Elements of a high quality school readiness program.
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(1) A high quality school readiness program run by an eligible LEA or eligible private provider shall include the following components:
(a) an evidence-based curriculum that is aligned with all of the developmental domains and academic content areas defined in the Utah Early Childhood Standards adopted by the State Board of Education that incorporates:
(i) intentional and differentiated instruction in whole group, small group, and child-directed learning; and
(ii) explicit instruction in key areas of literacy and numeracy, as determined by the State Board of Education, that:
(A) is teacher led or through a partnership with a contractor as defined in Section 53F-4-401;
(B) includes specific literary and numeracy skills, such as phonological awareness; and
(C) includes provider monitoring and ongoing professional learning and coaching;
(b) ongoing, focused, and intensive professional development for staff of the school readiness program;
(c) ongoing assessment of a student's educational growth and developmental progress to inform instruction;
(d) administration of the school readiness assessment to each student;
(e) for a preschool program run by an eligible LEA, a class size that does not exceed 20 students, with one adult for every 10 students in the class;
(f) ongoing program evaluation and data collection to monitor program goal achievement and implementation of required program components;
(g) family engagement, including ongoing communication between home and school, and parent education opportunities based on each family's circumstances;
(h) for a preschool program run by an eligible LEA, each teacher having at least obtained:
(i) the minimum standard of a child development associate certification; or
(ii) an associate or bachelor's degree in an early childhood education related field;
(i) for a preschool program run by an eligible private provider, by a teacher's second year, each teacher having at least obtained:
(i) the minimum standard of a child development associate certification; or
(ii) an associate or bachelor's degree in an early childhood education related field; and
(j) a kindergarten transition plan.
(2) A high quality school readiness program run by a home-based educational technology provider shall:
(a) be an evidence-based and age appropriate individualized interactive instruction assessment and feedback technology program that teaches eligible students early learning skills needed to be successful upon entry into kindergarten;
(b) require regular parental engagement with the student in the student's use of the home-based educational technology program;
(c) be aligned with the Utah early childhood core standards;
(d) require the administration of a pre- and post-assessment of each student whose parent or legal guardian consents to the assessment that, for a home-based technology program that receives funding under this part, is designated by the board in accordance with Section 35A-15-402; and
(e) require technology providers to ensure successful implementation and utilization of the technology program.
Coordination clause direction that Section 35A-15-202 supersede Section 53F-6-304.