When a student is faced with a lengthy medical battle, whether dealing with physical or psychological challenges, maintaining consistency and continuity with schoolwork can be an important part for planning to return to school and regular activities. Tutoring through your home school district is available to public school students confined to the home or hospital for medical reasons. Providing tutoring to students who must remain out of school and in the home or hospital setting for medical reasons requires the authorization and affirmation of a treating physician or medical professional. Tutoring is provided to students who are confined to the home or hospital for medical reasons for at least 14 days, including on a recurring basis that accumulates to more than 14 days during the school year. If your child is experiencing a medical condition, crisis, or episode that may require on-going medical treatment that requires them to miss school, do not wait 14 days to begin the process of documentation for tutoring. Your school also does not need to wait 14 days to begin providing tutoring when your child has been identified with a significant medical condition that requires on-going care and absence from school.
Documentation of the need for temporary tutoring in a home or hospital setting must be submitted through a form created by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. This form requires your physician to provide the medical diagnosis and reasons the student is confined to the home or hospital, the date on which that confinement began, and any reduction or modification to school work or the educational program required due to the student’s medical limitations. Your child’s treating professional must also provide a date by which the student is expected to return to school – acknowledging that date may change and additional documentation submitted.
The completed form must be submitted to the principal of your child’s school who is responsible for coordinating services in collaboration with the Administrator for Special Education if the student has been found eligible for special education services. The school will provide services for the student to continue to have the opportunity to make educational progress and to keep up with their courses of study. However, this tutoring is not intended to replace or replicate the entirety of the school day and must be planned to take into consideration the treatment the student is receiving for their medical needs; the amount of tutoring time provided is determined based on individual student needs. Tutoring is available to all public school students, regardless of whether they have been found eligible for special education, upon receipt of the appropriate medical documentation. If a student has not previously been found eligible for Special Education but has an on-going medical condition (not temporary) that may impact their ability to attend school and make educational progress, an evaluation for special education would be appropriate.
When providing services, the District may utilize their own staff members, or contracted providers in the hospital or community setting, and may determine whether instruction takes place virtually or in-person. Special education staff providing services to medically confined students must be appropriately licensed or certified, or supervised by appropriately licensed and certified staff.
If your child is facing a significant illness and has accrued more than 60 absences over the course of the school year, an additional regulation requires the district to convene the team of a student who has been found eligible for special education. The purpose of this meeting is to determine if there are any additional evaluations or assessments needed, and to determine if the student’s IEP needs to be changed due to their specific medical needs.
Different guidelines regulate homeschooling and education in the home. Please remember that tutoring provided by your school district is not intended to facilitate homeschooling based on preference or convenience. Home-hospital tutoring is intended as a temporary measure to help keep your student on track while they recover from an illness or condition requiring intensive medical treatment or recovery.