Extended School Year

1. Extended School Year Presentation by: Brenda Tarsa, Jennifer Debski, and Jason Montgomery

2. What is ESY? • Extended School Year: schools shall ensure that ESY services are available as necessary to provide FAPE for a student with a disability: • Beyond the normal school year of the school; • In accordance with the student’s IEP; and • At no cost to the parents of the student. (Mountain Plains Regional Resource Center, 2004)

3. ESY cont. • ESY need determined by the IEP team based on the students’ need for ESY, severity of disability, the students’ rate of progress, the possibility of the availability of alternative resources, and the students’ ability to interact with non-disabled peers (Mass. Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education, 2002).

4. ESY Cont… • Regression/Recoupment • Nine weeks • Frequency/Duration of programs and services • “Window of Opportunity” • Maintenance of skills: • Academic • Behavioral

5. Problems Related to ESY • Cost of running ESY programs in the summer months (i.e., salary of staff, cost of keeping facilities open). • Transportation of students to such programs. • Parents of severely impaired children may become accustomed to their child attending ESY programming.

6. Problems Cont… • Determining eligibility • Measuring regression • Assessing “serious and irrevocable negative consequences” • Implementing services • While many districts have an ESY plan on paper, some do not implement these services to students.

7. Understanding Prospective ESY Programming • (Jenn) • Joseph McMahon (1983) found that regression of skills decreases and skill improvement increases when students who are eligible participate in an ESY experience. • He concluded that ESY is effective at maintaining skills, not introducing new skills.

8. Social-Ecological Implications of ESY • Observational data was collected by Xin, Larson, & Meyer (1995) to better understand the social-ecological impact that an ESY may have on students. • Subjects: 2 students with severe multiple impairments. • Focus group was designed to examine the following:

9. 1) Does the social environment have an effect on maintaining IEP goals? 2) The summer ESY program was designed to prevent regression of IEP goals; did it do that? 3) Alternatively, what type of ESY program should be provided to severely disabled students?

10. Results of Xin et al. (1995) Study: • Appropriate peer interactions/models were missing in the summer program. • The two subjects (i.e., “target students”) were more socially motivated by their peers during the traditional school year when they were in the inclusive classroom. • The target students were more socially independent during the traditional school year with their peers and more dependent on the teacher assistant during the ESY program. • The social environment within the general education classroom with age-appropriate peers during the traditional school year was deemed more important to the target students because they learned skills by imitating and interacting with their non-disabled peers (Xin et al., 1995).

11. Results Cont. • A richer social context within the inclusive program during the traditional school year is important for severely disabled students. • Ultimately, if students are to benefit from ESY programming a rich social context with appropriate peer models needs to be accomplished.

12. Brenda-ESY Research Studies • Tilley, Cox & Staybrook (1986) • General education and minor disabilities average of 4% regression over summer. • Severe disabilities lost more and took longer to recoup information. • Study cited in: Pinkerton, D. Pinkerton, D. (1990). Extended School Year (ESY). ERIC Clearinghouse on Handicapped and Gifted Children. Reston, VA. ERIC Digest #E471.

13. ESY Studies • Axelrad-Lentz, S. (1996). Michigan Extended School Year Programs 1992-1995. An Evaluation of a State Grant Initiative. Greentree Research and Development, Bloomfield, MI. Michigan State Department of Education, Lansing. February 1996. • 16 Michigan school districts received a $25-$35,000 grant to implement either a 190 or 195 day ESY program over 2 years. • 1 school district dropped out after a year of the study. • 13,000 students participated in ESY programs, K-12.

14. ESY Studies Continued • Axelrad-Lentz conducted a survey using both quantitative and qualitative measures. • Surveys sent to board members, teachers, parents and students.

15. ESY Studies Continued • Results of Surveys: • Board members thought year-round education was more effective than summer school and ESY • Teachers found year-round education was better at preventing regression compared to summer school and ESY • Parents’ perceptions of ESY were skewed by relationship with school (positive and negative) • Students responded that only year-round education aided with retention of knowledge

16. Study Implications: • Factors that influence implementation of ESY services: • Case Law • Within close proximity has a tendency to raise awareness and promote accountability. • District size • Larger districts are more likely to have the needed resources (Alper & Noie, 1987).

17. ESY Effectiveness • Depends on curriculum • Teaching methods • Use of best practices • High standards/expectations

18. Law Cases • Armstrong v. Kline • State of Pennsylvania refused to offer services beyond 180 school days • Violation of EHA and PL 94-142 • Violation of FAPE • Plaintiffs demonstrated evidence of regression/recoupment for severely impaired students

19. Law Cases • Reusch v. Fountain (1994) • Montgomery County, Maryland in violation of IDEA when ESY was not offered to children with disabilities, even after the ten year mark from the decision of Armstrong v. Kline. • Two students filed a due process complaint for not being offered ESY • Cited for not having a written policy and criteria for ESY-violation of LRE • Process impeded with IDEA and the provision of ESY-held IEP meetings too late to offer ESY • County did not give parents informed information on ESY • ESY not discussed at annual reviews • Were cited for a second time for not following rules and had to provide remedies for plaintiffs and pay their legal fees • http://www.wrightslaw.com/law/caselaw/case_esy_reusch_fountain.htm