[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 69 (Monday, April 11, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-8524]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: April 11, 1994]
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Part VII
Department of Education
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Fund for Innovation in Education: Innovation in Education Program--
State Content Standards for English, et cetera; Notice
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Fund for Innovation in Education: Innovation in Education
Program--State Content Standards for English, History, Geography,
Civics, Foreign Languages, and the Arts
AGENCY: Education.
ACTION: Notice of final priorities for fiscal years 1994 and 1995.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary announces absolute priorities for Fiscal Years
1994 and 1995 for the Fund for Innovation in Education: Innovation in
Education Program. The Secretary takes this action to focus Federal
financial assistance on State content standards as the starting point
for systemic school improvement. The priorities will assist projects to
develop and implement State content standards, kindergarten through
grade 12 (K-12), in English, history, geography, civics, foreign
languages, and the arts, together with new approaches to teacher
education and certification appropriate to the content standards.
EFFECTIVE DATE: These priorities take effect either May 26, 1994 or
later if the Congress takes certain adjournments. If you want to know
the effective date of these priorities, call or write the Department of
Education contact person.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bryan Gray or Seresa Simpson, U.S.
Department of Education, 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW., room 522,
Washington, DC 20208-5524. Telephone: (202) 219-1496. Individuals who
use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Dual Party Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 7
p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Fund for Innovation in Education
supports projects that show promise of identifying and disseminating
innovative educational approaches at the preschool, elementary, and
secondary levels. The program is authorized under part F of Title IV of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by the
Augustus F. Hawkins-Robert T. Stafford Elementary and Secondary School
Improvement Amendments of 1988, Public Law 100-297.
The absolute priorities in this notice support the National
Education Goal that calls for U.S. students to leave grades four,
eight, and twelve having demonstrated competency in challenging subject
matter.
Defining what students in a State should learn is a critical step
in the process of ensuring that the State's students are prepared to
meet challenging standards. Certain States have already developed
challenging content standards in one or more subjects that provide
guidelines to local schools and districts for the content of what
should be taught. The Secretary has supported similar efforts in the
past in mathematics and science. Engaging more States in this process
will help to achieve a national consensus on the importance of
challenging standards for all students and prepare the way for students
to reach these standards.
States, or States working with other entities of their own choice,
may apply for funding to support projects in one or more of the
disciplines cited in the final priorities. The Secretary believes that
States must participate as lead agents in the development of content
standards and related activities because they bear central
responsibility in matters of education. State leadership is essential
to coordinate efforts to raise standards for all students, to
disseminate content standards, to influence new directions in teacher
education and professional development, and to establish appropriate
criteria for teacher certification. In every case the development of
content standards must be accompanied by closely related plans for
teacher education and licensing or certification, as well as for
professional development and recertification. As States rethink their
policies regarding teacher certification and professional development,
they are urged to draw on relevant work of groups such as the National
Board for Professional Teaching Standards, the National Association of
State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification, and the
National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education.
On February 11, 1994, the Secretary published a notice of proposed
priorities for this program in the Federal Register (59 FR 6852).
Note: This notice of final priorities does not solicit
applications. A notice inviting applications under these priorities
for fiscal year 1994 is published elsewhere in this issue of the
Federal Register. A notice inviting applications under these
priorities in FY 1995 will be published at a later date.
Analysis of the Comments and Changes
In response to the Secretary's invitation in the notice of proposed
priorities, one party submitted comments. An analysis of the comments
and change in the priorities since publication of the notice of
proposed priorities follows. Technical and other minor changes--and
suggested changes the Secretary is not legally authorized to make under
the applicable statutory authority--are not addressed.
Comment: The commenter expressed concern about the exclusion of
experts in the field of educating children with special needs from the
list of professionals required to be involved in the development of
standards under activity (a) and suggested that they be added to the
list.
Discussion: The priorities state that the standards must reflect a
Statewide consensus. In order to accomplish this, the Secretary
intended that groups such as experts in the field of educating children
with special needs be involved and has changed the priorities to cite
this example.
Changes: The Secretary has changed activity (a) of the priorities
to clarify that others, such as experts in the field of educating
children with special needs, should be involved in the development of
standards.
Comment: The commenter is very concerned with the lack of content
standards that demonstrate competency in functional life skills. It is
the commenter's belief that instruction in appropriate functional life
skills is a legitimate and important area of study for students with
severe cognitive and social disabilities. The commenter suggested that
the Secretary add a requirement that content standards in each subject
area incorporate a range of standards addressing functional life skills
and social skills. A further suggestion was made that teacher
education, initial licensing and recertification models also address
these functional life skills.
Discussion: The Secretary agrees that instruction in functional
life skills and social skills is important for children with severe
cognitive and social skills deficits and believes that State standards
and assessment systems should provide for the participation of all
children with disabilities. At the same time, the Secretary believes
that States should have flexibility in determining how to accommodate
the needs of children with disabilities in developing their standards.
Changes: None.
Priorities
Absolute Priorities
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) the Secretary proposes to give an
absolute preference to applications that meet one of the following
priorities. The Secretary proposes to fund under this competition only
applications that meet one of these absolute priorities:
Absolute Priority 1--State Content Standards for English
Absolute Priority 2--State Content Standards for History
Absolute Priority 3--State Content Standards for Geography
Absolute Priority 4--State Content Standards for Civics
Absolute Priority 5--State Content Standards for Foreign Languages
Absolute Priority 6--State Content Standards for the Arts
Absolute Priority 7--State Content Standards for Two or More of the
Disciplines in Absolute Priorities 1-6
To meet one of these seven priorities, an application must be for a
project in which a State, or a State in collaboration with other
entities, carries out all of the following activities:
(a) Develops challenging State content standards, kindergarten
through grade 12 (K-12), that will be made available for use by local
schools and districts. The standards must be designed to serve as the
foundation for coherent, non-repetitive curricula carefully designed to
ensure that all children study challenging subject material in every
grade, K-12. The standards must cover English, history, geography,
civics, foreign languages or the arts, or a combination of two or more
of these disciplines. The development of the standards must involve
classroom teachers, university and school-based content specialists in
English, history, geography, civics, foreign languages, or the arts;
State and local school administrators, representatives of private
schools, specialists in teacher education, representatives of the State
legislature, the Governor's office, State and local boards of
education; representatives of business, labor, industry, the community
at large; parents, and others, such as experts in the field of
educating children with special needs. The standards must reflect a
Statewide consensus.
(b) Develops model guidelines for effective approaches to teacher
education and initial licensing or certification aligned with
challenging State content standards. The model guidelines must be
developed in cooperation with one or more institutions of higher
education in the State. The work of designing these model guidelines
must also involve collaboration among scholars and specialists,
teachers and administrators from public or private schools, and State
and local policymakers.
(c) Develops criteria for teacher recertification, and designs and
pilot tests a model, cost-effective inservice professional development
program for teachers based on challenging State content standards. The
work of designing these programs must involve collaboration among
scholars and specialists, teachers and administrators from public or
private schools, and State and local policymakers. In addition, these
programs must be pilot-tested in a variety of schools throughout each
State.
(d) Provides the Secretary with a copy of the evaluation conducted
under 34 CFR 75.590.
To guide the activities of the project, each project must establish
an overall advisory committee that includes representatives of each of
the groups specified in (a) above.
Intergovernmental Review
This program is subject to the requirements of Executive Order
12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. The objective of the
Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental partnership and a
strengthened federalism by relying on processes developed by State and
local governments for coordination and review of proposed Federal
financial assistance.
In accordance with the order, this document is intended to provide
early notification of the Department's specific plans and actions for
this program.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 3151.
Dated: April 5, 1994.
Sharon P. Robinson,
Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.215E, Fund for
Innovation in Education: Innovation in Education Program)
[FR Doc. 94-8524 Filed 4-8-94; 8:45 am]
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