SECTION 100.10 OF THE REGULATIONS OF THE COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION
(effective July 1, 1988)
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 first of each school year. The school year begins
July first and ends June thirtieth 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 fourteen (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 ten (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 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 (4) weeks of the receipt of such materials, or by
August fifteenth, 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 ten (10) business days of receipt of the IHIP, or by
August thirty-first, 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 fifteen (15) days of receipt of a notice of a deficiency
in the IHIP, or by September fifteenth, 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 fifteen (15) days of
receipt of the revised IHIP or by September thirtieth, 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 ten (10) days after the 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 (3) 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 thirty (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. For purposes of this
subdivision, such administrative review shall be deemed to be completed
when one of the following events have occurred:
(i) the parents have failed to contest a determination of
noncompliance by appealing to the board of education; or
(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 ten (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 six thousand four hundred eighty (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 nine through twelve: 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 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 nine through twelve.
(v) Education Law sections 801, 804, 806, and 808 also require the
following subjects to be covered during grades kindergarten through twelve:
(a) Patriotism and citizenship;
(b) health education regarding alcohol, drug and tobacco misuse;
(c) highway safety and traffic regulation, 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 one hundred eighty (180) days of
instruction shall be provided each school year.
(2) The cumulative hours of instruction for grades one through six
shall be nine hundred (900) hours per year. The cumulative hours of
instruction for grades seven through twelve shall be nine hundred ninety
(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 eighty 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; or
(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; or
(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 thirty-third
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.
(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 thirty (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 seventy-five 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 one hundred 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 (5) of subdivision (c) 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.
