86R10182 MM-D
By: Patterson H.B. No. 2572
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to establishing a pilot program under which certain public
schools may develop a portfolio method to assess student
performance in eighth grade social studies and secondary-level
United States history for purposes of accountability and
qualification for promotion or graduation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 39.02305 to read as follows:
Sec. 39.02305. PORTFOLIO ASSESSMENT PILOT PROGRAM FOR
EIGHTH GRADE SOCIAL STUDIES AND SECONDARY-LEVEL UNITED STATES
HISTORY. (a) Beginning with the 2020-2021 school year, the
commissioner shall establish a pilot program as provided by this
section under which participating school districts:
(1) implement a portfolio method designed to assess
mastery of the essential knowledge and skills for:
(A) eighth grade students in social studies; and
(B) students enrolled in a secondary-level
United States history course; and
(2) use student performance under that method for
purposes of determining qualification for promotion or graduation.
(b) A school district designated as a district of innovation
under Chapter 12A may submit to the commissioner for approval not
later than December 1, 2019, a resolution approved by the board of
trustees of the district requesting to participate in the pilot
program established under this section. In selecting campuses to
participate in the pilot program, the district must select each
campus as a whole. The district may designate a single campus in
the district to participate in the pilot program. Before approving
a resolution submitted under this section, the board must consult
with:
(1) teachers and administrators employed by the
district and members of the community; or
(2) the district- and campus-level planning and
decision-making committees established under Section 11.251.
(c) On or before March 1, 2020, the commissioner shall
review the resolutions submitted in compliance with Subsection (b)
and select school districts for participation in the pilot program.
In making selections for participation in the pilot program, the
commissioner must consider:
(1) the availability of funds;
(2) the ability of the district to successfully
implement the portfolio assessment method;
(3) the location and size of the district and whether
the district provides a student enrollment at each participating
campus that ensures that the pilot program as a whole is
representative of the economic, linguistic, racial, ethnic, and
geographic diversity of this state; and
(4) the number of participating districts the
commissioner determines appropriate to achieve cost savings
described by Subsection (n).
(d) A school district that the commissioner selects to
participate in the pilot program must create a committee that
consists of teachers and administrators employed by the district to
develop a plan that:
(1) specifies the goals and guiding principles for
implementation of the district's portfolio assessment method;
(2) designates for assessment by the portfolio
assessment method:
(A) eighth grade students in social studies;
(B) students enrolled in a secondary-level
United States history course; or
(C) both categories of students described by
Paragraphs (A) and (B);
(3) specifies the essential knowledge and skills that
must be addressed by the portfolio assessment method for each
subject or course described under Subdivision (2);
(4) provides for accommodations and any other support
measures that comply with applicable federal law for students
enrolled in a special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter
29, and students of limited English proficiency, as defined by
Section 29.052;
(5) includes requirements for using components of the
portfolio assessment as:
(A) an interim formative assessment tool to
provide the student the opportunity to further develop
understanding and performance; and
(B) a final summative assessment; and
(6) includes the method for submitting student
portfolios, which may include written submission, digital
delivery, an oral defense presentation, or a combination of those
methods.
(e) The commissioner shall establish a committee that
consists of a teacher member from each committee created under
Subsection (d) to collaborate with the agency to develop a rubric
for grading student portfolios. Each teacher member that serves on
the committee under this subsection must be jointly selected by the
members of that teacher's committee created under Subsection (d).
The rubric developed under this subsection must:
(1) be approved by the agency;
(2) be based on a 100-point scale scoring system; and
(3) establish a level of performance considered
satisfactory and a level of performance necessary to indicate
college readiness.
(f) The individuals responsible for scoring student
portfolios under the pilot program shall be coordinated jointly by:
(1) the school district in which the student is
enrolled and that is participating in the pilot program;
(2) a public junior college or institution of higher
education that enters into an agreement with the participating
school district; and
(3) the regional education service center that serves
the participating district.
(g) A random sampling of scored student portfolios, the size
of which the agency shall determine, shall be delivered to the
agency. The agency shall use the samples submitted under this
subsection to test for validity of results.
(h) In determining the method for submitting student
portfolios, the district shall solicit suggestions from members of
the community. The district, to the extent possible, shall allow
each participating student to choose the method for submitting the
student's portfolio.
(i) Not later than June 30, 2020, each regional education
service center shall provide technical and advisory assistance to a
participating district in the center's region regarding the
development of a plan required under Subsection (d), including
hosting a seminar to discuss:
(1) portfolio assessment methods; and
(2) the essential knowledge and skills that must be
addressed by the portfolio assessment method.
(j) A public junior college or institution of higher
education may enter into an agreement with a participating school
district to provide technical and advisory assistance to the
district in developing and implementing a plan required under
Subsection (d).
(k) Subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
of 1974 (20 U.S.C. Section 1232g), the plan developed under
Subsection (d) may provide for the use of portfolio assessments for
other purposes, including:
(1) to evaluate teacher performance;
(2) to assist in developing campus turnaround plans
and other campus improvement initiatives under Chapter 39A;
(3) to assist in communicating with the student's
parents regarding the student's academic development;
(4) to provide relevant information in admission,
review, and dismissal committee and language proficiency
assessment committee meetings;
(5) as a course completion requirement, as applicable;
or
(6) as a factor in determining a student's
qualification for graduation, as applicable, by any committee
established to make such a determination.
(l) The commissioner shall review and make a determination
on each plan submitted under this section. To participate in the
pilot program, a school district must implement a plan approved by
the commissioner under this section beginning with the 2020-2021
school year.
(m) During the period a school district is participating in
the pilot program:
(1) the district satisfies the requirements under
Sections 39.023(a), (b), (c), and (l) to administer an assessment
instrument to:
(A) eighth grade students in social studies, if
the district uses the portfolio assessment method for those
students; and
(B) students enrolled in a secondary-level
United States history course, if the district uses the portfolio
assessment method for those students; and
(2) a student's performance under the portfolio
assessment method shall be used to determine whether the student
performed satisfactorily to qualify for promotion or graduation.
(n) The agency shall, to the greatest extent practicable,
apply cost savings that result from the exemption under Subsection
(m)(1) to offset the costs accrued under this section.
(o) A school district that participates in the pilot program
shall provide student performance data to the agency as required by
commissioner rule. The agency shall periodically review the
performance data submitted under this subsection.
(p) A school district may withdraw from the pilot program
established under this section by submitting to the commissioner a
resolution approved by the board of trustees of the district
requesting the change in participation status.
(q) The agency shall develop and distribute a survey to
educators and administrators soliciting feedback regarding the
pilot program.
(r) The commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to
implement this section, including:
(1) rules for submitting to the commissioner for
approval:
(A) a resolution to participate in the pilot
program as described by Subsection (b); and
(B) a plan described by Subsection (d) and
subsequent amendments to the plan;
(2) rules for evaluating submitted plans and
amendments described by Subdivision (1)(B);
(3) rules for submitting student performance data to
the agency as required under Subsection (o);
(4) rules for submitting to the commissioner a
resolution to withdraw from the pilot program as described by
Subsection (p) and for any procedures required for reinstituting
the requirements under Sections 39.023(a), (b), (c), and (l) to
administer an assessment instrument to eighth grade students in
social studies, if applicable, and to students enrolled in a
secondary-level United States history course, if applicable; and
(5) any specific rules for campuses that are assigned
an overall performance rating of F and request to participate in the
pilot program under this section.
(s) Not later than December 1, 2024, the agency shall
prepare and deliver to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the
speaker of the house of representatives, and the presiding officer
of each legislative standing committee with primary jurisdiction
over primary and secondary education a report that:
(1) evaluates the implementation and performance
results of the pilot program under this section, including the
results of the survey required under Subsection (q); and
(2) makes recommendations regarding the feasibility
of statewide application of establishing a portfolio method to
assess for purposes of qualification for promotion or graduation
eighth grade students in social studies and students enrolled in a
secondary-level United States history course.
(t) This section expires September 1, 2025.
SECTION 2. 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, 2019.