SENATE BILL 314

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011

INTRODUCED BY

Clinton D. Harden

AN ACT

RELATING TO SPECIAL EDUCATION; REQUIRING THE USE OF CERTAIN INFORMATION WHEN DEVELOPING AN EDUCATION PLAN FOR OR EVALUATING A STUDENT WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. Section 22-13-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1972, Chapter 95, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:

     "22-13-6. SPECIAL EDUCATION--DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Public School Code:

          A. "special education" means the provision of services additional to, supplementary to or different from those provided in the regular school program by a systematic modification and adaptation of instructional techniques, materials and equipment to meet the needs of exceptional children;

          B. "exceptional children" means school-age persons whose abilities render regular services of the public school to be inconsistent with their educational needs;

          C. "children with disabilities" means those children who are classified as developmentally disabled according to the Developmental Disabilities Act;

          D. "gifted child" means a school-age person who is determined to be gifted pursuant to Section 22-13-6.1 NMSA 1978 and standards adopted by the department pursuant to that section. Nothing in this section shall preclude a school district or charter school from offering additional gifted programs for students who fail to meet the eligibility criteria; however, the state shall only provide state funds for department-approved gifted programs for those students who meet the established criteria;

          E. "dyslexia" means a condition of neurological origin that is characterized by difficulty with accurate or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities, which characteristics typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction and may result in problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that may impede the growth of vocabulary and background knowledge;

          F. "response to intervention" means a multitiered intervention model that uses a set of increasingly intensive academic or behavioral supports, matched to student need, as a framework for making educational programming and eligibility decisions; [and]

          G. "student assistance team" means a school-based group whose purpose, based on procedures and guidelines established by the department, is to provide additional educational support to students who are experiencing difficulties that are preventing them from benefitting from general instruction; and

          H. "autism spectrum disorder" means a condition that meets the diagnostic criteria for the pervasive developmental disorders published in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, text revision, also known as DSM-IV-TR, published by the American psychiatric association, including autistic disorder; Asperger's disorder; pervasive development disorder not otherwise specified; Rett's disorder; and childhood disintegrative disorder."

     SECTION 2. A new section of Chapter 22, Article 13 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER--SPECIAL EDUCATION EVALUATION--DEVELOPMENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAM.--A school district or charter school that is evaluating a student with autism spectrum disorder for special education services or developing a special education program for a student with autism spectrum disorder, including the individual education plan required under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004, shall consider the following in conducting the evaluation or developing the program:

          A. extended educational programming, including extended day or extended school year services, that considers the duration of the program based on assessment of the student's behavior, social skills, communication, academics and self-help skills;

          B. the inclusion of active engagement in learning activities and minimal unstructured time, including lunch, snack time and recess, in the student's daily schedule and providing flexibility within school routines that are adaptable to individual skill levels, including assisting with schedule changes for changes in school scheduled activities, such as field trips, substitute teachers and other in-school extracurricular activities;

          C. in-home and community-based training, or viable alternatives to such training, that assist the student with the acquisition of social or behavioral skills, including strategies that facilitate maintenance and generalization of such skills from home to school, school to home, home to community and school to community;

          D. positive behavior support strategies based on behavioral information, including:

                (1) antecedent manipulation, replacement behaviors, reinforcement strategies and data-based decisions; and

                (2) a behavioral intervention plan developed from a functional behavioral assessment that uses current data related to target behaviors and addresses behavioral programming across home, school and community settings;

          E. futures planning for integrated living, work, community and educational environments that considers the skills necessary to function in current and post-secondary environments;

          F. parent or family training and support, provided by qualified personnel with experience with students with autism spectrum disorder, that includes:

                (1) training in providing a family with the skills necessary for a student with autism spectrum disorder to succeed in the home and community setting;

                (2) information regarding parent and family resources, such as support groups, workshops, videos, conferences and materials designed to increase parent and family knowledge of specific teaching and management techniques related to the student's curriculum; and

                (3) training on the facilitation of parental and family involvement in working with the student at home and includes strategies for behavior management and developing structured home environments or communication training so that parents and family are active participants in promoting the continuity of interventions across all settings;

          G. a suitable staff-to-student ratio appropriate to identified activities and necessary for achievement of social or behavioral progress based on the student's developmental and learning level and that encourages work toward the student's individual independence as determined by:

                (1) adaptive behavior evaluation results;

                (2) behavioral accommodation needs across all settings; and

                (3) transitions within the school day;

          H. communication interventions, including language forms and functions that enhance effective communication across all settings, such as augmentative, incidental and naturalistic teaching;

          I. developing the student's social skills based on social skills assessment curriculum and provided across all educational settings, such as trained peer facilitators, video modeling, social stories and role playing;

          J. professional educator and staff support, such as training provided to personnel who work with the student to assure the correct implementation of techniques and strategies described in the special education program; and

          K. teaching strategies based on peer-reviewed or research-based practices for students with autism spectrum disorder, such as those associated with discrete trial training, visual support, applied behavior analysis, structured learning, augmentative communication or social skills training."

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