New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 6A - EDUCATION › Chapter 13A - ELEMENTS OF HIGH QUALITY PRESCHOOL PROGRAMS › Subchapter 3 - PROGRAM PLANNING › Section 6A:13A-3.1 - Program planning

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) School districts formerly known as Early
				Childhood Program Aid (ECPA) school districts, pursuant to repealed
				N.J.S.A. 18A:7F-16,
				that submitted a One-Year Preschool Operational Plan by May 30, 2008, and
				received approval from the Department to expand their preschool program in the
				2008-2009 school year, and subsequently submitted and received Department
				approval for a five-year preschool program plan commencing September 2009,
				shall implement the preschool program plan and any update(s), and shall adhere
				to this chapter.
(b) Any other
				former ECPA school district, pursuant to repealed
				N.J.S.A. 18A:7F-16,
				shall adhere to its Department-approved 2008-2009 ECPA operational plan and any
				update(s) and shall adhere to
				N.J.A.C. 6A:13A-2.1(b)
				through (j) and to (b)1 through 10 below
				until the school district receives approval to implement its preschool program
				through Department approval of its three-year preschool program plan and is
				provided with full Preschool Education Aid at the School Funding Reform Act
				(SFRA) funded per pupil amount determined by the formula established at
				N.J.S.A.
				18A:7F-54. A school district that receives
				approval, as set forth at
				N.J.A.C. 6A:13A-2.1(b)
				through (j) and (b)1 through 10 below, to
				implement its three-year preschool program plan shall adhere to all other rules
				in this chapter.
1. The district board of
				education shall serve at least 75 percent of the universe of four-year-old
				children in a preschool program prior to any spending of Preschool Education
				Aid for kindergarten through grade three.
2. The district board of education shall
				implement programming for the following components:
i. Districtwide planning;
i. Districtwide planning;
ii. Community collaboration and
				planning;
iii. Parent
				involvement;
iv. Curriculum
				development and implementation;
v.
				Inclusion of children with disabilities in general education classrooms to the
				maximum extent possible; and
vi.
				Professional development and training.
3. The district board of education shall
				demonstrate that programs are based on a districtwide assessment that includes
				a needs and resource assessment for each school in the school district's
				comprehensive strategic plan.
4.
				The district board of education with an ECPA-funded program shall ensure that
				the preschool program:
i. Maintains classroom
				enrollments of no more than 18 children with one certified teacher and one
				appropriately qualified assistant;
ii. Is developmentally appropriate to the age
				and skill level of the young child;
iii. Is designed to meet the New Jersey
				Preschool Teaching and Learning Standards of Quality, the New Jersey Preschool
				Program Implementation Guidelines and the New Jersey Student Learning
				Standards;
iv. Includes transition
				activities, programs, and services between early intervention and preschool
				programs, and between preschool and kindergarten programs;
v. Coordinates with all other relevant school
				district programs, such as special education and bilingual education;
				and
vi. Includes an annual program
				evaluation.
5. The
				district board of education shall base preschool programs and curricula on
				student needs, strengths, and interests that focus on all aspects of
				development: cognitive, social, emotional, and physical. Curriculum and
				assessment strategies and/or resources shall be developmentally appropriate and
				include performancebased assessment measures.
6. The district board of education shall
				ensure that instructional methods and/or strategies are congruent with the
				cognitive, social, emotional, and physical skills of the young child.
				Instruction shall balance teacher-directed and child-initiated
				experiences.
7. The district board
				of education shall provide professional development and training specific to
				preschool education for all early childhood education administrators, teachers,
				and teacher assistants.
8. The
				preschool program may be offered by the district board of education within a
				mixed delivery system that includes in-district, private provider, and local
				Head Start agency settings provided the private provider and/or local Head
				Start agency program(s) with which the district board of education contracts
				comply with the school district's program requirements, including the
				employment of appropriately licensed and qualified teaching staff.
9. The district board of education shall
				include parent education activities in the preschool program with specific,
				identified strategies that assist parents in remaining actively involved in
				their child's education throughout their school years.
10. The district board of education shall
				demonstrate that community health and social service agencies have been
				included in the preschool program's planning, operations, and, if appropriate,
				fiscal support.