N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 8 § 100.10 - Home instruction
(a)
Purpose of section. The purpose of this section is to establish procedures to
assist school authorities in fulfilling their responsibility under Education
Law, sections 3204(2) and 3210(2)(d), and in meeting their responsibility of
determining the competency of the instructor and substantial equivalence of
instruction being provided at home to students of compulsory school attendance
age, and to assist parents who exercise their right to provide required
instruction at home to such students in fulfilling their responsibilities under
Education Law, section 3212(2).
(b)
Notice of intention to instruct at home.
(1)
Except as otherwise provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subdivision,
parents or other persons in parental relation to a student of compulsory school
attendance age shall annually provide written notice to the superintendent of
schools of their school district of residence of their intention to educate
their child at home by July 1st of each school year. The school year begins
July 1st and ends June 30th for all purposes within this section. In the case
of the City School District of the City of New York, the school district of
residence for students who, if enrolled in the public schools, would attend
elementary school, intermediate school or junior high school in a community
school district, shall be deemed to be the community school district in which
the parents reside.
(2) Parents who
determine to commence home instruction after the start of the school year, or
who establish residence in the school district after the start of the school
year, shall provide written notice of their intention to educate their child at
home within 14 days following the commencement of home instruction within the
school district.
(3) For the
1988-89 school year only, the written notice of intention to instruct at home
required in paragraph (1) of this subdivision shall be due on August 1,
1988.
(c) Procedures for
development and review of an individualized home instruction plan (IHIP).
(1) Within 10 business days of the receipt of
the notice of intention to instruct at home, the school district shall send to
the parents a copy of this section
100.10 of the Regulations of the
Commissioner of Education and a form on which to submit an individualized home
instruction plan (IHIP) for each child of compulsory attendance age who is to
be taught at home.
(2) Within four
weeks of the receipt of such materials, or by August 15th, or for the 1988-89
school year by September 15, 1988, whichever is later, the parent shall submit
the completed IHIP form to the school district. The district shall provide
assistance in preparation of the forms, if requested by the parents.
(3) Within 10 business days of receipt of the
IHIP, or by August 31st, or for the 1988-89 school year by September 30, 1988,
whichever is later, the school district shall either notify the parents that
the IHIP complies with the requirements of subdivisions (d) and (e) of this
section or shall give the parents written notice of any deficiency in the
IHIP.
(4) Within 15 days of receipt
of a notice of a deficiency in the IHIP, or by September 15th, or for the
1988-89 school year by October 15, 1988, whichever is later, the parents shall
submit a revised IHIP which corrects any such deficiencies.
(5) The superintendent of schools shall
review the revised IHIP and shall notify the parents as to whether the revised
IHIP complies with subdivisions (d) and (e) of this section within 15 days of
receipt of the revised IHIP or by September 30th, or for the 1988-89 school
year by October 31, 1988, whichever is later. If the revised IHIP is determined
not to be in compliance with subdivisions (d) and (e) of this section, then the
parents shall be notified in writing of the reasons for such determination.
Such notice shall also contain the date of the next regularly scheduled meeting
of the board of education that will be held at least 10 days after the date of
mailing of the notice, and shall indicate that if the parents wish to contest
the determination of noncompliance, the parents must so notify the board of
education at least three business days prior to such meeting. At such board
meeting, the parents shall have the right to present proof of compliance, and
the board of education shall make a final determination of compliance or
noncompliance.
(6) The parents
shall have the right to appeal any such final school district determination of
noncompliance to the Commissioner of Education within 30 days after receipt of
such determination.
(7) When
administrative review of a school district determination of noncompliance is
completed, the parents shall immediately provide for the instruction of their
children at a public school or elsewhere in compliance with Education Law,
sections 3204 and 3210. F or purposes of this subdivision, such administrative
review shall be deemed to be completed when one of the following events has
occurred:
(i) the parents have failed to
contest a determination of noncompliance by appealing to the board of
education;
(ii) the parents have
failed to appeal a final school district determination of noncompliance to the
Commissioner of Education; or
(iii)
the parents have received a decision of the Commissioner of Education which
upholds a final school district determination of noncompliance.
(8) Within 10 days after
administrative review of the determination of noncompliance is completed, the
parents shall furnish the superintendent of schools with written notice of the
arrangements they have made to provide their children with the required
instruction, except that such notice shall not be required if the parents
enroll their children in a public school.
(d) Content of individualized home
instruction plan (IHIP). Each child's IHIP shall contain:
(1) the child's name, age and grade
level;
(2) a list of the syllabi,
curriculum materials, textbooks or plan of instruction to be used in each of
the required subjects listed in subdivision (e) of this section;
(3) the dates for submission to the school
district of the parents' quarterly reports as required in subdivision (g) of
this section. These reports shall be spaced in even and logical
periods;
(4) the names of the
individuals providing instruction; and
(5) a statement that the child will be
meeting the compulsory educational requirements of Education Law, section 3205
through full-time study at a degree-granting institution, meaning enrollment
for at least 12 semester hours in a semester or its equivalent, if that is the
case. In this situation, the IHIP shall identify the degree-granting
institution and the subjects to be covered by that study.
(e) Required courses.
(1) For purposes of this subdivision, a unit
means 6,480 minutes of instruction per school year.
(2) Instruction in the following subjects
shall be required:
(i) For grades one through
six: arithmetic, reading, spelling, writing, the English language, geography,
United States history, science, health education, music, visual arts, physical
education, bilingual education and/or English as a second language where the
need is indicated.
(ii) For grades
seven and eight: English (two units); history and geography (two units);
science (two units); mathematics (two units); physical education (on a regular
basis); health education (on a regular basis); art (one-half unit); music
(one-half unit); practical arts (on a regular basis); and library skills (on a
regular basis). The units required herein are cumulative requirements for both
grades seven and eight.
(iii) The
following courses shall be taught at least once during the first eight grades:
United States history, New York State history, and the Constitutions of the
United States and New York State.
(iv) For grades 9 through 12: English (four
units); social studies (four units), which includes one unit of American
history, one-half unit in participation in government, and one- half unit of
economics; mathematics (two units); science (two units); art and/or music (one
unit); health education (one-half unit); physical education (two units); and
three units of electives. The units required herein are cumulative requirements
for grades 9 through 12.
(v)
Education Law, sections 801, 804, 806 and 808, also require the following
subjects to be covered during grades kindergarten through 12:
(a) patriotism and citizenship;
(b) health education regarding alcohol, drug
and tobacco misuse;
(c) highway
safety and traffic regulations, including bicycle safety; and
(d) fire and arson prevention and
safety.
(f) Attendance requirements. Each child shall
attend upon instruction as follows:
(1) The
substantial equivalent of 180 days of instruction shall be provided each school
year.
(2) The cumulative hours of
instruction for grades 1 through 6 shall be 900 hours per year. The cumulative
hours of instruction for grades 7 through 12 shall be 990 hours per
year.
(3) Absences shall be
permitted on the same basis as provided in the policy of the school district
for its own students.
(4) Records
of attendance shall be maintained by the parent and shall be made available to
the school district upon request.
(5) Instruction provided at a site other than
the primary residence of the parents shall be provided in a building which has
not been determined to be in violation of the local building code.
(g) Quarterly reports. On or
before the dates specified by the parent in the IHIP, a quarterly report for
each child shall be furnished by the parent to the school district. The
quarterly report shall contain the following:
(1) the number of hours of instruction during
said quarter;
(2) a description of
the material covered in each subject listed in the IHIP;
(3) either a grade for the child in each
subject or a written narrative evaluating the child's progress; and
(4) a written explanation in the event that
less than 80 percent of the amount of the course materials as set forth in the
IHIP planned for that quarter has been covered in any subject.
(h) Annual assessment. At the time
of filing the fourth quarterly report as specified in the IHIP, the parent
shall also file an annual assessment in accordance with this subdivision. The
annual assessment shall include the results of a commercially published norm
referenced achievement test which meets the requirements of paragraph (1) of
this subdivision, or an alternative form of evaluation which meets the
requirements of paragraph (2) of this subdivision.
(1) Commercially published norm-referenced
achievement tests.
(i) The test shall be
selected by the parent from one of the following: the Iowa Test of Basic
Skills, the California Achievement Test, the Stanford Achievement Test, the
Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills, the Metropolitan Achievement Test, a State
Education Department test, or another test approved by the State Education
Department.
(ii) The test shall be
administered in accordance with one of the following options, to be selected by
the parents:
(a) at the public school, by its
professional staff;
(b) at a
registered nonpublic school, by its professional staff, provided that the
consent of the chief school officer of the nonpublic school is
obtained;
(c) at a nonregistered
nonpublic school, by its professional staff, provided that the consent of the
superintendent of schools of the school district and of the chief school
officer of the nonpublic school is obtained; or
(d) at the parents' home or at any other
reasonable location, by a New York State- certified teacher or by another
qualified person, provided that the superintendent has consented to having said
certified teacher or other person administer the test.
(iii) The test shall be scored by the persons
administering the test or by other persons who are mutually agreeable to the
parents and the superintendent of schools.
(iv) The test shall be provided by the school
district upon request by the parent, provided that the cost of any testing
facilities, transportation, and/or personnel for testing conducted at a
location other than the public school shall be borne by the parent.
(v) If a score on a test is determined to be
inadequate, the program shall be placed on probation pursuant to subdivision
(i) of this section. A student's score shall be deemed adequate if:
(a) the student has a composite score above
the 33rd percentile on national norms; or
(b) the student's score reflects one academic
year of growth as compared to a test administered during or subsequent to the
prior school year.
(2) Alternative evaluation methods. An
alternative form of evaluation shall be permitted to be chosen by the parent
only as follows:
(i) for grades one through
three, a written narrative prepared by a person specified in subparagraph (iii)
of this paragraph;
(ii) for grades
four through eight, a written narrative prepared by a person specified in
subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph. This alternative form of evaluation may
be used no more often than every other school year for these grades;
(iii) for the purposes of this paragraph, the
person who prepares the written narrative shall be a New York State-certified
teacher, a home instruction peer group review panel, or other person, who has
interviewed the child and reviewed a portfolio of the child's work. Such person
shall certify either that the child has made adequate academic progress or that
the child has failed to make adequate progress. In the event that such child
has failed to make adequate progress, the home instruction program shall be
placed on probation pursuant to subdivision (i) of this section. The certified
teacher, peer review panel or other person shall be chosen by the parent with
the consent of the superintendent. Any resulting cost shall be borne by the
parent.
(2-a) Due to the
State of emergency declared by the Governor pursuant to an Executive Order for
the COVID-19 crisis, students shall be exempt from the annual assessment and
alternative evaluation requirements of this subdivision for the 2019-20 and
2020-21 school years where a student otherwise achieves the learning outcomes
in accordance with their IHIP.
(3)
If a dispute arises between the parents and the superintendent of schools,
including disputes over the administration of the commercially published
norm-referenced achievement test or the use of alternative evaluation methods,
the parents may appeal to the board of education. If the parents disagree with
the determination of the board of education, the parents may appeal to the
Commissioner of Education within 30 days of receipt of the board's final
determination.
(i)
Probation.
(1) If a child's annual assessment
fails to comply with the requirements of subdivision (h) of this section, the
home instruction program shall be placed on probation for a period of up to two
school years. The parent shall be required to submit a plan of remediation
which addresses the deficiencies in the child's achievement, and seeks to
remedy said deficiencies. The plan shall be reviewed by the school district.
The school district may require the parents to make changes in the plan prior
to acceptance.
(2) If after the end
of any semester of the probationary period, the child progresses to the level
specified in the remediation plan, then the home instruction program shall be
removed from probation. If the child does not attain at least 75 percent of the
objectives specified in the remediation plan at the end of any given semester
within the period of probation, or if after two years on probation 100 percent
of the objectives of the remediation plan have not been satisfied, the
superintendent of schools shall provide the parents with the notice specified
in paragraph (c)(5) of this section and the board of education shall review the
determination of noncompliance in accordance with such paragraph, except that
consent of the parents to such review shall not be required.
(3) If, during the period of probation, the
superintendent of schools has reasonable grounds to believe that the program of
home instruction is in substantial noncompliance with these regulations, the
superintendent may require one or more home visits. Such home visit(s) shall be
made only after three days' written notice. The purpose of such visit(s) shall
be to ascertain areas of noncompliance with these regulations and to determine
methods of remediating any such deficiencies. The home visit(s) shall be
conducted by the superintendent or by the superintendent's designee. The
superintendent may include members of a home instruction peer review panel in
the home visit team.
Notes
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