OSEP Reporting for Preschool Children Enrolled in Special Education

Updated information for OSEP Reporting for 2024 is available in CDE’s Indicator 7 Guidance Document (pdf). Important timelines for this school year:

May 31, 2024: A snapshot of the OSEP Mandated Report in the online RM tool will be taken by CDE to monitor the exit process.
June 3, 2024: A Verification Form will be available in the ESSU DMS with the status of children exited from the AU as of that date.
July 15, 2024 Deadline for finalization and certification. This is a federal deadline, and it cannot be extended.

OSEP Preschool Outcomes (Indicator 7) Reporting and Results Matter Assessment

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires all U.S. states and territories to report annually to the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) on outcomes for preschoolers with disabilities as part of their Annual Performance Report (Indicator 7). Preschool Outcomes (Indicator 7) are tied to child progress made between their entry and their exit from preschool special education services. To meet this accountability requirement, teachers and administrators must follow specific records management procedures in their Results Matter assessment systems. The flowchart below represents the process from the collection of authentic assessment data to the conversion into the preschool outcomes indicators.

The Special Education Director of each Administrative Unit is responsible for ensuring that the ongoing data collection for Indicator 7 is accurate and reliable and completed through one of the approved assessment tools for Results Matter (RM) that has been chosen by the AU.

Flow chart of the process from collection of authentic data to the conversion of scores to progress categories and summary statements

Accessible Version of the Flowchart Image

When is the Collection data due?
The Indicator 7 Collection must be completed by July 15th of every school year. This is a federal collection, and extensions cannot be granted.

Data Collection Timeline: 2023-24 School Year
Results Matter Checkpoint Deadlines for 2023-24

Which Children are Included in the Collection?
The collection includes any child who:

Received at least 183 calendar days of preschool special education, AND
Stopped receiving Part B 619 Preschool services during the current year, AND
Have complete Part B 619 Preschool entry and exit assessment scores.

Overview of the Collection Process

Preschool programs' Results Matter Administrators exit children from preschool special education in their Results Matter online tool.
1. Preschool programs should inform their Administrative Unit (AU) when they complete the exits of their children in the online system.
2. This process should take place while preschool and preschool special education staff are available, in case questions arise.
Administrative Units verify the OSEP Exit Child Count
1. The AU verifies their child counts with their district and preschool programs. A Results Matter administrator can provde an OSEP Federally Mandated Year-End Report to the AU special education director for comparison to their special education count of children on IEPs who have ended preschool special education.
2. The AU special education director or other staff member then verifies their child counts with CDE.
3. A Preschool Outcomes Certification Form will be provided to the AU.
Administrative Units certify the OSEP Exit Child Count
1. The Preschool Outcomes Certification Form is signed by the AU’s Special Education Director.
2. Signed form is returned to CDE.

Detailed information can be found in CDE’s Indicator 7 Guidance Document (pdf)

Resources

Preschool Outcomes: A Data Dialogue on OSEP Indicator 7 Reporting

This module is for Special Education Administrators and Early Childhood Personnel who are involved with the OSEP reporting of Preschool Outcomes. It is designed to promote understanding of the three global child outcomes and how they fit into the ESSU's Results Driven Accountability System. Rating levels, progress categories and data quality will also be discussed.

Preschool Outcomes: A Data Dialogue on OSEP Indicator 7 Reporting
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Results Matter Assessment and Preschool- Aged Children with Significant Support Needs

Technical Assistance document from the Office of Special Education and the CDE Preschool team. Results Matter Assessment and Preschool- Aged Children with Significant Support Needs

Further Questions Concerning CDE’s Indicator 7 Collection can be directed to Marcia Blum.

Marcia Blum
Early Childhood Special Education Specialist, ESSU
720-799-4015
Email: Marcia Blum

Since the cut points for the Preschool Outcomes progress categories are calculated by the system, teacher responsibilities in terms of IEP entry and exit dates will not change, nor will the process for entering entry and exit dates as a result of this discovery. Teacher responsibilities regarding checkpoint completions, documentation, and ratings will not be affected and will continue to inform Indicator 7 reporting for those students on IEPs.

The effect on AU determinations is anticipated to be minimal. Since this algorithm change will be applied unilaterally across the state and the cut-points for the AU determination rubric are based on the percentile ranks of AUs, this change will not affect the points each AU receives for this indicator.

Please reach out to Marcia Blum, with any questions at blum_m@cde.state.co.us