Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 1 Virginia’s System for Determination of Child Progress 2007

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 2 Agenda OSEP Indicators What and Why Determining Child Status and Progress How and When Case Studies – Participant Practice

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 3 Objectives Participants will: Understand why this system is being put in place Know the requirements Know how and when to determine child’s status for each of the OSEP indicators Practice determining child status and progress Be prepared to implement the system March 1, 2007

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 4 Why Was the System Developed? Age of accountability Accountability increasingly means looking at results – not just process Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) under increasing pressure to produce progress data on children participating in early intervention programs

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 5 “Results Not Demonstrated” Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART) review findings for Part C (2002) “ While the program has met its goal relating to the number of children served, it has not collected information on how well the program is doing to improve the educational and development outcomes of infants and toddlers served” Read more at ExpectMore.gov

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 6 OSEP’s Response to PART Findings OSEP required states to develop a state performance plan (by December 2005) that included indicators of child progress. OSEP requires states to submit child progress data in their Annual Performance Report (APR) Feb. 1 each year

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 7 Putting it in Context: State Requirements States were already required to report on indicators such as service settings (natural environments), number of children served and compliance with the 45-day timeline. Child and family indicators were added in conjunction with the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 8 Child Indicators Percent of infants and toddlers with IFSPs who demonstrated improved: Positive social emotional skills (including positive social relationships) Acquisition and use of knowledge and skills (including early language/communication) Use of appropriate behaviors to meet their needs

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 9 What must be reported about each child indicator? % of infants and toddlers who: a.Did not improve functioning b.Improved functioning, but not sufficient to move nearer to functioning comparable to same-aged peers c.Improved functioning to a level nearer to same-aged peers but did not reach it d.Improved functioning to reach a level comparable to same-aged peers e.Maintained functioning at a level comparable to same-aged peers

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 10 Reporting on the Child Indicators Ratings on the 3 indicators must be reported for every child enrolled. Ratings are needed in all areas even if: No one has concerns about a child’s development in some areas A child has delays in one or two indicators, but not in all three indicators

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 11 Indicators are Functional Functional refers to things that are meaningful to the child in the context of everyday living. Behaviors or skills that the child is able to integrate across domains to carry out complex meaningful activities They are not a single behavior, nor are they the sum of a series of discrete behaviors

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 12 Thinking Functionally (within age-expected bounds) Not just…. Know how to make eye contact, smile, and give a hug Know how to imitate a gesture when prompted by others Use finger in pointing motion Show a skill in a specific situation But does he/she… Initiate affection toward caregivers and respond to others’ affection Watch what a peer says or does and incorporate it into his/her own play Point to indicate needs or wants Use a skill in actions across settings and situations to accomplish something meaningful to the child

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 13 Critical Assumptions Related to the Indicators Achievement of the indicators is age-based There are many pathways to competence for children with atypical development (e.g., using sign language, wheel chair). This seems obvious but can get lost in assessment scores that don’t consider the use of assistive devices or other alternative means to accomplish functional activities.

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 14 Putting it in Context: Individual Child Level Part C requirements for individual children: Evaluation and Assessment using multiple sources to determine eligibility and plan for services Child’s level in 5 domain areas Determination of individualized child and family outcomes Assessment of progress in relation to the individualized child and family outcomes

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 15 Putting it in Context: OSEP Child Indicator Requirements In addition to what is already required: Assessment of function across settings and people using multiple sources of information, including an evaluation/ assessment tool Child status in 3 functional areas in relation to same-aged peers Federally-determined indicators Progress measured in relation to same- aged peers

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 16 Determining Child Status and Progress

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 17 When is child status on the three indicators determined? As part of the initial evaluation and assessment process At exit if it has been 6 months or more since the initiation of early intervention services

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 18 Coordination with Part B The final Part C ratings can be used as the Part B initial ratings Conversely, the initial Part B ratings can be used as the final Part C ratings Local Systems need to communicate now with their local school systems to establish mechanisms to coordinate this process to share information and avoid duplication of assessment.

19 The Three Child Indicators

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 20 Children have positive social relationships Involves: Relating with adults Relating with other children For older children- following rules related to groups or interacting with others Includes areas like: Attachment/separation/ autonomy Expressing emotions and feelings Learning rules and expectations Social interactions and play

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 21 Children acquire and use knowledge and skills Involves: Thinking Reasoning Remembering Problem-solving Using symbols and language Understanding physical and social worlds Includes: Early concepts – symbols, pictures, numbers, classification, spatial relationships Imitation Object permanence Expressive language and communication

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 22 Children take appropriate action to meet their needs Involves: Taking care of basic needs Getting from place to place Using tools In older children, contributing to their own health and safety Includes: Integrating motor skills to complete tasks Self-help skills (e.g., dressing, feeding, grooming, toileting, household responsibility) Acting on the world to get what one wants

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 23 Including parents in the discussion Parent input is critical Family members see the child in situations that professionals do not Need a way to learn about what family members know about the child There is not an expectation that parents will be able to determine if what they are seeing is typical or age appropriate

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 24 Using Evaluation/Assessment Information to Inform the Rating Evaluation/assessment information can assist in deciding how close a child’s functioning is to same-aged peers However, a child should not be given a lower rating if he or she has an alternative way to accomplish an indicator. Effective functioning that takes forms that are less common should not receive low ratings, unless the pattern of behavior relied on may interfere with future development Evaluation/assessment information should be used to inform the rating decision, but needs to be placed in proper context

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 25 Using Evaluation/Assessment Information to Inform the Rating Example: A child learning to sign will not “pass” items related to speaking If the child can sign to accomplish the same outcome one might through speaking (e.g., take action to meet needs), the fact that the child “fails” some assessment items is not relevant and should not enter the rating. Key point: Evaluation/Assessment results are how a child performs on a selected set of items. No more. No less.

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 26 Assistive Technology and Accommodations Ratings should reflect the child’s level of functioning using whatever assistive technology or special accommodations are present in the child’s typical settings. Note: Children who could benefit from assistive technology but don’t have it will get lower scores. Lack of appropriate assistive device does not reflect on the child’s inability to accomplish the functional skills, but rather that the child does not have the necessary equipment/services. Over time, this kind of information tells us how much actual difference the program makes for this child. It may tell us that we could do more for some children.

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 27 Indicator Ratings The team determining the rating needs to reach consensus on a number between 1 and 7. Descriptions are given for numbers 7 – Completely 5 – Somewhat 3 – Emerging 1 – Not Yet Score 2, 4, or 6 if the child’s functioning is “in between”. That is, the child functions with more skill than the lower number, but not quite as described in the higher number.

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 28

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 29 Documenting the Rating You must document: What evidence led to the selected rating Who participated in the conversation and decision- making

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 30 Child Indicator Summary Form (CISF)

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 31 Child Indicator Summary Form (CISF)

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 32 The Child Indicator Summary Form (CISF) Is Not an assessment Uses information from assessments and observations to get a global sense of how the child is doing Rating is based on child’s functioning compared to other children the same age – distance from typical Based on child’s functioning what child generally does across settings and situations, not what a child can do under ideal circumstances.

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 33 The Two CISF Questions 1. To what extent does this child show behaviors and skills related to this indicator appropriate for his or her age across a variety of settings and situations? (Rating: 1-7) (QUESTION a) 2. Has the child shown any new skills or behaviors related to this indicator since the last indicator summary? (yes-no) (QUESTION b)

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 34 The Progress Question (Question b for each indicator) Applies only for the exit summary Compares the child to his/her own past behavior Has the child shown ANY new skills or behaviors in the goal area since the last rating? Yes or No Small steps of progress count! Most will check “yes”

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 35 Documentation in ITOTS The person(s) in the local system responsible for data entry will enter the information from the Child Indicator Summary Form into the ITOTS system. The computer will calculate progress and will aggregate data from across the state for reporting to OSEP.

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 36 The Take Home Message Indicators are not primarily about data. It is about doing good things for children and families, And using data as a tool to help programs and providers know whether what they are doing is making a difference

Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia 37 For More Information Note: Many of the slides and handouts were developed from information on this Early Childhood Outcome (ECO) Center Website.