Req. No. 6022 Page 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 STATE OF OKLAHOMA 1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023) HOUSE BILL 2673 By: Baker AS INTRODUCED An Act relating to schools; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 1210.508, which relates to the statewide system of student as sessments; adding optional career-readiness assessments for certain students; requiring assessment to be administered at no cost to students; providing an effective date; and declaring an emergency. BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 1210.508, is amended to read as follows: Section 1210.508 A. 1. By no later than December 31, 2016, the State Board of Education shall adopt a statewide system of student assessments in c ompliance with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) , as reauthorized and amended by P.L. No. 114-95, also known as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). 2. The statewide student assessment system adopted by the B oard pursuant to this subsection shall be aligned with the Oklahoma Academic Standards as ado pted by the Board and which prepare students for college and careers. Req. No. 6022 Page 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 B. 1. The Board shall issue a request for proposals for the selection of assessments to be administered to stude nts in grades three through twelve as a part of the statewide student as sessment system adopted by the Board pursuant to this section. 2. The Board shall adopt assessments from the selected proposals that were submitted pursuant to pa ragraph 1 of this subsection. The adopted assessments shall be administered by the Board for a period that is in coordination with the six -year subject area textbook adoption cycle unless the vendor does not fulfill the terms of the contract or fails to c omply with or violate s the terms of the contract. The Board shall administer the assessments beginning with the 2017 -2018 school year. C. The statewide student assessment system adopted by the Board pursuant to this section shall include assessments that : 1. Are aligned with the Oklahoma subject matter standards as adopted by the Board; 2. Provide a measure of comparability among other states; 3. Yield both norm-referenced scores and criterion -referenced scores; 4. Have a track record of statistical r eliability and accura cy; and 5. For assessments administered in high school, provide a measure of future academic performance. Req. No. 6022 Page 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 D. For the 2016-2017 school year, the Board shall administer assessments in: 1. English Language Arts or Reading and Mathemati cs in grades three through eight and at least once in high school, during the grade span of nine through twelve; 2. Science not less than once during each grade span of three through five, six through nine and ten through twelve; and 3. United States His tory not less than on ce during the grade span of nine through twelve. E. 1. Beginning with the 2017-2018 school year, the statewide student assessment system shall include assessments in: a. English Language Arts and Mathematics in grades three through eight and at least onc e in high school, during the grade span of nine through twelve, b. Science not less than once during each grade span of three through five, six through nine and ten through twelve, and c. United States History, with an emphasis on civi cs, not less than once during the grade span of nine through twelve. 2. Beginning with the 2 017-2018 school year, the statewide student assessment system may include: a. assessments in Reading and Writing in certain grades as determined by the Board, and Req. No. 6022 Page 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 b. contingent upon the availability of funds, an additional nationally recognized college - and career- readiness assessment or assessments as recommended by the State Department of Education which will be administered to students in high school at no cost t o the student. 3. a. Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, the statewide student assessment system m ay include: (1) a retest of the nati onally recognized college - and career-readiness assessment administered pursuant to subparagraph b of paragraph 2 of th is subsection, or (2) nationally recognized, portable career-readiness assessments that lead to a National Career Readiness Certificate. b. The assessments described in this paragraph shall be available for students in the fall semester of their twelfth grade year and shall be administered at no cost to students. F. 1. Beginning with students entering the ninth grade in the 2017-2018 school year, each student shall take the assessment or assessments included in the statewide student assessment system adopted by the Board pursuant to subsection A of this section in order to graduate from a public high school with a standard diploma. Req. No. 6022 Page 5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 All students shall take the assessment or assessments prior to graduation, unless otherwise exempt by law. 2. Beginning with students entering the ninth grade in the 2017-2018 school year, each student, in addition to taking the assessment or assessments includ ed in the statewide student assessment system adopted by the Board pursuant to subsection A of this section, shall meet any other high school graduation requirements adopted by the Board pursuant to Section 5 of Enrolled House Bill No. 3218 of the 2nd Sess ion of the 55th Oklahoma Legislature in order to graduate from a public high school with a standard diploma. 3. For students who start the ninth grade prior to or during the 2016-2017 school year, school districts shall adopt a plan that establishes the assessment or assessments those students are required to take in order to graduate from a public high school with a standard diploma. The plan may also include any or all of the other high school graduation requirements adopted by the Board pursuant to Section 5 of Enrolled House Bill No. 3218 of the 2nd Session of the 55th Oklahoma Legislature that those students will be required to meet in order to graduate from a public high school with a standard diploma. 4. The Board shall promulgate rules to ensure t hat students who transfer into an Oklahoma school district from out -of-state after the junior year of high school shall not be denied the opportunity Req. No. 6022 Page 6 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 to be awarded a standard diploma due to differing testing requirements. G. In order to provide an indicat ion of the levels of competency attained by the student in a permanent record for potential future employers and instit utions of higher education, school districts shall report on the high school transcript of the student the highest-achieved score on the assessment or assessments included in the statewide student assessment system adopted by the Board pursuant to subsecti on A of this section and any business- and industry-recognized endorsements attained. H. Students who do not perform at a proficiency le vel on assessments shall be remediated as established in the assessment requirements adopted by the Board pursuant to S ection 5 of Enrolled House Bill No. 3218 of the 2nd Session of the 55th Oklahoma Legislature, subject to the availability of funding. I. 1. All assessments required by this section shall measure academic competencies in correlation with the subject matte r standards adopted by the Board pursuant to Sections 11 -103.6 and 11- 103.6a of this title and referred to as the Oklahoma Academic Standards. The State Board of Education shall evaluate the subject matter standards to ensure the competencies reflect high standards, are specific, well-defined, measurable, challenging, and will prepare elementary students for next -grade-level course work an d secondary students for postsecondary studies at institutions of Req. No. 6022 Page 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 higher education or technology center schools without the need for remediation. All subject matter standards shall reflect the goals as set forth in Section 11 -103.6 of this title and of im proving the state average ACT score. 2. The State Department of Education shall annually evaluate the results of the a ssessments. The State Board of Education shall ensure that preliminary results for all statewide assessments are reported to districts n o later than June 20 of each year and are presented in a manner that yields detailed, diagnostic information for the purpose of guiding instruction and student remediation. As improvements are made to the assessments required by this section, the Board shall seek to increase the depth of knowledge assessed for each subject. The State Board of Education shall seek to ensu re that data yielded from the assessments required in this section are utilized at the school district level to inform instruction, professional development, school improvement and remediation for students. 3. The Commission for Educational Quality and Ac countability shall determine the cut scores for the performance levels on all statewide assessments. The Commission shall conduct an ong oing review to compare the statewide assessment content and performance descriptors with those of other states. Upon r eceipt of the review, the Commission may adjust the cut scores as necessary. Req. No. 6022 Page 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 4. The State Board of Education, for the purposes of conduc ting reliability and validity studies, monitoring contractor adherence to professionally accepted testing standards, an d providing recommendations for testing program improvement, shall retain the services of an established, independent agency or organizat ion that is nationally recognized for its technical expertise in educational testing but is not engaged in the developm ent of aptitude or achievement tests for elementary or secondary level grades. These national assessment experts shall annually conduct studies of the reliability and validity of the statewide assessments administered pursuant to this section. Validity s tudies shall include studies of decision validity and concurrent validity. J. 1. The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules setting the assessment window dates for each statewide assessment so that the assessments are administered according to r ecommended testing protocols, and so that the assessment results are reported back to school districts in a timely manner. The vendor sh all provide a final electronic data file of all school site, school district, and state results to the State Department of Education and the Office of Educational Quality and Accountability prior to August 20 of each year. The Department shall forward the final data files for each school district and each school site in that district to the school district. The Board sha ll ensure the contract with the vendor includes a provision that the vendor report assessment Req. No. 6022 Page 9 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 results directly to the Office of Education al Quality and Accountability at the same time it is reported to the Board. 2. State, district, and site level results of all assessments required in this section shall be disaggregated by gender, race, ethnicity, disability status, migrant status, Englis h proficiency, and status as economically disadvantaged, except that such disaggregation shall not be required in a cas e in which the number of students in a category is insufficient to yield statistically reliable information or the results would reveal p ersonally identifiable information about an individual student. Each school site shall notify the student 's parents of the school's performance levels in the Oklahoma School Testing Program as reported in the Oklahoma Educational Indicators Program at the end of each school year. K. The State Board of Education shall be responsible for the field-testing and validation of the statewide assessment system required in subsection A of this section. L. The State Board of Education shall develop, administer, an d incorporate as a part of the Oklahoma School Testing Program, other assessment programs or procedures, including appr opriate accommodations for the assessment of students with disabilities as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (I DEA), 20 U.S.C., Section 1400 et seq. Req. No. 6022 Page 10 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 M. For purposes of developing and administering alternate assessments for studen ts with the most significant cognitive disabilities, the State Board of Education shall not be subject to subsections D and E of Section 11-103.6a of this title. SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2023. SECTION 3. It being immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby declared to exist, by reason whereof thi s act shall take effect and be in full force from and after its passage and approval. 59-1-6022 EK 01/13/23