COSFs
Child Outcomes Summary Form
Embedded Files
Explanation
Source: Minnesota Department of Education:
Early intervention and early childhood special education support young children with disabilities and their families. For children, the ultimate goal of this support is to enable young children to be active and successful participants during the early childhood years and in the future in a variety of settings – in their homes with their families, in child care, preschool or school programs, and in the community. Three outcomes are considered critical to children becoming active and successful participants across a variety of settings.
All states are required to report data to the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs on these child outcomes:
Positive social emotional skills, including social relationships
"This outcome involves relating to adults, relating to other children, and for older children, following rules related to groups or interacting with others. The outcome includes concepts and behaviors such as attachment/separation/autonomy, expressing emotions and feelings, learning rules and expectations in social situations, and social interactions and social play."
Acquisition and use of knowledge and skills, including early language, communication, and early literacy*
"This outcome involves activities such as thinking, reasoning, remembering, problem solving, number concepts, counting, and understanding the physical and social worlds. It also includes a variety of skills related to language and literacy including vocabulary, phonemic awareness, and letter recognition. * for children 3 through 5"
Use of appropriate behaviors to meet their needs
"This outcome involves behaviors like taking care of basic needs, getting from place to place, using tools (such as forks, toothbrushes, and crayons), and, in older children, contributing to their own health, safety, and well-being. It also includes integrating motor skills to complete tasks; taking care of one’s self in areas like dressing, feeding, grooming, and toileting; and acting on the world in socially appropriate ways to get what one wants."
Scoring
Important Resources to learn more about the scores:
The last page of this document from the ECTA website has a good summative description of each score.
This PDF MDE COSF form is what you completed prior to our district using SpEd Forms. The last page is includes information for how to score areas. This is also on page 5 in the SpEd Forms COSF Form.
The COSF uses a 7-point scale for rating a child's functioning in each of the three outcome areas. To determine a rating, the team must be familiar with the child's functioning in the outcome across a variety of situations and settings. The team needs to think about the many skills and behaviors that allow the child to function in an age-expected way in each outcome area. The team needs to understand the developmental continuum that leads to age-expected functioning, asking
Are the skills and behaviors demonstrated what one would expect for a child this age?
If not, are they like those of a younger child? Are they the skills and behaviors that come just before the age-expected skills and behaviors?
If not, are they like those of a MUCH younger child? Are they farther away from age expected skills and behaviors? (much earlier or atypical skills and behaviors)
(see documents referenced above for additional information)
When to Complete COSFs
Entrance to Part C
Exit from Part C
Entrance to Part B
Exit from preschool special education (before entering Kindergarten)
*Note: For students going from Part C to Part B, the COSFs should serve as both exit from Part C & entrance to Part B.
Reporting Hearing Loss
For children with a hearing loss, you need to complete the EHDI form in SpEd Forms.
This is for every child with a hearing loss, regardless of the disability area they qualified under.
It is also regardless of the type and degree of hearing loss or whether it is in one or both ears.
Types of Hearing Loss on the COSF...
Conductive Hearing Loss: Hearing loss caused by something that stops sounds from getting through the outer or middle ear. This type of hearing loss can often be treated with medicine or surgery.
Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Hearing loss that occurs when there is a problem in the way the inner ear or hearing nerve works.
Mixed Hearing Loss: Hearing loss that includes both a conductive and a sensorineural hearing loss.
Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder: Hearing loss that occurs when sound enters the ear normally, but because of damage to the inner ear or the hearing nerve, sound isn’t organized in a way that the brain can understand. For more information, visit the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders.
To complete this, reference the evaluation. Work with the Audiologist &/or DHH teacher if you have additional questions.
Completing COSFs in SpEd Forms
BCCS Staff completed all COSFs in SpEd Forms. Directions are linked on the document below. The case manager is responsible to complete and finalize COSFs with appropriate team member input. The B-3 case manager will complete exiting from Part C COSFs.
Following completion, be sure to finalize!
Additional Resources
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