ENROLLED
2017 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 166
BY REPRESENTATIVE LEBAS
A RESOLUTION
To establish the Commission on Assessment Review and Use in Public Schools; to provide
for commission membership, compensation, duties, and termination; to provide for
a report on commission findings and recommendations; to provide for a report by the
State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education in response to the commission's
findings and recommendations; to provide for information to be compiled by the
state Department of Education for commission review and consideration; and to
provide for related matters.
WHEREAS, student assessments are an essential part of the public education system
and are necessary in order to provide local school systems, parents, and policymakers with
formative information on student achievement levels and how students are performing as
compared to students throughout the state and nation; and
WHEREAS, while assessing students is necessary to continue to make educational
gains, there is a need to examine the interaction between and the possible duplication of
local, state, and nationally recognized assessments; and
WHEREAS, it is critical that the civil right to a quality education for children of all
racial, socioeconomic, geographic, ability, and language backgrounds be upheld and that
such an education be verifiable through objective evidence of student learning; and
WHEREAS, all assessments administered to students should have instructional value
and a stated purpose and should be used to enhance the teaching and learning process.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby establish the Commission on Assessment Review and
Use in Public Schools to review matters relative to student assessments.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the commission shall consist of the following
members:
(1) The state superintendent of education, or his designee.
(2) The president of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, or his
designee.
(3) The governor, or his designee.
(4) A representative of each of the following groups or organizations selected by the
group or organization:
(a) The Louisiana Association of Educators.
(b) The Louisiana Federation of Teachers.
(c) The Association of Professional Educators of Louisiana.
(d) The Louisiana Association of School Principals.
(e) The Louisiana School Boards Association.
(f) The Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools.
(g) The Louisiana chapter of Education Reform Now.
(h) The Nonpublic School Commission.
(i) The Louisiana Association of Business and Industry.
(j) The Council for a Better Louisiana.
(k) The Louisiana Federation for Children.
(l) Stand for Children Louisiana.
(5) Two local school superintendents, at least one of whom is from a local school
system with more than twenty thousand students, one selected by the governor and one
selected by the president of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
(6) A National Board Certified Teacher selected by the Louisiana National Board
Certified Teachers Network.
(7) The chairman of the Accountability Commission.
(8) A representative of the Special Education Advisory Panel selected by the
chairman of the panel.
(9) A parent representative selected by the Urban League of Louisiana.
(10) A parent representative selected by the Louisiana Parent Teacher Association.
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(11) Two nationally recognized education experts on student assessment, one
selected by the governor and one selected by the president of the State Board of Elementary
and Secondary Education.
(12) A local school district test coordinator selected by the president of the State
Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the commission's duties shall include the
following:
(1) To review the purpose of all local, state, and nationally recognized assessments
administered by local school systems, whether summative or formative.
(2) To determine and assess how much time is spent in each grade and in each local
school system on administering all local, state, and nationally recognized assessments.
(3) To determine if and to what extent the assessments are duplicative or otherwise
unnecessary.
(4) To review and analyze the local school systems' and the state Department of
Education's interests in requiring assessments and attempt to develop a statewide approach
to administering assessments.
(5) To determine whether the current local and state schedules for administering
assessments allot enough time between administering and receiving the results of a
formative assessment to meaningfully inform instruction.
(6) To determine and assess if the testing windows implemented by the local school
systems and the state have any negative ancillary effects on instruction, materials and
equipment use, and school calendars.
(7) To determine and review the types of testing data from state assessments to be
provided to teachers to inform instruction.
(8) To make recommendations on all of the following:
(a) How local school systems and the state can improve the process for
administering all local, state, and nationally recognized assessments and how such
assessments are used to inform instruction.
(b) If the commission finds that the allotted time for administering assessments is
resulting in reduced instruction time, the most efficient and effective methods to ensure that
adequate time is allotted to both administering assessments and instruction.
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(c) The developmentally appropriate elements, if any, that should be included in an
assessment administered to kindergarten students.
(d) Any other issues as determined by the commission.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of the commission shall serve
without compensation but may receive reimbursement of expenses from the appointing
authority or his employer.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the state superintendent of education shall be
responsible for convening the commission and for designating staff from the state
Department of Education to assist the commission in the performance of its duties.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the chairman of the commission shall be
selected by the members of the commission.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in assisting the commission in performing its
duties, the state Department of Education shall survey all local school personnel involved
with student assessment to determine and assess how much time is spent in each grade and
in each local school system on administering local, state, and nationally recognized
assessments and shall submit a final draft of the survey to the commission for review and
approval prior to distributing and conducting the survey.
BE IF FURTHER RESOLVED that the department shall compile the survey results
as follows:
(1) In matrix form that includes the following information for each assessment
administered:
(a) The title of the assessment.
(b) The purpose of the assessment.
(c) If the assessment is required at the local, state, or federal level.
(d) The grade level in which the test is administered.
(e) The subject area of the assessment.
(f) The testing window for the assessment.
(g) If the assessment is aligned to Louisiana content standards.
(h) How much time it takes a student to complete the assessment.
(i) If the results of the assessment are available to parents and educators.
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(2) In narrative form that includes the following information for each assessment
administered:
(a) If the assessment requires any test preparation.
(b) If the assessment is taken by pencil and paper or by electronic device.
(c) If the assessment is taken by electronic device, the student to electronic device
ratio.
(d) If the assessment is a high stakes assessment.
(e) The date the assessments are turned in to receive results.
(f) The date and to whom the results of the assessment were released.
(g) How much time passes between administration of the assessment and the receipt
of the results of the assessment.
(h) If the assessment requires proctors or other personnel to administer it.
(i) If the assessment requires technological support to administer it.
(j) If the assessment allows for accommodations for students with disabilities.
(k) If the assessment is available in other languages for English language learners.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the state Department of Education shall submit
such information to the commission for review and consideration and to the State Board of
Elementary and Secondary Education not later than October 15, 2017.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the commission shall submit a written report of
its findings and recommendations to the State Board of Elementary and Secondary
Education, the House Committee on Education, and the Senate Committee on Education not
later than January 15, 2018.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that upon receipt of such report the State Board of
Elementary and Secondary Education shall:
(1) Review and consider the commission's findings and recommendations.
(2) Submit a written report to the governor, the House Committee on Education, and
the Senate Committee on Education not later than March 1, 2018, as to whether the board
accepts or rejects the commission's findings and recommendations.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that as used in this Resolution, "assessment" means
a local, state, or nationally recognized test that is intended to measure a student's academic
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readiness, learning progress, and skill acquisition and does not include a teacher-developed
quiz or test.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the commission shall terminate on June 30,
2018.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution shall be transmitted
to the president of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the state
superintendent of education.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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