[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 197 (Thursday, October 13, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-25258]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: October 13, 1994]
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Part III
Department of Education
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Early Education Programs for Children With Disabilities; Notices
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Early Education Program for Children With Disabilities;
Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals With
Disabilities Program; and Program for Children and Youth With Serious
Emotional Disturbance
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of final priorities.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary announces final priorities for three programs
administered by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services (OSERS) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
The Secretary may use these priorities in Fiscal Year 1995 and
subsequent years. The Secretary takes this action to focus Federal
assistance on identified needs to improve outcomes for children with
disabilities. The final priorities are intended to ensure wide and
effective use of program funds.
EFFECTIVE DATE: These priorities take effect either 45 days after
publication in the Federal Register 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: The name, address, and telephone
number of the person at the Department to contact for information on
each specific priority is listed under that priority.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice contains one final priority
under the Early Education Program for Children with Disabilities, one
final priority under the Technology, Educational Media, and Materials
for Individuals with Disabilities Program, and one final priority under
the Program for Children and Youth with Serious Emotional Disturbance.
The purpose of each program is stated separately under the title of
that program.
On August 1, 1994, the Secretary published a notice of proposed
priorities for these programs in the Federal Register (59 FR 39234-
39238).
These final priorities support the National Education Goals by
improving understanding of how to enable children and youth with
disabilities to reach higher levels of academic achievement.
The publication of these final priorities does not preclude the
Secretary from proposing additional priorities, nor does it limit the
Secretary to funding only these priorities, subject to meeting
applicable rulemaking requirements. Funding of particular projects
depends on the availability of funds, and the quality of the
applications received. Further, priorities could be affected by
enactment of legislation reauthorizing these programs.
Note: This notice of final priorities does not solicit
applications. A notice inviting applications under these
competitions is published in separate notices in this issue of the
Federal Register.
Analysis of Comments and Changes
In response to the Secretary's invitation in the notice of proposed
priorities, one party submitted comments. The comments concerned the
priority titled ``Collaborative Research on Technology, Media, and
Materials for Children and Youth with Disabilities'' proposed under the
Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals with
Disabilities Program. An analysis of the comments and of the changes in
the proposed priorities follows. Technical and other minor changes are
not addressed.
Comment: The commenter expressed concern that only researchers and
practitioners are described as actively involved in all phases of the
research under the priority titled ``Collaborative Research on
Technology, Media, and Materials for Children and Youth with
Disabilities.'' The commenter suggested that the priority be revised to
include family members and students with disabilities as active
participants in the research.
Discussion: The Secretary agrees that collaborative research means
partnerships between all stakeholders, including family members and
students with disabilities, and that their inclusion is important to
reducing the gap between research and practice.
Changes: A sentence has been added to the priority to emphasize the
importance of including input from family members and students with
disabilities in the research project. The new sentence states: ``To
further reduce the gap between research and practice, projects are
encouraged to include input from family members and students with
disabilities.''
Comment: Under the priority titled ``Collaborative Research on
Technology, Media, and Materials for Children and Youth with
Disabilities'', the same commenter expressed concern that the unique
needs of students with cognitive disabilities are too frequently not
considered. The commenter suggested that projects should indicate how
such research will benefit this population of students.
Discussion: The priority as written does not preclude projects that
focus on students with cognitive disabilities. However, it is the
responsibility of the applicant to develop the project focus in terms
of curriculum areas, grade/age levels, disabilities, types of services
provided, and/or specific types of technology, media and materials. The
Secretary does not believe it would be appropriate to limit projects to
certain disability areas, but prefers to give potential applicants the
latitude to include any disability.
Changes: None.
Early Education Program for Children With Disabilities
Purpose of Program: The purpose of this program is to support
activities that are designed (a) to address the special needs of
children with disabilities, birth through age eight, and their
families; and, (b) to assist State and local entities in expanding and
improving programs and services for these children and their families.
Priority
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) the Secretary gives an absolute
preference to applications that meet the following priority. The
Secretary will fund under this competition only applications that meet
this absolute priority:
Proposed Absolute Priority--Early Childhood Research Institute: Follow
Through
Background: This priority supports an Early Childhood Research
Institute to develop, evaluate and disseminate strategies and
procedures that will move the successful practices of early
intervention and preschool programs into the early elementary school
grades. These successful practices include, but are not limited to, (1)
family-friendly and family-focused approaches to planning and providing
special education and related services, (2) extensive parent
involvement in service planning and delivery, (3) integrated and
coordinated delivery of services when multiple services are necessary,
(4) multi-disciplinary input into service planning and delivery, (5)
developmentally appropriate services delivered in ungraded/mixed-age
and mixed ability group settings, and (6) a pro-active approach to
service planning and delivery in which services (e.g., team teaching,
assistive technology applications, use of paraprofessionals) are
integrated and concentrated to ensure that as many children with
disabilities as possible successfully acquire critical skills taught in
the primary grades (e.g., beginning literacy, social skills) that are
crucial to children's progress and adjustment in school.
The Institute's research, development and evaluation activities
must (1) identify administrative, attitudinal, and programmatic
barriers to establishing these successful practices in kindergarten
through grade three (or equivalent) for children with disabilities and
their families; (2) develop and evaluate strategies and procedures that
are designed to overcome these barriers, such as strategies parents can
use to maintain their involvement once their child reaches school age,
and strategies school personnel can use to encourage and facilitate
continued parent involvement; and (3) identify effective ways to
disseminate the findings and products of the Institute so that
successful practices, or combinations of practices, can be adopted
easily by school systems.
The Secretary anticipates funding one cooperative agreement with a
project period of up to 60 months subject to the requirements of 34 CFR
75.253(a) for continuation awards. In determining whether to continue
the Institute for the fourth and fifth years of the project period, the
Secretary, in addition to applying the requirements of 34 CFR
75.253(a), considers the recommendation of a review team consisting of
three experts selected by the Secretary. The services of the review
team, including a two-day visit to the project, are to be performed
during the last half of the Institute's second year and may be included
in that year's evaluation required under 34 CFR 75.590.
Priority: The Early Childhood Research Institute considered for
funding under this priority must--
(a) Conduct a program of research that addresses the issues
identified above.
(b) Identify specific strategies and procedures that will be
investigated.
(c) Carry out the research within a conceptual framework, based on
previous research or theory, that provides a basis for the strategies
and procedures to be studied, the research methods and instrumentation
that will be used, and the specific target populations and settings
that will be studied.
(d) Collect, analyze, and report a variety of descriptive and
outcome data, including (1) specific information on the settings, the
service providers, the children and families targeted by the Institute
(e.g., age, disability, level of functioning and membership in a
special population, if appropriate); (2) multiple, functional outcome
data for the children and families who are the focus of the strategies
and procedures; and (3) multiple outcome data for the teachers,
administrators, and other school staff involved in the research.
(e) Conduct the research in typical school settings, including
settings that are, or will be, implementing different combinations of
the successful practices.
(f) Conduct the research using methodological procedures that are
designed to produce unambiguous findings regarding the effects of the
strategies and procedures, as well as any findings on interaction
effects between particular strategies or procedures and particular
characteristics of participants or settings. These findings will be
rendered through appropriate sample selection and adequate sample size
to permit use of the findings in policy analyses.
(g) Design all activities in a manner that is likely to lead to
improved services for children with disabilities and their families,
including those who are members of cultural, linguistic, or racial
minority groups.
(h) Develop, field test, and disseminate a variety of products that
can be used for training and technical assistance activities with
policy makers, administrators, school board members, parents, and
service providers and that are likely to facilitate the implementation
of the successful practices in early elementary school settings.
(i) Coordinate research and dissemination activities with other
relevant efforts sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education,
including other research institutes, technical assistance entities, and
information clearinghouses.
(j) Provide research training and experience for at least 10
graduate students annually.
In determining whether to continue the Institute for the fourth and
fifth years of the project period, in addition to considering factors
in 34 CFR 75.253(a), the Secretary considers the following:
(a) The timeliness and effectiveness with which all requirements of
the negotiated cooperative agreement have been or are being met by the
Institute.
(b) The degree to which the Institute's research designs and
methodological procedures demonstrate the potential for producing
significant new knowledge and products.
In order to apply for funding for years four and five, the
Institute must set aside in its budget for the second year, funds to
cover costs associated with the services to be performed by the review
team appointed by the Secretary to evaluate the project in the second
year. These funds are estimated to be approximately $4,000.
For Further Information Contact: Gail Houle, U.S. Department of
Education, Room 4613, Switzer Building, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W.,
Washington, D.C., 20202-2644. Telephone (202) 205-9045. Individuals who
use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the TDD
number at (202) 205-8169.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1423.
Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals With
Disabilities Program
Purpose of Program: The purpose of this program is to support
projects and centers for advancing the availability, quality, use, and
effectiveness of technology, educational media, and materials in the
education of children and youth with disabilities and the provision of
early intervention services to infants and toddlers with disabilities.
In creating Part G of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act,
Congress expressed the intent that the projects and centers funded
under that part should be primarily for the purpose of enhancing
research and development advances and efforts being undertaken by the
public or private sector, and to provide necessary linkages to make
more efficient and effective the flow from research and development to
application.
Priority
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) the Secretary gives an absolute
preference to applications that meet the following priority. The
Secretary will fund under this competition only applications that meet
this absolute priority:
Proposed Absolute Priority--Collaborative Research on Technology,
Media, and Materials for Children and Youth With Disabilities
Background: In 1993 an agenda was developed for the Technology,
Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities
Program which set forth four program commitments. These four
commitments were derived from broad-based input from the field, and
together they represent the means by which the Office of Special
Education Programs intends to advance the use of technology, media, and
materials with students with disabilities. They are:
(1) Enable the Learner Across Environments. This means fostering
instructional environments, both in and out of school, that use
technology, educational media, and materials to enable students with
disabilities to access knowledge, develop skills and problem-solving
strategies, and engage in educational experiences necessary for their
success as adults.
(2) Promote Effective Policy. This means policymaking at all levels
in government, schools, and business to ensure accessibility,
availability, effective application, and consistent use of appropriate
technology, media, and materials.
(3) Foster Use Through Professional Development. This means
training and supporting teachers, administrators, parents, and related
service personnel on the benefits of instructional and assistive
technologies so that they can increase productive use of instructional
time, prepare students with disabilities for employment and
citizenship, and promote their intellectual, ethical, cultural,
emotional, and physical growth.
(4) Create Innovative Tools. This means encouraging development of
varied and integrated technologies, media, and materials which open up
and expand the lives of those with disabilities.
However, research is needed on how these interrelated commitments
can be applied in the complex reality of educational practice. This
priority addresses that need by supporting collaborative research,
which means research based on a partnership between researchers and
practitioners in which both are actively involved in all phases of the
research--initial planning and design, collection of information or
data, analysis of information or data, and reporting and dissemination.
This research strategy is intended to produce methodologically sound
research information that is relevant and applicable to practice and
reduces the gap between research and practice. To further reduce the
gap between research and practice, projects are encouraged to include
input from family members and students with disabilities.
Priority: The Assistant Secretary establishes an absolute priority
for collaborative research projects that--
(a) Formulate a research topic and design based on commitments (1),
(2), and (3), as described above, as they relate to improving education
and/or related services at the local level for students with
disabilities. This priority is not intended to support projects that
are primarily engaged in product development; thus, commitment (4) may
be included only as a supporting activity. In formulating the research
topic, projects must develop a focus in terms of curriculum areas,
grade/age levels, disabilities, types of services provided, and/or
specific types of technology, media and materials. In formulating the
research design, projects must apply the standards for conducting
rigorous social science research. The following research topics are
offered as illustrative examples and do not represent the full range of
possible topics. These examples are broad, and projects may opt for
more narrow focuses. However, projects must address all three program
commitments--either as background, contextual factors, or as components
of interventions or manipulations.
Example 1: Research on how local policies in schools and other
agencies restrict or facilitate the acquisition and use of assistive
devices, and how professional development within the context of these
policies can yield improved assistive technology services to better
enable students to access school, home, and community environments.
Example 2: Research on how local policies regarding curriculum and
accountability can be revised to promote interdisciplinary professional
collaboration in the effective use of technology, media and materials
to enable students with disabilities to acquire high-level problem-
solving strategies.
Example 3: Research on how policies and professional practices may
contribute to inequitable access and use of technology, media and
materials for some students with disabilities, and how the inequities
can be reduced by means of policy and/or professional interventions to
better enable students with disabilities to engage in beneficial
educational experiences.
(b) Conduct a program of collaborative research on the research
topic.
(c) Measure the effects of the intervention and relationships
within and across the program commitments (1, 2, and 3).
(d) Disseminate information on the findings of the collaborative
research in a form conducive to use by other schools or service
providers, as well as other researchers.
(e) Coordinate their activities, as appropriate, with recipients of
grants under the Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with
Disabilities Act (Pub. L. 100-407 as amended by Pub. L. 103-218).
A project must budget for two trips annually to Washington, D.C.,
for (1) a two-day Research Project Directors' meeting; and (2) another
meeting, to meet and collaborate with the project officer of the Office
of Special Education Programs and the other projects funded under this
priority, to share information and to discuss findings and joint
methods of dissemination.
For Further Information Contact: Ellen Schiller, U.S. Department of
Education, Room 3523, Switzer Building, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20202-2641. Telephone: (202) 205-8123. Individuals who
use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8
p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.
Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR part 333.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1461.
Program for Children and Youth With Serious Emotional Disturbance
Purpose of Program: This program supports projects designed to
improve special education and related services to children and youth
with serious emotional disturbance. Types of projects that may be
supported under the program include, but are not limited to, research,
development, and demonstration projects. Funds may also be used to
develop and demonstrate approaches to assist and prevent children with
emotional and behavioral problems from developing serious emotional
disturbance.
Priority
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) the Secretary gives an absolute
preference to applications that meet the following priority. The
Secretary will fund under this competition only applications that meet
this absolute priority:
Proposed Absolute Priority--Nondiscriminatory, Culturally-Competent,
Collaborative Demonstration Models To Improve Services for Students
With Serious Emotional Disturbance and Prevention Services for Students
With Emotional and Behavioral Problems
Background: The rates of identification, placement, and achievement
of children and youth with emotional and behavioral problems vary
across racial, cultural, gender, and socioeconomic dimensions. For
example, African-American students are most likely to be identified as
students with serious emotional disturbance (SED). African-Americans
comprise 16 percent of public school enrollment, but represent 22
percent of all students identified with SED (based on data from the
1990 OCR survey of school districts), and 25 percent of secondary
students with SED (based on data from OSEP National Longitudinal
Transition Study). Rates of SED identification for African-American
students vary greatly across States but, on average, States with the
lowest overall African-American enrollment have the highest SED
incidence rates for those students and, conversely, States with the
highest overall African-American enrollment have the lowest average
rate of SED classification for these students (based on data from the
1990 OCR survey of school districts). These data suggest that African-
American students may be over-represented in SED programs in some
States, and underserved in others, and that some of these differences
may be related to identification, evaluation, and placement methods
that fail to recognize cultural differences.
Diversity must be acknowledged and valued, and both prevention and
SED service delivery systems must be culturally-competent. Cultural
competencies represent the interpersonal skills and attitudes that
enable individuals to increase their understanding and appreciation of
the rich and fluid nature of culture and of differences and
similarities within, among, and between cultures and individuals.
Culturally-competent approaches recognize the cultural origins of
teachers' and service providers' views, behaviors, and methods. These
approaches also recognize that language and language use conventions
are culturally based, and attend to the communicative styles of
students and their families. Culturally-competent approaches address
culturally-based definitions of family and networks. They view family
and community as critical parts of a student's support system. Such
approaches also demonstrate a willingness and ability to draw on
community-based values, traditions, customs, and resources. Assessment,
pre-referral, and preventive approaches that are culturally-competent
and linguistically appropriate recognize and nurture the strengths--
individual and cultural--that students bring to school.
There is a need to improve the capacity of individuals and systems
to respond skillfully, respectfully, and effectively to students,
families, teachers, and other providers in a manner that recognizes,
affirms, and values their worth and dignity. To accomplish this,
collaboration must be fostered--among families, professionals,
students, and communities--to identify and provide culturally-competent
services for students with SED and prevention services that address the
needs of children and youth with emotional and behavioral problems.
Priority: The Assistant Secretary establishes an absolute priority
for demonstration projects that develop, implement, evaluate, and
disseminate nondiscriminatory, culturally-competent, collaborative
practices to prevent children with emotional and behavioral problems
from developing SED, and to improve special education and related
services for ethnic and cultural minority students, in the least
restrictive environment. The projects must establish local, community-
based assessment, planning, prevention, and intervention teams that
involve participation from education, mental health, juvenile justice
agencies, other appropriate community service agencies, and
organizations representing families. The first stage of each project
must consist of the development and refinement of working agreements
between the various community agencies and organizations, to identify
approaches that improve the capacity of individuals and systems to
respond skillfully, respectfully, and effectively to students,
families, teachers, and other providers in a manner that recognizes,
affirms, and values their worth and dignity.
The first stage planning must include the collaborative
consideration and development, by all participating groups, of non-
discriminatory, culturally-competent techniques that enhance the
fairness and effectiveness of key service delivery elements, including
but not necessarily limited to assessment, education, training,
transition planning, and the provision of related services. The second
stage of each project must consist of the implementation and evaluation
of the services delivered, across service providers, followed by
dissemination of the results.
A project must budget for two trips annually to Washington, D.C.,
for (1) a two-day Research Project Directors' meeting; and (2) another
meeting, to meet and collaborate with the OSEP project officer and the
other projects funded under this priority, to share information and to
discuss findings and methods of dissemination.
For Further Information Contact: Tom V. Hanley, U.S. Department of
Education, Switzer Building, Room 3526, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20202-2641. Telephone: (202) 205-8110. Individuals who
use a telecommunications device for the deaf may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8
p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.
Intergovernmental Review
The Early Education Program for Children with Disabilities, the
Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals with
Disabilities Program and the Program for Children and Youth with
Serious Emotional Disturbance are 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
these programs.
Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR part 309, 328, and 333.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers: Early Education
Program for Children with Disabilities, 84.024; Technology,
Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities
Program, 84.180; and Program for Children and Youth with Serious
Emotional Disturbance, 84.237)
Dated: October 6, 1994.
Judith E. Heumann,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 94-25258 Filed 10-12-94; 8:45 am]
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