Circumstances for granting waivers
Under Proposition 203, parents may apply for a waiver allowing them to enroll in a standard bilingual education class. A waiver may be granted under any of these circumstances: The child already has good English language skills, as measured by oral evaluation or standardized tests of English vocabulary, comprehension, reading and writing. The child is 10 or older and the school principal and staff believe an alternate course of study would be better suited to overall educational progress. The child already has been in an English-language classroom for at least 30 days, and the principal and staff subsequently decided she has such special and individual physical or psychological needs - beyond the lack of English proficiency - that an alternate course of study would be better suited to her overall educational development and rapid acquisition of English. The waiver application must include the signatures of the school principal and the district superintendent. The waiver is subject to examination and approval by the school district superintendent and review by the school board. And it ultimately could be reviewed by the Arizona Department of Education. To receive a waiver, a child's parent or guardian must visit the school and request it after learning the full description of the educational materials that would be used in the school's programs. |