84R5751 PAM-F
By: VanDeaver H.B. No. 1162
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to eliminating satisfactory performance requirements for
public school end-of-course assessment instruments as a criterion
for promotion or graduation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 18.005(c), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(c) A Job Corps diploma program shall:
(1) develop educational programs specifically
designed for persons eligible for enrollment in a Job Corps
training program established by the United States Department of
Labor;
(2) coordinate educational programs and services in
the diploma program with programs and services provided by the
United States Department of Labor and other federal and state
agencies and local political subdivisions and by persons who
provide programs and services under contract with the United States
Department of Labor;
(3) provide a course of instruction that includes the
required curriculum under Subchapter A, Chapter 28; and
(4) [require that students enrolled in the diploma
program satisfy the requirements of Section 39.025 before receiving
a diploma under this chapter; and
[(5)] comply with a requirement imposed under this
title or a rule adopted under this title relating to the Public
Education Information Management System (PEIMS) to the extent
necessary to determine compliance with this chapter, as determined
by the commissioner.
SECTION 2. Section 25.005(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) A reciprocity agreement must:
(1) address procedures for:
(A) transferring student records; and
(B) awarding credit for completed course work;
and
[(C) permitting a student to satisfy the
requirements of Section 39.025 through successful performance on
comparable end-of-course or other exit-level assessment
instruments administered in another state; and]
(2) include appropriate criteria developed by the
agency.
SECTION 3. Sections 28.025(b-7), (c), and (e), Education
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b-7) The State Board of Education, in coordination with the
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, shall adopt rules to
ensure that a student may comply with the curriculum requirements
under the foundation high school program or for an endorsement
under Subsection (c-1) by successfully completing appropriate
courses in the core curriculum of an institution of higher
education under Section 61.822. Notwithstanding Subsection (b-15)
or (c) [of this section, Section 39.025,] or any other provision of
this code and notwithstanding any school district policy, a student
who has completed the core curriculum of an institution of higher
education under Section 61.822, as certified by the institution in
accordance with commissioner rule, is considered to have earned a
distinguished level of achievement under the foundation high school
program and is entitled to receive a high school diploma from the
appropriate high school as that high school is determined in
accordance with commissioner rule. A student who is considered to
have earned a distinguished level of achievement under the
foundation high school program under this subsection may apply for
admission to an institution of higher education for the first
semester or other academic term after the semester or other
academic term in which the student completes the core curriculum.
(c) A person may receive a diploma if the person is eligible
for a diploma under Section 28.0251. In other cases, a student may
graduate and receive a diploma only if:
(1) the student successfully completes the curriculum
requirements identified by the State Board of Education under
Subsection (a) [and complies with Section 39.025]; or
(2) the student successfully completes an
individualized education program developed under Section 29.005.
(e) Each school district shall report the academic
achievement record of students who have completed the foundation
high school program on transcript forms adopted by the State Board
of Education. [The transcript forms adopted by the board must be
designed to clearly identify whether a student received a diploma
or a certificate of coursework completion.]
SECTION 4. Section 28.0255(g), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(g) A student is entitled to a high school diploma if the
student[:
[(1)] successfully complies with the curriculum
requirements specified under Subsection (e)[; and
[(2) performs satisfactorily, as determined by the
commissioner under Subsection (h), on end-of-course assessment
instruments listed under Section 39.023(c) for courses in which the
student was enrolled].
SECTION 5. Section 29.081(b-1), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b-1) Each school district shall offer before the next
scheduled administration of the assessment instrument, without
cost to the student, additional accelerated instruction to each
student in any subject in which the student failed to perform
satisfactorily on an end-of-course assessment instrument [required
for graduation].
SECTION 6. Section 29.259(g), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(g) A person who is at least 19 years of age and not more
than 50 years of age is eligible to enroll in the adult education
program under this section if the person has not earned a high
school equivalency certificate and:
(1) has failed to complete the curriculum requirements
for high school graduation; or
(2) [has] failed to perform satisfactorily on an
assessment instrument that, before the 2015-2016 school year, was
required for high school graduation.
SECTION 7. Section 30.021(e), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(e) The school shall cooperate with public and private
agencies and organizations serving students and other persons with
visual impairments in the planning, development, and
implementation of effective educational and rehabilitative service
delivery systems associated with educating students with visual
impairments. To maximize and make efficient use of state
facilities, funding, and resources, the services provided in this
area may include conducting a cooperative program with other
agencies to serve students who have graduated from high school by
completing all academic requirements applicable to students in
regular education[, excluding satisfactory performance under
Section 39.025,] who are younger than 22 years of age on September 1
of the school year and who have identified needs related to
vocational training, independent living skills, orientation and
mobility, social and leisure skills, compensatory skills, or
remedial academic skills.
SECTION 8. Section 30.104(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) A student may graduate and receive a diploma from a
Texas Juvenile Justice Department [Texas Youth Commission]
educational program if[:
[(1)] the student successfully completes:
(1) the curriculum requirements identified by the
State Board of Education under Section 28.025(a) [and complies with
Section 39.025]; or
(2) [the student successfully completes] the
curriculum requirements under Section 28.025(a) as modified by an
individualized education program developed under Section 29.005.
SECTION 9. Section 32.258(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The system established under Subsection (a) shall
provide a means for a student or the student's parent or other
person standing in parental relationship to track the student's
progress on assessment instruments [instrument requirements for
graduation].
SECTION 10. Section 39.023(c-2), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c-2) The agency may adopt end-of-course assessment
instruments for courses not listed in Subsection (c). A student's
performance on an end-of-course assessment instrument adopted
under this subsection is not subject to any [the] performance
requirements [established under Subsection (c) or Section 39.025].
SECTION 11. The heading to Section 39.025, Education Code,
is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 39.025. USE OF END-OF-COURSE ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS
[SECONDARY-LEVEL PERFORMANCE REQUIRED].
SECTION 12. Sections 39.025(a) and (a-1), Education Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) The commissioner shall adopt rules requiring a student
in the foundation high school program under Section 28.025 to be
administered each end-of-course assessment instrument listed in
Section 39.023(c). Each end-of-course assessment instrument shall
be evaluated to determine whether the [A] student achieved [is
required to achieve] a scale score that indicates satisfactory
performance, as determined by the commissioner under Section
39.0241(a)[, on each end-of-course assessment instrument listed
under Section 39.023(c)]. For each scale score for an end-of-course
assessment instrument administered [required] under this
subsection that is not based on a 100-point scale scoring system,
the commissioner shall provide for conversion, in accordance with
commissioner rule, of the scale score to an equivalent score based
on a 100-point scale scoring system. The results of an
end-of-course assessment instrument administered under this
subsection may not be used as a criteria for grade promotion or
graduation. The results of an end-of-course assessment instrument
administered under this subsection may be used only for the
purposes of diagnosing the academic strengths and deficiencies of a
student and guiding specific instruction to the student. [A
student may not receive a high school diploma until the student has
performed satisfactorily on end-of-course assessment instruments
in the manner provided under this subsection. This subsection does
not require a student to demonstrate readiness to enroll in an
institution of higher education.]
(a-1) A student enrolled in a college preparatory course
under Section 28.014 who satisfies the Texas Success Initiative
(TSI) college readiness benchmarks prescribed by the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board under Section 51.3062(f) on an
assessment instrument designated by the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board under Section 51.3062(c) administered at the end
of the college preparatory course is exempt from the administration
of [satisfies the requirements concerning] an end-of-course
assessment in an equivalent course as prescribed by Subsection (a).
The commissioner shall determine a method by which a student's
satisfactory performance on an advanced placement test, an
international baccalaureate examination, an SAT Subject Test, the
SAT, the ACT, or any nationally recognized norm-referenced
assessment instrument used by institutions of higher education to
award course credit based on satisfactory performance on the
assessment instrument shall be used to exempt a student from the
administration of [satisfy the requirements concerning] an
end-of-course assessment instrument in an equivalent course as
prescribed by Subsection (a). The commissioner shall determine a
method by which a student's satisfactory performance on the PSAT or
the ACT-Plan shall be used to exempt a student from the
administration of [satisfy the requirements concerning] an
end-of-course assessment instrument in an equivalent course as
prescribed by Subsection (a). [A student who fails to perform
satisfactorily on a test or other assessment instrument authorized
under this subsection, other than the PSAT or the ACT-Plan, may
retake that test or other assessment instrument for purposes of
this subsection or may take the appropriate end-of-course
assessment instrument. A student who fails to perform
satisfactorily on the PSAT or the ACT-Plan must take the
appropriate end-of-course assessment instrument.] The commissioner
shall adopt rules as necessary for the administration of this
subsection.
SECTION 13. Section 39.034(d), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) The agency shall determine the necessary annual
improvement required each year for a student to be prepared to
perform satisfactorily on, as applicable:
(1) the grade five assessment instruments;
(2) the grade eight assessment instruments; and
(3) the end-of-course assessment instruments
[required under this subchapter for graduation].
SECTION 14. Section 39.053(c), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) Indicators of student achievement adopted under this
section must include:
(1) the results of assessment instruments required
under Sections 39.023(a), (c), and (l), [including the results of
assessment instruments required for graduation retaken by a
student,] aggregated across grade levels by subject area,
including:
(A) for the performance standard determined by
the commissioner under Section 39.0241(a):
(i) the percentage of students who
performed satisfactorily on the assessment instruments, aggregated
across grade levels by subject area; and
(ii) for students who did not perform
satisfactorily, the percentage of students who met the standard for
annual improvement, as determined by the agency under Section
39.034, on the assessment instruments, aggregated across grade
levels by subject area; and
(B) for the college readiness performance
standard as determined under Section 39.0241:
(i) the percentage of students who
performed satisfactorily on the assessment instruments, aggregated
across grade levels by subject area; and
(ii) for students who did not perform
satisfactorily, the percentage of students who met the standard for
annual improvement, as determined by the agency under Section
39.034, on the assessment instruments, aggregated across grade
levels by subject area;
(2) dropout rates, including dropout rates and
district completion rates for grade levels 9 through 12, computed
in accordance with standards and definitions adopted by the
National Center for Education Statistics of the United States
Department of Education;
(3) high school graduation rates, computed in
accordance with standards and definitions adopted in compliance
with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. Section 6301 et
seq.);
(4) the percentage of students who successfully
completed the curriculum requirements for the distinguished level
of achievement under the foundation high school program;
(5) the percentage of students who successfully
completed the curriculum requirements for an endorsement under
Section 28.025(c-1); and
(6) at least three additional indicators of student
achievement to evaluate district and campus performance, which must
include either:
(A) the percentage of students who satisfy the
Texas Success Initiative (TSI) college readiness benchmarks
prescribed by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board under
Section 51.3062(f) on an assessment instrument in
reading, writing, or mathematics designated by the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board under Section 51.3062(c); or
(B) the number of students who earn:
(i) at least 12 hours of postsecondary
credit required for the foundation high school program under
Section 28.025 or to earn an endorsement under Section 28.025(c-1);
(ii) at least 30 hours of postsecondary
credit required for the foundation high school program under
Section 28.025 or to earn an endorsement under Section 28.025(c-1);
(iii) an associate's degree; or
(iv) an industry certification.
SECTION 15. The following provisions of the Education Code
are repealed:
(1) Section 28.025(d);
(2) Section 28.0255(h);
(3) Section 30.104(c); and
(4) Sections 39.025(a-4), (b), (b-2), (c), (d), (e),
(f), and (g).
SECTION 16. This Act applies beginning with the 2015-2016
school year.
SECTION 17. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2015.