State Board, Data & Funding » Data & Reports » Data Collections » Special Education

Special Education Indicators

Print
Share & Bookmark, Press Enter to show all options, press Tab go to next option
Font Size: + -

Overview

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires each state to report to the public on state-level data and individual school division-level data and to report on whether the state and the divisions met state targets described in the state’s special education State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report. School divisions are required to submit information and data for reporting, monitoring and compliance purposes. This includes:

  • Early Childhood Special Education indicators:
    • Indicator 6: Preschool Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
    • Indicator 7: Preschool Outcomes
    • Indicator 12: Part C to Part B Transition
  • School age performance indicators:
    • Indicator 1: Graduation
    • Indicator 2: Dropouts
    • Indicator 3: Participation and Performance on Statewide Assessments
    • Indicator 4: Suspension/Expulsion
    • Indicator 5: School Age Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
    • Indicator 8: Parent Involvement
    • Indicator 9: Districts with Disproportionate Representation in Special Education and Related Services
    • Indicator 10: Districts with Disproportionate Representation in Specific Disability Categories
    • Indicator 11: Timeline for Eligibility
    • Indicator 13: Secondary IEP Goals and Transition Services
    • Indicator 14: Post-Secondary Outcomes

Indicator 1: Graduation

  • Definition: Percent of youth with IEPs graduating from high school with a regular diploma
  • Instructions: N/A
  • Data Collection: Data is collected through the VDOE End of Year Report.

Indicator 2: Dropouts

  • Definition: Students with disabilities grades 7-12 who dropped out
  • Instructions: N/A
  • Data Collection: Data is collected through VDOE state assessment data.

Indicator 3: Participation & Performance on Statewide Assessments

  • Definition:
    • 3a. Division met AMO targets for students with disabilities subgroup
    • 3b. Students with disabilities participation rate for English/reading
    • 3b. Students with disabilities participation rate for math
    • 3c. Students with disabilities proficiency rate for English/reading
    • 3c. Students with disabilities proficiency rate for math
  • Instructions: N/A
  • Data Collection: Data is collected through the VDOE End of Year Report.

Indicator 4: Suspension/Expulsion

  • Definition:
    • 4a. Division identified with significant discrepancy in the rate of suspensions and expulsions of greater than 10 days in a school year for children with IEPs
    • 4b. Division identified with significant discrepancy, by race or ethnicity, in the rate of suspensions and expulsions of greater than 10 days in a school year for children with IEPs
  • Instructions:
  • Data Collection:

Indicator 5: School Age Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

  • Definition:
    • 5a. Students included in regular classroom 80 percent or more of the day
    • 5b. Students included in regular classroom less than 40 percent of the day
    • 5c. Students served in separate public or private school, residential, home-based or hospital facility
  • Instructions: N/A
  • Data Collection: Data is collected through the December 1 Child Count

Indicator 6: Preschool Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

  • Definition: Percent of preschool children in preschool ages 3-5 with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) who receive special education and related services in settings with typically developing peers (e.g., early childhood settings, home, and part-time early childhood/part-time early childhood special education settings).
    • 6a. Children aged 3 through 5 with IEPs attending a regular early childhood program and receiving the majority of special education and related services in the regular early childhood program
    • 6b. Children aged 3 through 5 with IEPs attending a separate special education class, separate school, or residential facility
    • 6c. Children ages 3 through 5 with IEPs receiving services in the home environment
  • Instructions:
    • The U.S. Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) requires states to report the percentage of children in preschool (three - five years of age) who attend 1) a regular early childhood program and receive the majority of special education and related services in the regular early childhood program; 2) a separate special education class, separate school, or residential facility; and 3) the home environment. It is through the December 1 Special Education Child Count that Indicator 6 data is collected. Local Education agencies (LEAs) are required to report on each child receiving special education and related services. Data reported includes preschool educational placement. In Virginia, data is reported for children ages birth - five.
  • Virginia Indicator 6 Decision Tree (Word) – The Indicator 6 Decision Tree is designed to assist with reporting each child’s educational environment. This document provides the steps for determining the accurate educational environment classification.
  • Indicator 6: Educational Environments for Children Birth-Five Instructions (Word) – This instructional document provides definitions to key vocabulary as well as steps for determining the accurate educational environment classification using the Indicator 6 Decision Tree.
  • Questions and Answers for Educational Environments and Children Birth-Five (Word) – This instructional document provides answers to frequently asked questions regarding Indicator 6. It is designed to assist Local Education Agency personnel in accurately collecting and reporting Indicator 6 data.
  • Customized Indicator 6 Decision Tree Tool – This tool, developed by the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center, provides an application for determining the accurate educational environment classification. Click on “Virginia” to use the customized tool aligned with Virginia’s data reporting format. 
  • Understanding Indicator 6 Online Training:
    • Understanding Indicator 6: Preschool Environments Webinar | Presentation (PPT) – This webinar is designed to provide Special Education Administrators, Preschool Special Education Coordinators, and others responsible for oversight of Early Childhood Special Education programs an overview of the reporting requirements related to Early Childhood Special Education Settings.
    • Understanding the Indicator 6 Terminology: Preschool Environments Webinar | Presentation (PPT) – This webinar is designed to provide Special Education Administrators, Preschool Special Education Coordinators, and others responsible for oversight of Early Childhood Special Education programs an overview of the reporting requirements related to Preschool Special Education Settings. This webinar focuses on defining the terminology related to Indicator 6.
    • Understanding Data Reporting Requirements for Indicator 6: Preschool Environments Webinar | Presentation (PPT) – This webinar is designed to provide Special Education Administrators, Preschool Special Education Coordinators, and others responsible for oversight of Early Childhood Special Education programs an overview of the reporting requirements related to Early Childhood Special Education Settings. This webinar focuses on elements related to data reporting.

Indicator 7: Preschool Outcomes

  • Definition:
  • Instructions:
    • Overview & Federal Reporting Categories:
      • Indicator 7 Instructions (Word)
      • Indicator 7 Overview (Word) – This document provides a brief overview of Indicator 7, Preschool Outcomes. It includes the five categories of progress provided by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). 
      • Summary Statement Definitions (PDF) – This document clarifies the summary statements and provides a formula for Indicator 7 data.
      • Federal Reporting Categories (PDF) – This document provides the Federal Reporting Categories for Indicator 7, Preschool Outcomes. It provides an explanation of the Progress Category and the COSF ratings. The document was created by the Early Childhood Outcomes Center.
    • Child Outcomes Summary Forms & Process:
      • Indicator 7 Technical Assistance Document - The Indicator 7 Technical Assistance Document was developed in 2019 to assist school divisions to implement the COS process with fidelity.  Support documents include the COS Summary Form, COS Decision Tree, COS Summary Rating Guide, and COS Process Discussion Prompts. 
      • Definitions for Outcome Ratings (PDF) – This document defines "completely, somewhat, nearly and not yet" ratings for use with the Child Outcomes Summary Form (COSF) for Indicator 7, Preschool Outcomes. 
      • The Child Outcomes Summary Process: Procedures Specific to Virginia – This webinar provides guidance from the Virginia Department of Education to school divisions to complete the Child Outcomes Summary (COS) process, a team process for summarizing information related to a child’s progress on each of the three child outcome areas for Indicator 7.
      • Indicator 7, Early Childhood Outcomes: Online Training to Complete the Child Outcomes Summary Process  
        This is an eWorkshop to provide training to team members who participate in the Child Outcomes Summary (COS) process and complete ratings for Indicator 7.  The eWorkshop is a series of seven Webshops, totaling approximately 11 hours of training. Each Webshop can be taken separately and users can choose which Webshops to complete based on their current knowledge and skills related to the COS process.
  • Data Collection:

Indicator 8: Parent Involvement

Indicator 9: Districts with Disproportionate Representation in Special Education and Related Services

Indicator 10: Districts with Disproportionate Representation in Specific Disability Categories

Indicator 11: Timeline for Eligibility

Indicator 12: Transition from Part C to Part B

Indicator 13: Secondary IEP Goals and Transition Services

  • Definition: Percent of youth aged 16 and above with an IEP that includes appropriate measurable postsecondary goals that are annually updated and based upon an age appropriate transition assessment, transition services, including courses of study, that will reasonably enable the student to meet those postsecondary goals, and annual IEP goals related to the student’s transition services needs. There also must be evidence that the student was invited to the IEP Team meeting where transition services are to be discussed and evidence that, if appropriate, a representative of any participating agency, likely to pay for or provide for transition services, including, if appropriate, pre-employment transition services, was invited to the IEP Team meeting with the prior consent of the parent or student who has reached the age of majority.
  • Instructions:
  • Data Collection:

Indicator 14: Post-Secondary Outcomes