Bill Text: NY S00464 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes procedures related to home instruction to assist school authorities and parents.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 4-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - REFERRED TO EDUCATION [S00464 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S00464-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 464 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 4, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. ROBACH -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to home instruction The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph d of subdivision 2 of section 3210 of the educa- 2 tion law is amended to read as follows: 3 d. Exception. In applying the foregoing requirements a minor required 4 to attend upon full time day instruction by the provisions of this part 5 [one of this article] may be permitted to attend for a shorter school 6 day or for a shorter school year or for both, provided, [in accordance7with the regulations of the state education department,] the instruction 8 he or she receives has been approved by the school authorities as being 9 substantially equivalent in amount and quality to that required by the 10 provisions of this part [one of this article]. Home instruction of a 11 minor that is conducted in accordance with section three thousand two 12 hundred twenty-nine of this part shall be deemed to comply with this 13 section and subdivision two of section three thousand two hundred four 14 of this part. 15 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 3229 to read 16 as follows: 17 § 3229. Home instruction. The purpose of this section is to establish 18 procedures to assist school authorities in fulfilling their responsibil- 19 ity under subdivision two of section three thousand two hundred four and 20 paragraph d of subdivision two of section three thousand two hundred ten 21 of this part and to assist parents who exercise their right to provide 22 required instruction at home to such students in fulfilling their 23 responsibilities pursuant to subdivision two of section three thousand 24 two hundred twelve of this part. Compliance with this section demon- 25 strates the competency of the instructor and verifies that the instruc- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02916-01-7S. 464 2 1 tion being provided at home to students of compulsory school attendance 2 age is substantially equivalent as required by subdivision two of 3 section three thousand two hundred four of this part. Notwithstanding 4 any other provision of law, to the extent that any provision of this 5 section is inconsistent with any other local law, rule or regulation, 6 the provisions of this section shall govern and be controlling. 7 1. Notice of intention to instruct at home. 8 a. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph b of this subdivision, 9 parents or other persons in parental relation to a student of compulsory 10 school attendance age shall annually provide written notice to the 11 superintendent of schools of their school district of residence of their 12 intention to educate their child at home by July first of each school 13 year. The school year begins July first and ends June thirtieth for all 14 purposes within this section. The central office of homeschooling may 15 receive the notice of intent and other such documentation for home 16 instruction students who reside within New York city. 17 b. Parents who determine to commence home instruction after the start 18 of the school year, or who establish residence in the school district 19 after the start of the school year, shall provide written notice of 20 their intention to educate their child at home within fourteen days 21 following the commencement of home instruction within the school 22 district. 23 2. Procedures for development and review of an individualized home 24 instruction plan (IHIP). 25 a. Within ten business days of the receipt of the notice of intention 26 to instruct at home, the school district shall send to the parents a 27 copy of this section and a form on which to submit an individualized 28 home instruction plan (IHIP) for each child of compulsory attendance age 29 who is to be taught at home. 30 b. Within four weeks of the receipt of such materials, or by August 31 fifteenth, whichever is later, the parent shall submit a completed IHIP 32 to the school district. The district shall provide assistance in prepa- 33 ration of the forms, if requested by the parents. The parents may submit 34 the IHIP on the school district form or on another form that includes 35 the required information. 36 c. Within ten business days of receipt of the IHIP, or by August thir- 37 ty-first, whichever is later, the school district shall either notify 38 the parents in writing that the IHIP complies with the requirements of 39 subdivisions three and four of this section or shall give the parents 40 written notice of any deficiency in the IHIP. 41 d. Within fifteen days of receipt of a notice of a deficiency in the 42 IHIP, or by September fifteenth, whichever is later, the parents shall 43 submit a revised IHIP which corrects any such deficiencies. 44 e. The superintendent of schools shall review the revised IHIP and 45 shall notify the parents in writing as to whether the revised IHIP 46 complies with subdivisions three and four of this section within fifteen 47 days of receipt of the revised IHIP or by September thirtieth, whichever 48 is later. If the revised IHIP is determined not to be in compliance with 49 subdivisions three and four of this section, then the parents shall be 50 notified in writing of the reasons for such determination. Such notice 51 shall also contain the date of the next regularly scheduled meeting of 52 the board of education that will be held at least ten days after the 53 date of mailing of the notice, and shall indicate that if the parents 54 wish to contest the determination of noncompliance, the parents must so 55 notify the board of education at least three business days prior to such 56 meeting. At such board meeting, the parents shall have the right toS. 464 3 1 present proof of compliance, and the board of education shall make a 2 final determination of compliance or noncompliance. 3 f. The parents shall have the right to appeal any such final school 4 district determination of noncompliance to the commissioner within thir- 5 ty days after receipt of such determination. 6 g. When administrative review of a school district determination of 7 noncompliance is completed, the parents shall immediately provide for 8 the instruction of their children at a public school or elsewhere in 9 compliance with sections three thousand two hundred four and three thou- 10 sand two hundred ten of this part. For purposes of this subdivision, 11 such administrative review shall be deemed to be completed when one of 12 the following events has occurred: 13 (1) the parents have failed to contest a determination of noncompli- 14 ance by appealing to the board of education; 15 (2) the parents have failed to appeal a final school district determi- 16 nation of noncompliance to the commissioner; or 17 (3) the parents have received a decision of the commissioner which 18 upholds a final school district determination of noncompliance. 19 h. Within ten days after administrative review of the determination of 20 noncompliance is completed, the parents shall furnish the superintendent 21 of schools with written notice of the arrangements they have made to 22 provide their children with the required instruction, except that such 23 notice shall not be required if the parents enroll their children in a 24 public school. 25 3. Content of individualized home instruction plan (IHIP). Each 26 child's IHIP shall contain: 27 a. The child's name, age and grade level; 28 b. A list of the syllabi, curriculum materials, textbooks or plan of 29 instruction to be used in each of the required subjects listed in subdi- 30 vision four of this section; and 31 c. The names of the individuals providing instruction. 32 If the home instruction student will be meeting the compulsory educa- 33 tional requirements of section three thousand two hundred five of this 34 part through full-time study at a degree-granting institution then the 35 IHIP shall identify the degree-granting institution and the subjects to 36 be covered. For the purpose of this subdivision full-time study at a 37 degree-granting institution shall mean enrollment for at least twelve 38 semester hours in a semester. 39 4. Required courses. a. For purposes of this subdivision, a unit 40 means the instructional equivalent of sixty-four hundred eighty minutes 41 of instruction per school year. 42 b. Instruction in the following subjects shall be required: 43 (1) for grades one through six: arithmetic, reading, spelling, writ- 44 ing, the English language, geography, United States history, science, 45 health education, music, visual arts, physical education, bilingual 46 education and/or English as a second language where the need is indi- 47 cated. 48 (2) for grades seven and eight: English (two units); history and 49 geography (two units); science (two units); mathematics (two units); 50 physical education (on a regular basis); health education (on a regular 51 basis); art (one-half unit); music (one-half unit); practical arts (on a 52 regular basis); and library skills (on a regular basis). The units 53 required in this subparagraph are cumulative requirements for both 54 grades seven and eight.S. 464 4 1 (3) the following courses shall be taught at least once during the 2 first eight grades: United States history, New York state history, and 3 the constitutions of the United States and New York state. 4 (4) for grades nine through twelve: English (four units); social 5 studies (four units), which includes one unit of American history, one- 6 half unit in participation in government, and one-half unit of econom- 7 ics; mathematics (two units); science (two units); art and/or music (one 8 unit); health education (one-half unit); physical education (two units); 9 and three units of electives. The units required in this subparagraph 10 are cumulative requirements for grades nine through twelve. 11 (5) the following subjects are to be covered during grades kindergar- 12 ten through twelve: 13 (i) patriotism and citizenship; 14 (ii) health education regarding alcohol, drug and tobacco misuse; 15 (iii) highway safety and traffic regulations, including bicycle safe- 16 ty; and 17 (iv) fire and arson prevention and safety. 18 5. Attendance requirements. Each child shall attend upon instruction 19 as follows: the substantial equivalent of one hundred eighty days of 20 instruction shall be provided each school year. The cumulative hours of 21 instruction for grades one through six shall be nine hundred hours per 22 year. The cumulative hours of instruction for grades seven through 23 twelve shall be nine hundred ninety hours per year. Absences shall be 24 permitted on the same basis as provided in the policy of the school 25 district for its own students. Records of attendance shall be maintained 26 by the parent and shall be made available to the school district upon 27 request. Instruction provided at a site other than the primary residence 28 of the parents shall be provided in a building which has not been deter- 29 mined to be in violation of the local building code. 30 6. Annual assessment. The parent shall file an annual assessment in 31 accordance with this subdivision by July thirtieth. The annual assess- 32 ment shall include the results of a commercially published norm-refer- 33 enced achievement test which meets the requirements of paragraph a of 34 this subdivision, or an alternative form of evaluation which meets the 35 requirements of paragraph b of this subdivision. 36 a. Commercially published norm-referenced achievement tests. 37 (1) the test shall be selected by the parent from one of the follow- 38 ing: a nationally standardized achievement test, a state education 39 department test, or another test approved by the state education depart- 40 ment. 41 (2) the test shall be administered in accordance with one of the 42 following options, to be selected by the parents: 43 (i) at the public school, by its professional staff; 44 (ii) at a registered nonpublic school, by its professional staff, 45 provided that the consent of the chief school officer of the nonpublic 46 school is obtained; 47 (iii) at a nonregistered nonpublic school, by its professional staff, 48 provided that the consent of the chief school officer of the nonpublic 49 school is obtained; or 50 (iv) at the parents' home or at any other reasonable location, by a 51 New York state-certified teacher or by another qualified person. A qual- 52 ified person is anyone who has met the test publisher's criteria to 53 administer the test. 54 (3) the test shall be scored by a testing service chosen by the 55 parent.S. 464 5 1 (4) the test shall be provided by the school district upon request by 2 the parent, provided that the cost of any testing facilities, transpor- 3 tation, and/or personnel for testing conducted at a location other than 4 the public school shall be borne by the parent. 5 (5) if a score on a test is determined to be inadequate, the program 6 shall be placed on probation pursuant to subdivision seven of this 7 section. A student's score shall be deemed adequate if: the student has 8 a composite score above the twenty-third percentile on national norms; 9 or the student's score reflects one academic year of growth as compared 10 to a test administered during or subsequent to the prior school year. 11 b. Alternative evaluation methods. An alternative form of evaluation 12 shall be permitted to be chosen by the parent only as follows: (1) for 13 grades one through three, a written narrative prepared by a person spec- 14 ified in this paragraph; (2) for grades four through twelve, a written 15 narrative prepared by a person specified in this paragraph. This alter- 16 native form of evaluation may be used no more often than every other 17 school year for these grades; (3) for the purposes of this paragraph, 18 the person who prepares the written narrative shall be a New York state- 19 certified teacher, a home instruction peer group review panel, or other 20 person, who has interviewed the child and reviewed a portfolio of the 21 child's work. Such person shall certify either that the child has made 22 adequate academic progress or that the child has failed to make adequate 23 progress. In the event that such child has failed to make adequate 24 progress, the home instruction program shall be placed on probation 25 pursuant to subdivision seven of this section. The certified teacher, 26 peer review panel or other person shall be chosen by the parent. Any 27 resulting cost shall be borne by the parent. 28 c. If a dispute arises between the parents and the superintendent of 29 schools, including disputes over the administration of the commercially 30 published norm-referenced achievement test or the use of alternative 31 evaluation methods, the parents may appeal to the board of education. If 32 the parents disagree with the determination of the board of education, 33 the parents may appeal to the commissioner within thirty days of receipt 34 of the board's final determination. 35 7. Probation. a. If a child's annual assessment fails to comply with 36 the requirements of this subdivision, the home instruction program shall 37 be placed on probation for a period of up to two school years. The 38 parent shall be required to submit a plan of remediation which addresses 39 the deficiencies in the child's achievement, and seeks to remedy such 40 deficiencies. The plan shall be reviewed by the school district. The 41 school district may require the parents to make changes in the plan 42 prior to acceptance. 43 b. If after the end of any semester of the probationary period, the 44 child progresses to the level specified in the remediation plan, then 45 the home instruction program shall be removed from probation. If the 46 child does not attain at least seventy-five percent of the objectives 47 specified in the remediation plan at the end of any given semester with- 48 in the period of probation, or if after two years on probation one 49 hundred percent of the objectives of the remediation plan have not been 50 satisfied, the superintendent of schools shall provide the parents with 51 notice and the board of education shall review the determination of 52 noncompliance in accordance with this paragraph, except that consent of 53 the parents to such review shall not be required. 54 8. Letter of substantial equivalency. The resident school district 55 shall certify in writing when a student taught at home has completed 56 their home instruction program in compliance with this section. ThisS. 464 6 1 letter shall verify compliance with this section and that the home 2 instruction program was therefore substantially equivalent in compliance 3 with subdivision two of section three thousand two hundred four of this 4 part. Any student who completes a home instruction program before they 5 turn twenty-one can request this letter from their resident school 6 district. Each school district must maintain the documentation necessary 7 to verify completion of the home instruction program for six years. 8 § 3. Subdivision 2-c of section 3602-c of the education law, as added 9 by chapter 217 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows: 10 2-c. Solely for the purpose of the provision of education for students 11 with disabilities pursuant to this section and the computation of state 12 aid for such education pursuant to section thirty-six hundred two of 13 this article, a student in a home instruction program submitted by his 14 or her parent or person in parental relation for review pursuant to [the15regulations of the commissioner] section three thousand two hundred 16 twenty-nine of this article shall be deemed to be a student enrolled in 17 and attending a nonpublic school eligible to receive services pursuant 18 to subdivision two of this section; provided that such student is enti- 19 tled to attend the public schools without payment of tuition pursuant to 20 subdivision one of section thirty-two hundred two of this chapter and 21 has an individualized home instruction plan that has been determined by 22 the superintendent of schools of the school district in which the home 23 school is located to be in compliance with the regulations of the 24 commissioner. The deadlines for submission of written requests for the 25 education of students with disabilities set forth in subdivision two of 26 this section shall apply to students in a home instruction program, 27 except that such request may be submitted within thirty days of a change 28 in the student's school district of residence; provided that for 29 services in the two thousand eight--two thousand nine school year only 30 such written requests for students in a home instruction program shall 31 be submitted by June thirtieth, two thousand eight, or within thirty 32 days after the effective date of [this subdivision] chapter two hundred 33 seventeen of the laws of two thousand eight, whichever is later, except 34 where subdivision two of this section or this subdivision authorizes 35 submission at a later date. Except as provided in this subdivision, a 36 home school shall not be considered a nonpublic school for any other 37 purpose under this chapter. 38 § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding 39 the date on which it shall have become a law.