabilities age three to 22 years
are provided with an IEP.
Comments
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Existing infant/toddler and preschool foundations. The CDE
developed the California Infant/Toddler Learning & Development
Foundations and the California Preschool Learning Foundations to
provide guidance to providers of early education and care. Both
the infant/toddler and preschool foundations are non-binding
(voluntary) on providers, programs, and local educational
agencies.
The California Infant/Toddler Learning & Development Foundations
do not include any reference to the development of children who
are deaf or hard of hearing. (specific to language and
literacy, and English language development:
[http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/itf09langdev.asp]
The California Preschool Learning Foundations include only a
footnote reference to students who are deaf or hard of hearing:
specifically, that phonological awareness is an important skill
for students who are deaf, and that teachers of the deaf should
be consulted for strategies for facilitating phonological
awareness. Phonological awareness is defined as sensitivity to
the sound (or phonological) structure of spoken language.
Resources for parents. Various resources exist for parents
regarding the development of children who are deaf or hard of
hearing; none are specific to benchmarks for language
development. In 2011, a panel of parents convened with the CDE
to create a guide for parents that contains information to help
parents understand the services that may be provided through an
IFSP and IEP, including a focus on language development. The
purpose of the Resource Guide for Parents of Infants and
Toddlers Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, released by the CDE in
2013, is to provide parents with an introduction to the benefits
of both signed and spoken language, as well as to the various
communication tools and educational approaches.
[http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/ss/dh/documents/prgsummary.pdf]
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
This bill creates a cost pressure potentially in the low
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millions to fund new local requirements to implement and
report upon the identified language benchmarks.
Staff estimates administrative cost pressures to the CDE to be
in the low hundreds of thousands, and a possible increase in
costs related to mediations and due process hearings.
SUPPORT: (Verified5/29/15)
California Association of the Deaf (co-source)
California Coalition of Option Schools (co-source)
Center for Early Intervention on Deafness (co-source)
NorCal Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing
OPPOSITION: (Verified5/29/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the California
Association of the Deaf, a significant number of the approximate
17,000 deaf pupils in California arrive at kindergarten with
inadequate language development necessary to achieve the
academic competencies and social emotional growth. The ability
and right to develop one's language is central to the human
experience and a necessary prerequisite to literacy, cognitive,
emotional, linguistic, academic, and social growth. Without
language, there can be no education.
Prepared by:Lynn Lorber / ED. / (916) 651-4105
6/2/15 21:57:46
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