Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0520-01-19-.01 - DEFINITIONS

(1) As used in this Chapter:

(a) "Characteristics of Dyslexia" means reading challenges that are identified when a student is:

1. Identified by the composite score created by the universal reading screener and/or the Early Warning System (in grades 9-12 only); and

2. Demonstrates deficiencies in fifty percent (50%) or more of the grade appropriate subtests of skills which support the goal of reading proficiently as identified by the Department's Minimum Universal Reading Screening Matrix.

(b) "Co-Teaching Instruction" means the collaborative planning, organization, delivery, and assessment of instruction by a general education teacher and a teacher who holds an ESL endorsement that integrates content and language standards using an approved Direct ESL Service model to ensure ELs at all language proficiency levels have the opportunity to productively engage in grade level curriculum and develop both content and language skills.

(c) "Direct ESL Services" means English as a Second Language (ESL) services designed for speakers of other languages and provided pursuant to an ILP by a teacher with an ESL endorsement to teach EL students.

(d) "English Learner" or "EL" means an NELB Student who qualifies for ESL services via a Department of Education-adopted English Language Proficiency screener.

(e) "Fluent English Proficient" (FEP) means an EL student who meets the proficiency requirements of the Department of Education-adopted English language proficiency screener upon initial enrollment or a student who initially qualified as an EL Student and has met the approved exit criteria for Direct or Indirect ESL Services.

(f) "Home Language Survey" (HLS) means a survey delivered to parents or guardians within thirty (30) days of a student's initial enrollment in public school to identify NELB Students who may be eligible for Direct or Indirect ESL Services.

(g) "ILP Team" means a team at the LEA or school level that creates the ILP for an EL student. At a minimum, the ILP Team shall include an EL student's current and/or former general education teacher and current and/or former ESL teacher. ILP Team members may also include parents or guardians, school counselors, and other staff best suited to assess the language goals and needs of each EL student.

(h) "Indirect ESL Services" means ESL services that provide linguistically and academically appropriate accommodations and scaffolding pursuant to an ILP that are:

1. Provided as a result of parent(s) or guardian(s) waiving Direct ESL Services;

2. Provided by a general education teacher in the general education classroom; and

3. Designed to ensure EL Students have access to daily grade level instruction in English.

(i) "Individualized Learning Plan" or "ILP" means a document developed pursuant to this Chapter that prescribes the academic goals, supports, and/or accommodations that an EL student needs to access classroom instruction.

(j) "Individualized Learning Plan - Dyslexia" or "ILP-D" means a document developed by the LEA for students with Characteristics of Dyslexia in accordance with T.C.A. § 49-1-229 and the State Board Dyslexia Individualized Learning Plan Rule Chapter 0520-01-22, that prescribes the academic goals, supports, and/or accommodations that a student may need to access classroom instruction.

(k) "LEA" means a Tennessee Local Education Agency and has the same meaning given in T.C.A. § 49-1-103(2).

(l) "Long-Term English Learners" means English Learners in year seven (7) of the ESL program who have not met the program's exit criteria pursuant to this Chapter.

(m) "Minimum Universal Reading Screening Matrix" means a state-designed tool that identifies the subtests required at each grade level for all state-approved universal reading screeners and determines the grade appropriate subtests necessary for the screening process for Characteristics of Dyslexia.

(n) "Non-English Language Background (NELB) Student" means a student whose parent(s) or guardian(s) list a language other than English in response to any question on the home language survey. An NELB Student may or may not qualify for ESL services.

(o) "Pull-Out Instruction" means a teacher who holds an ESL endorsement delivers intensive language support to EL students in small groups or one-on-one settings outside of the general education classroom using an approved Direct ESL Service model.

(p) "RAEL" means a Recently Arrived English Learner as defined in the state's plan required by the Every Student Succeeds Act.

(q) "Transitional EL" means an EL student who has met the exit criteria for Direct or Indirect ESL Services and is in the first four (4) years after exit.

Notes

Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0520-01-19-.01

New rule filed April 7, 2021; effective July 6, 2021. Amendments filed March 10, 2023; effective June 8, 2023. Amendments filed June 12, 2024; effective 9/10/2024.

Authority: T.C.A. §§ 49-1-302, 49-3-104, and 49-3-105; 42 U.S.C. § 2000d; and 20 U.S.C. § 1703.