IHBE ©
BILINGUAL  INSTRUCTION / NATIVE
LANGUAGE  INSTRUCTION

Individual schools in which twenty (20) or more students of a given grade level receive parental exception waivers in accord with A.R.S. 15-753 shall offer classes teaching English and other subjects through bilingual education techniques or other generally recognized educational methodologies permitted by law.  Where these programs are not available students receiving parental exception waivers shall be permitted to transfer to a public school in which such a class is offered.

Prerequisites  for  Waiver  Requests

With prior written informed consent, provided on an annual basis, a student's parents or legal guardian may request a waiver from the application of A.R.S. 15-752 - being placed in an English language classroom.  In order to apply for a waiver the parents or guardian must:

●  Visit the school to apply for the waiver, and while at the school,

■  Be provided a full description of the educational materials to be used in the different educational program choices, and

■  Be provided all the educational opportunities available to the child.

Parental  Exception  Waiver

A parental exception waiver may be applied for if the above prerequisites have been met and at least one (1) of the following applies:

●  The student already possesses good English language skills, as measured by:

■  Oral evaluation or standardized tests of English vocabulary comprehension, reading, and writing, in which the student scores:

⇒  Approximately at or above the state average for the student's grade level, or

⇒  At or above the fifth (5th) grade average, whichever is lower.

●  The student is age ten (10) or older, and:

■  It is the informed belief of the school principal and educational staff that an alternate course of educational study would be better suited to the student's overall educational progress and rapid acquisition of basic English language skills.

●  The student has special individual needs (physical and psychological needs above and beyond the lack of English proficiency).

■  Any decision to issue a waiver based on special individual need is to be made subject to the examination, approval and authorizing signature of the Superintendent within, but not limited to, the following guidelines:

⇒  The student has already been placed in an English language classroom for not less than thirty (30) calendar days during that school year.

⇒  It is subsequently the informed belief of the school principal and educational staff that the child has such special and individual physical or psychological needs, above and beyond the lack of English proficiency, and an alternate course of educational study would be better suited to the student's overall educational development and rapid acquisition of English.

♦  A written description of not less than two hundred fifty (250) words documenting these special individual needs for the specific student must be provided and permanently added to the student's official school record.

♦  A special needs review has been completed by persons knowledgeable about the student, the student's school history, the student's special individual needs, the meaning of evaluation data, and the placement options.  The review shall be based upon the student's existing records, including academic, social, and behavioral records.

♦  The waiver application must contain the original authorizing signature of the school principal.

⇒  If the student has been determined to be a student with a disability under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act then all procedural safeguards including those relative to evaluation and the provision of free appropriate public education must be followed.

⇒  If the student has been determined to be a student with a disability under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, evaluation and such accommodations as are necessary to provide a free appropriate public education shall be provided in accord with the act.

■  Teachers and local school districts may reject waiver requests without explanation or legal consequence.  The existence of such special individual needs shall not compel issuance of a waiver.

■  The parents shall be fully informed of their right to refuse to agree to a waiver for special individual needs.

The Superintendent shall develop procedures as necessary for implementation of this policy.

Adopted:  date of Manual adoption

LEGAL REF.: 
A.R.S. 
15-744
15-751
15-752
15-753
15-754
15-755
A.A.C. 
R7-2-310

CROSS REF.: 
IHAA - English Instruction
IHB - Special Instructional Programs
IHBA - Special Instructional Programs and Accommodations for Disabled Students