The Clarinda Community School District will offer an assistance program for parents, guardians, or legal or actual custodians providing private instruction to a child of compulsory attendance age.  The parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian seeking to enroll a child in home school assistance must file the report of competent private instruction with the district board secretary by August 26 of each year.

Parents, guardians, legal or actual custodians of a child enrolled in the district’s home school assistance program may request dual enrollment in addition to enrollment in the home school assistance program.

The assistance program will, at a minimum, meet state licensure standards for accredited school personnel in designating a practitioner to provide instruction or instructional supervision for competent private instruction, including special education instruction, and shall meet the applicable provisions of rule 281-31.4 (299,299A) “Duties of licensed practitioners, home school assistance program.” All district personnel who provide or supervise instruction to children enrolled in the district’s home school assistance program will be appropriately licensed to the grade levels of the children instructed.

The duties of the licensed teacher who instructs or provides instructional supervision of a student shall include the following:

a.  Contact with the student and the student’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian at least four times per 45 days of instruction.  Once of every two contacts shall be face-to-face with the student.

b.  Consulting with and advising the student’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian with respect to any of the following as requested by the student’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian or as deemed necessary in the professional judgment of the practitioner:

1. Lesson plans;
2. Textbook and supplementary materials;
3. Educational goals and objectives;
4. Teaching and Learning techniques;
5. Forms of assessment and evaluation of student learning;
6. The student’s strengths and weaknesses;
7. Interpretation of test results;
8. Planning; and
9. Recordkeeping.

c)  Providing formal and informal assessments of the student’s progress to the student and the student’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian.

d)  Annually maintaining a diary, record, or log of visitations and assistance provided.

e)  For purposes of assisting the district to meet its “child find” obligation under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, referring any child who the practitioner has reason to believe may be in need of special education. 

The practitioner who is employed by the school district to provide instruction or instructional supervision through the home school assistance program shall not serve in that capacity on behalf of more than 20 families, or more than 40 children of compulsory attendance age, in an academic year.