Preschool Outcomes 

Federal Requirements

The monitoring priorities and indicators of the Office of Special Education Program (OSEP) State Performance Plan / Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR) mandate the gathering of information on preschool outcomes data for students with disabilities exiting preschool. OSEP uses the data to determine if federal funding of preschool education through IDEA is making a difference for young children with disabilities. OSEP measures the implementation of IDEA with 18 Indicators. Preschool Outcomes is Indicator 7. 


Preschool Outcomes

Indicator 7 is used for both the State Performance Plan (SPP) and Annual Performance Reports (APR). Indicator 7 is a results indicator meaning the state has set a target for improvement. There are three outcomes that are considered critical to children becoming active and successful participants across a variety of settings. The expectation is for preschool children aged 3 through 5 to demonstrate improved skills in each area of delay. 

7A: Positive social-emotional skills (including social relationships);

7B: Acquisition and use of knowledge and skills (including early language/ communication and early literacy); and 

7C: Use of appropriate behaviors to meet their needs.


Where does the Data come from? 

Data for Indicator 7 are collected at the student level by each LEA that provides special education services to preschool students with disabilities. LEAs collect this data using tools such as checklists and observation tools. Children entering Georgia's preschool special education program are rated using the Child Outcomes Summary (COS) process. When children exit preschool special education or become age 6, they are also rated using the COS process. The entry and exit ratings are evaluated using the Childhood Outcomes Calculator to determine a level of student progress. The calculator converts the ratings to the alphabetic scale required by OSEP. 

 

The COS summarizes information on a child's functioning in each of the three child outcome areas using a 7-point scale. With the COS process, a team of individuals who are familiar with the child (including the parents) can consider multiple sources of information about his/her functioning, including parent/provider observations and results from direct assessment. The data for the Preschool Outcomes are collected in the SE Applications Preschool Outcomes Application on July 31 of each year. Each LEA uses the Preschool Outcomes template which has the COS calculator embedded to enable LEAs to convert numeric ratings used in the COS to the alphabetic scale used by OSEP.


What Happens to the Data?

LEAs collect individual student data on the three outcomes and report it to the State Education Agency (SEA) annually. Both the Local Education Agency (LEA) and the SEA use the data to inform program improvements and professional learning. GaDOE generates reports for federal reporting of the outcomes in the SPP/APR. Once submitted by the state, the U.S. Department of Education, OSEP summarizes the data to produce a national picture, reports the data to Congress, and uses the data to inform funding and program improvement.