MI HB6005

Department of Education shall develop or adopt language developmental milestones and assessment tools to monitor expressive and receptive language achievement in American Sign Language, English literacy, and audiological habilitation for deaf, deafblind, and hard-of-hearing children birth to age 8.

Department shall create parent resources for each category of deaf, deafblind, and hard-of-hearing children that include developmental milestones, language deprivation risks, available communication options, technological advances, and contact information for relevant support organizations.

Assessment tools shall be used to establish or modify individualized education programs, individualized family service plans, or individual accommodation plans, and must be disseminated to school districts, early intervention providers, and special education personnel along with training materials.

If a deaf, deafblind, or hard-of-hearing child does not demonstrate reasonable progress in age-appropriate language skills, their educational planning committee must modify the child's plan with detailed explanations and specific recommendations for strategies and services.

Department shall establish a 13-member advisory committee by the superintendent of public instruction, with majority membership being deaf, deafblind, or hard-of-hearing individuals, to recommend milestones, assessment tools, and monitoring methods; committee shall produce annual reports on language development outcomes by September 1, 2018 and each subsequent year.