CFDA Number: | 84.173 - Special Education Preschool Grants |
Program Goal: To help preschool children with disabilities enter school ready to succeed by assisting states in providing special education and related services. |
Objective 1 of 1: Preschool children with disabilities will receive special education and related services that result in increased skills that enable them to succeed in school. |
Indicator 1.1 of 3: SERVICE SETTING: The percentage of children receiving special education and related services in settings with typically developing peers (e.g., early childhood settings, home and part-time early childhood/part-time early childhood special education settings). |
Source: State-reported data under IDEA Section 618. Frequency: Annually. Next Data Available: August 2006 Limitations: The Department is planning to change the data collection by 2006-07 to reflect where the child spends most of his or her time, as opposed to where the child is receiving special education services. |
Indicator 1.2 of 3: CERTIFIED TEACHERS UNDER IDEA: The number of states with at least 90 percent of preschool special education teachers fully certified in the areas in which they are teaching. |
Source: State-reported data under IDEA Section 618. Frequency: Annually. Next Data Available: August 2006 Limitations: States maintain data by grades taught, not by ages of students taught. Therefore, these data are for teachers teaching prekindergarten and kindergarten. Improvements: Certification of related services personnel are not included because those requirements vary even more widely than requirements for teachers (e.g., some states certify sign language interpreters, but other states do not). OSEP will implement follow-up actions regarding increasing emphasis on related services personnel; possibly follow-up on SPeNSE study. Explanation: There is a clustering of states around the 90 percent threshold in this measure, which may result in unpredictable changes from year to year. |
Indicator 1.3 of 3: FUNCTIONAL ABILITIES: The percentage of children with disabilities aged three through five participating in the Preschool Grants program who demonstrate positive social-emotional skills (including social relationships); acquire and use knowledge and skills (including early language/communication and early literacy); and use appropriate behaviors to meet their needs. |
Source: State-reported data under the Annual Performance Reports and IDEA section 618. Frequency: Other. Next Data Available: October 2007 Explanation: This measure focuses on early language/communication, early literacy and social-emotional skills because these skills are the best indictors of success in later years. The FY 2006 target is to establish a baseline. The FY 2007 target is to maintain the baseline. |