2006 Minnesota Statutes

125A.06 BLIND PERSONS' LITERACY RIGHTS.
(a) Paragraphs (b) to (f) may be cited as the "Blind Persons' Literacy Rights and Education
Act."
(b) The following definitions apply to paragraphs (c) to (f).
"Blind student" means an individual who is eligible for special educational services and who:
(1) has a visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with correcting lenses or has a
limited field of vision such that the widest diameter subtends an angular distance of no greater
than 20 degrees; or
(2) has a medically indicated expectation of visual deterioration.
"Braille" means the system of reading and writing through touch commonly known as
standard English Braille.
(c) In developing an individualized education plan for each blind student the presumption
must be that proficiency in Braille reading and writing is essential for the student to achieve
satisfactory educational progress. The assessment required for each student must include a Braille
skills inventory, including a statement of strengths and deficits. Braille instruction and use are not
required by this paragraph if, in the course of developing the student's individualized education
program, team members concur that the student's visual impairment does not affect reading and
writing performance commensurate with ability. This paragraph does not require the exclusive
use of Braille if other special education services are appropriate to the student's educational
needs. The provision of other appropriate services does not preclude Braille use or instruction.
Instruction in Braille reading and writing must be available for each blind student for whom the
multidisciplinary team has determined that reading and writing is appropriate.
(d) Instruction in Braille reading and writing must be sufficient to enable each blind student
to communicate effectively and efficiently with the same level of proficiency expected of the
student's peers of comparable ability and grade level.
(e) The student's individualized education plan must specify:
(1) the results obtained from the assessment required under paragraph (c);
(2) how Braille will be implemented through integration with other classroom activities;
(3) the date on which Braille instruction will begin;
(4) the length of the period of instruction and the frequency and duration of each instructional
session;
(5) the level of competency in Braille reading and writing to be achieved by the end of the
period and the objective assessment measures to be used; and
(6) if a decision has been made under paragraph (c) that Braille instruction or use is not
required for the student:
(i) a statement that the decision was reached after a review of pertinent literature describing
the educational benefits of Braille instruction and use; and
(ii) a specification of the evidence used to determine that the student's ability to read and
write effectively without Braille is not impaired.
(f) Instruction in Braille reading and writing is a service for the purpose of special education
and services under this section.
(g) Paragraphs (b) to (f) must not be construed to supersede any rights of a parent or guardian
of a child with a disability under federal or state law.
History: Ex1959 c 71 art 1 s 17; 1961 c 559 s 2; 1961 c 690 s 1; 1965 c 241 s 1-3; 1967 c
872 s 1; 1969 c 981 s 2-5; 1971 c 689 s 1-3; 1973 c 683 s 1,2; 1975 c 162 s 41; 1975 c 321 s 2;
1975 c 432 s 8-10; 1976 c 211 s 1-6; 1976 c 271 s 13-18; 1977 c 447 art 3 s 1-4; 1977 c 449 s
12; 1978 c 733 s 1; 1978 c 764 s 3-5; 1978 c 793 s 61; 1979 c 334 art 2 s 1,2; art 3 s 2,3; 1980
c 509 s 30; 1981 c 358 art 1 s 1; art 3 s 2-7; 1982 c 424 s 28,29,130; 1982 c 548 art 3 s 1-3;
1983 c 247 s 55; 1983 c 258 s 13; 1983 c 314 art 1 s 22; art 3 s 1; 1984 c 463 art 3 s 1; 1984 c
654 art 5 s 58; 1Sp1985 c 12 art 3 s 2-8; 1986 c 444; 1987 c 384 art 2 s 24; 1987 c 398 art 3 s
2-14; 1988 c 486 s 2-5; 1988 c 629 s 24; 1988 c 718 art 3 s 1; art 6 s 2; 1989 c 209 art 2 s 1;
1989 c 329 art 3 s 1-3; 1991 c 265 art 3 s 1,2,38; art 11 s 1; 1991 c 292 art 6 s 58 subd 2; 1992 c
499 art 3 s 1-7; art 11 s 1; 1993 c 224 art 3 s 1-9; art 14 s 3; 1994 c 483 s 1; 1994 c 647 art 3 s
2-8,34; 1Sp1995 c 3 art 3 s 1-3; art 16 s 13; 1996 c 412 art 2 s 1,2; art 3 s 1-3; 1998 c 397 art
2 s 24,164; art 11 s 3; 1998 c 398 art 2 s 7