(a) Definitions.

1. (1) "Noncategorical" means a condition of developmental delay that impairs a child’s functioning and that has a high predictability of impairing normal developmental performance.
2. (2) “Impaired functioning” means that a difference exists between the child’s expected level of development and his or her current level of functioning.

3. (3) Areas of developmental delay. The five (5) developmental delay areas for the purpose of determining eligibility in this category are:

   1. (A) Cognition.

(c) (c) Memory.

1. (ii) Cognitive ability is the ability to think and is often thought of in terms of intelligence;

   1. (B) Communication. The ability to effectively use and/or understand age appropriate language, including:

      1. (i) Pragmatics;
      2. (ii) Phonology;
      3. (iii) Morphology;
      4. (iv) Syntax;
      5. (v) Semantics; and
      6. (vi) Articulations;

   2. (C) Motor. The ability to use:

      1. (i) Gross motor skills for body control, such as:

(b) (b) Walking;

1. (c) (c) Balance; and

   1. (d) (d) Climbing; and

      1. (ii) Fine motor skills requiring precise, coordinated use of the small muscles;
   2. (D) Social or emotional development. The ability to develop and maintain functional interpersonal relationships and to exhibit age-appropriate social/emotional behaviors; and
   3. (E) Self-help development. The ability to engage in age-appropriate activities of daily living.

(b) Screening information.

1. (1)

   1. (A) Screening can be waived if current developmental data (within the past six (6) months) are available.
   2. (B) Otherwise, it is required.

2. (2) Required:

   1. (A) Hearing;
   2. (B) Vision; and

   3. (C) Formal measures of:

      1. (i)

(b) (b) Include the areas of:

1. (1) (1) Cognition;
2. (2) (2) Motor;
3. (3) (3) Social/emotional; and

4. (4) (4) Self-help; and

   1. (ii) Speech/language.

5. (3) Recommended. Informal measures, such as:

   1. (A) Checklists;
   2. (B) Inventories;
   3. (C) Rating scales;
   4. (D) Interviews;
   5. (E) Behavioral observations in home and/or other natural environments; and/or

   6. (F) Access to and review of existing records and available information.

      1. (c) Required evaluation data.

6. (1)

   1. (A) Social history.
   2. (B) Emphasis on developmental, family, and health/medical history.

7. (2) Assessment.

   1. (A)

      1. (i) Assessment instruments must be standardized and have a reliability coefficient of at least .80 to ensure that children are being identified accurately.
      2. (ii) Tests that are not standardized cannot provide precise information about how a child performs in relation to peers.
   2. (B) Cognitive/intellectual abilities (one (1) required).

   3. (C)

      1. (i) Communicative abilities.
      2. (ii) Both receptive and expressive areas must be assessed.
      3. (iii) Assessment must be comprehensive and must not be limited to one-word vocabulary tests.
      4. (iv) Augmentative/alternative communication should be assessed when indicated.
   4. (D) Motor (if indicated from screening).

   5. (E)

      1. (i) Social/emotional (one (1) adaptive behavior assessment required).
      2. (ii) Additional assessment for children ages three (3) to five (5), who may demonstrate inappropriate behavior that deviates substantially from behavior appropriate for one’s age, must include the following:

(b)

1. (1) (b)(1) Systematic observation or observations in settings such as free play, instructional situation, group settings, home, etc.
2. (2) (2) Particular attention must be given to the qualitative nature (antecedent–consequence analysis), frequency, duration, and consistency of the behavior or behaviors.

3. (3) (3) Consideration should be given to the behavior relative to the:

   1. (A) (A) Child’s functioning level;
   2. (B) (B) Child’s environmental and social experiences; and
   3. (C) (C) Degree to which this behavior deviates from the norm.

   4. (F)

      1. (i) Self-help.
      2. (ii) May be included in the cognitive/intellectual, adaptive behavior, and/or programming assessments.

   5. (G) Programming (one (1) criterion or curriculum-based measure required).

      1. (d) Evaluation data analysis.

4. (1)

   1. (A) Children ages three (3) to five (5) are considered to be delayed developmentally when they demonstrate a measurable, verifiable discrepancy between expected performance for the child’s chronological age and the current level of performance.

   2. (B) The discrepancy is documented by:

      1. (i) Scores of two (2) standard deviations (SD) or more below the mean for chronological age in one (1) of the five (5) domains, as obtained using standardized norm-referenced instruments and procedures; or
      2. (ii) Scores of one and one-half (1.5) standard deviations below the mean for chronological age in two (2) or more of the five (5) domains, as obtained using standardized norm-referenced instruments and procedures.

5. (2)

   1. (A) The criterion of a delay of two (2) standard deviations in one (1) or more areas allows a child to be served when he or she is markedly delayed in only one (1) area.
   2. (B) A score of two (2) standard deviations below the mean on a test indicates the child would be functioning in approximately the bottom two percent (2%) of his or her peer group.
   3. (C) A delay of this degree in even one (1) area warrants services, even though there are no other areas of deficit.

6. (3)

   1. (A) Using the criterion of a delay of one and one-half (1.5) SD in two (2) or more of the five (5) areas (cognition, communication, motor, social/emotional, self-help) allows services to be provided to a child who is performing substantially below his or her peers.
   2. (B) This criterion is more accurate than the use of a percentage of delay in developmental age.
7. (4) A significant delay in self-help and motor skills (gross and fine) could be expressed in months by means of scale development (criterion-referenced) assessments, as illustrated in the following Chart # 1-3.

   CHRON. AGE	DELAY IN STANDARD DEVIATION	DELAYS IN ONE AREA (DELAY INMONTHS)	NATIONAL PERCENTILE RANK	AGE EQUIVALENT
   3-0 Years	-2.0	11 + months	Less than 3	2-1 or less
   	-1.5	8 + months	Less than 7	2-4 or less
   4-0 Years	-2.0	14 + months	Less than 3	2-10 or less
   	-1.5	11 + months	Less than 7	3-1 or less
   5-0 Years	-2.0	18 + months	Less than 3	3-6 or less
   	-1.5	14 + months	Less than 7	3-10 or less