Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1740 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R2231 GCB-F
2	2	By: Huberty H.B. No. 1740
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the administration to public school students in certain
8	8	grades of state-administered assessment instruments.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 39.023(a), Education Code, effective
11	11	until September 1, 2021, is amended to read as follows:
12	12	(a) The agency shall adopt or develop appropriate
13	13	criterion-referenced assessment instruments designed to assess
14	14	essential knowledge and skills in reading, writing, mathematics,
15	15	social studies, and science. Except as provided by Subsection
16	16	(a-2), all students, other than students assessed under Subsection
17	17	(b), (b-1), or (l) or exempted under Section 39.027, shall be
18	18	assessed in:
19	19	(1) mathematics, [annually] in grades three and five
20	20	[through eight];
21	21	(2) reading, [annually] in grades three, five, and
22	22	[through] eight;
23	23	(3) writing, including spelling and grammar, in grades
24	24	five and eight [four and seven];
25	25	(4) social studies, in grade eight; and
26	26	(5) science, in grades five and eight[; and
27	27	[(6) any other subject and grade required by federal
28	28	law].
29	29	SECTION 2. Section 39.023(a), Education Code, effective
30	30	September 1, 2021, is amended to read as follows:
31	31	(a) The agency shall adopt or develop appropriate
32	32	criterion-referenced assessment instruments designed to assess
33	33	essential knowledge and skills in reading, mathematics, social
34	34	studies, and science. Except as provided by Subsection (a-2), all
35	35	students, other than students assessed under Subsection (b), (b-1),
36	36	or (l) or exempted under Section 39.027, shall be assessed in:
37	37	(1) mathematics, [annually] in grades three and five
38	38	[through eight];
39	39	(2) reading, [annually] in grades three, five, and
40	40	[through] eight;
41	41	(3) social studies, in grade eight; and
42	42	(4) science, in grades five and eight[; and
43	43	[(5) any other subject and grade required by federal
44	44	law].
45	45	SECTION 3. Section 39.023, Education Code, is amended by
46	46	amending Subsections (a-1), (a-2), (a-12), (a-13), (b), (c-1),
47	47	(c-3), (c-8), (e), (l), (m), (n), and (p) and adding Subsections
48	48	(a-5), (a-6), (a-7), (a-8), (a-9), (a-10), and (a-17) to read as
49	49	follows:
50	50	(a-1) The agency shall develop assessment instruments
51	51	required under Subsections (a), (a-6), (a-7), and (a-8) [Subsection
52	52	(a)] in a manner that allows, to the extent practicable:
53	53	(1) the score a student receives to provide reliable
54	54	information relating to a student's satisfactory performance for
55	55	each performance standard under Section 39.0241; and
56	56	(2) an appropriate range of performances to serve as a
57	57	valid indication of growth in student achievement.
58	58	(a-2) Except as required by a provision of federal law that
59	59	has not been waived, a student is not required to be assessed in a
60	60	subject otherwise assessed at the student's grade level under
61	61	Subsection (a) if the student:
62	62	(1) is enrolled in a course in the subject intended for
63	63	students above the student's grade level and will be administered
64	64	an assessment instrument adopted or developed under Subsection (a),
65	65	(a-6), (a-7), or (a-8) that aligns with the curriculum for the
66	66	course in which the student is enrolled; or
67	67	(2) is enrolled in a course in the subject for which
68	68	the student will receive high school academic credit and will be
69	69	administered an end-of-course assessment instrument adopted under
70	70	Subsection (c) for the course.
71	71	(a-5) For each assessment instrument administered under
72	72	Subsection (a) or (a-7), the agency shall determine, based on
73	73	available information for that assessment instrument, the minimum
74	74	satisfactory adjusted scale score. The minimum satisfactory
75	75	adjusted scale score is the sum of the scale score that indicates
76	76	satisfactory performance on that assessment instrument, as
77	77	determined by the commissioner under Section 39.0241(a), plus the
78	78	minimum number of points that when added to the scale score produces
79	79	a score that, within a three percent margin of error, is predictive
80	80	that a student achieving that score would achieve satisfactory
81	81	performance on an assessment instrument in the same subject
82	82	administered to the student during the following school year.
83	83	(a-6) A student shall be assessed in grade four in a subject
84	84	for which an assessment instrument is administered under Subsection
85	85	(a) in grade three if, on the final assessment instrument in that
86	86	subject administered under Subsection (a) to the student in grade
87	87	three during the preceding school year, the student did not achieve
88	88	a score equal to or greater than the minimum satisfactory adjusted
89	89	scale score for that assessment instrument, as determined under
90	90	Subsection (a-5).
91	91	(a-7) A student shall be assessed in grade six in a subject
92	92	for which an assessment instrument is administered under Subsection
93	93	(a)(1) or (2) in grade five if, on the final assessment instrument
94	94	in that subject administered under Subsection (a)(1) or (2) to the
95	95	student in grade five during the preceding school year, the student
96	96	did not achieve a score equal to or greater than the minimum
97	97	satisfactory adjusted scale score for that assessment instrument,
98	98	as determined under Subsection (a-5).
99	99	(a-8) A student shall be assessed in grade seven in a
100	100	subject for which an assessment instrument was administered under
101	101	Subsection (a-7) to the student in grade six if, on the final
102	102	assessment instrument in that subject administered to the student
103	103	in grade six during the preceding school year, the student did not
104	104	achieve a score equal to or greater than the minimum satisfactory
105	105	adjusted scale score for that assessment instrument, as determined
106	106	under Subsection (a-5).
107	107	(a-9) A student assessed in mathematics under Subsection
108	108	(a-6), (a-7), or (a-8) shall be assessed without the aid of
109	109	technology.
110	110	(a-10) A school district or open-enrollment charter school
111	111	may, for its own use in determining whether students are performing
112	112	at a satisfactory level, administer to a student at the appropriate
113	113	grade level, other than a student required to be assessed, an
114	114	assessment instrument developed for purposes of Subsection (a-6),
115	115	(a-7), or (a-8). At the request of a district or open-enrollment
116	116	charter school, the agency shall provide, allow for the
117	117	administration of, and score each assessment instrument
118	118	administered under this subsection in the same manner and at the
119	119	same cost as for assessment instruments required to be administered
120	120	under the applicable subsection. The results of an assessment
121	121	instrument administered under this subsection may not be included
122	122	as an achievement indicator under Section 39.053 or any other
123	123	provision.
124	124	(a-12) An assessment instrument adopted or developed under
125	125	Subsection (a), (a-6), (a-7), or (a-8) may not have more than three
126	126	parts. A part of an assessment instrument must be designed so
127	127	that:
128	128	(1) if administered to students in grades three and
129	129	four, 85 percent of students will be able to complete that part
130	130	within 60 minutes; and
131	131	(2) if administered to students in grades five through
132	132	eight, 85 percent of students will be able to complete that part
133	133	within 75 minutes.
134	134	(a-13) The amount of time allowed for administration of an
135	135	assessment instrument adopted or developed under Subsection (a),
136	136	(a-6), (a-7), or (a-8) may not exceed eight hours, and the
137	137	administration may occur in multiple parts over more than one day.
138	138	(a-17) If there is a conflict between this section and a
139	139	federal law or regulation as a result of forgoing under this section
140	140	certain administration of assessment instruments to students who
141	141	have recently performed successfully on assessment instruments
142	142	assessing the same subject, the commissioner shall seek a waiver
143	143	from the application of the conflicting federal law or regulation.
144	144	In seeking a waiver, the commissioner shall submit all relevant
145	145	data, including data relating to:
146	146	(1) the likelihood that a student who achieves a score
147	147	on an assessment instrument equal to or greater than the minimum
148	148	satisfactory adjusted scale score for that assessment instrument,
149	149	as determined under Subsection (a-5), will, in subsequent years,
150	150	perform satisfactorily on assessment instruments in the same
151	151	subject;
152	152	(2) the costs associated with ongoing assessment of
153	153	students who have proven likely to perform successfully on
154	154	subsequent assessment instruments; and
155	155	(3) the benefit of redirecting resources from
156	156	assessment of students who have proven likely to perform
157	157	successfully on subsequent assessment instruments toward enabling
158	158	lower performing students to perform successfully on assessment
159	159	instruments after one school year.
160	160	(b) The agency shall develop or adopt appropriate
161	161	criterion-referenced alternative assessment instruments to be
162	162	administered to a [each] student in a special education program
163	163	under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, for whom an assessment instrument
164	164	adopted under Subsection (a) or, to the extent applicable,
165	165	Subsection (a-6), (a-7), or (a-8), even with allowable
166	166	accommodations, would not provide an appropriate measure of student
167	167	achievement, as determined by the student's admission, review, and
168	168	dismissal committee, including assessment instruments approved by
169	169	the commissioner that measure growth. The assessment instruments
170	170	developed or adopted under this subsection, including the
171	171	assessment instruments approved by the commissioner, must, to the
172	172	extent allowed under federal law, provide a district with options
173	173	for the assessment of students under this subsection. The agency
174	174	may not adopt a performance standard that indicates that a
175	175	student's performance on the alternate assessment does not meet
176	176	standards if the lowest level of the assessment accurately
177	177	represents the student's developmental level as determined by the
178	178	student's admission, review, and dismissal committee.
179	179	(c-1) To the greatest extent practicable, the [The] agency
180	180	shall develop any assessment instrument required under this section
181	181	in a manner that allows for the measurement of annual improvement in
182	182	student achievement as required by Sections 39.034(c) and (d).
183	183	(c-3) Except as provided by Subsection (c-7), in adopting a
184	184	schedule for the administration of assessment instruments under
185	185	this section, the State Board of Education shall ensure
186	186	that assessment instruments administered under Subsection (a),
187	187	(a-6), (a-7), (a-8), or (c) are not administered on the first
188	188	instructional day of a week.
189	189	(c-8) Beginning with the 2022-2023 school year, an
190	190	assessment instrument developed under Subsection (a), (a-6),
191	191	(a-7), (a-8), or (c) may not present more than 75 percent of the
192	192	questions in a multiple choice format.
193	193	(e) Under rules adopted by the State Board of Education,
194	194	every third year, the agency shall release the questions and answer
195	195	keys to each assessment instrument administered under Subsection
196	196	(a), (a-6), (a-7), (a-8), (b), (c), (d), or (l), excluding any
197	197	assessment instrument administered to a student for the purpose of
198	198	retaking the assessment instrument, after the last time the
199	199	instrument is administered for that school year. To ensure a valid
200	200	bank of questions for use each year, the agency is not required to
201	201	release a question that is being field-tested and was not used to
202	202	compute the student's score on the instrument. The agency shall
203	203	also release, under board rule, each question that is no longer
204	204	being field-tested and that was not used to compute a student's
205	205	score. [During the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 school years, the
206	206	agency shall release the questions and answer keys to assessment
207	207	instruments as described by this subsection each year.]
208	208	(l) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for the
209	209	administration of the assessment instruments adopted under
210	210	Subsection (a) and, to the extent applicable, the assessment
211	211	instruments adopted under Subsection (a-6) in Spanish to students
212	212	in grades three, four, and [through] five who are of limited English
213	213	proficiency, as defined by Section 29.052, whose primary language
214	214	is Spanish, and who are not otherwise exempt from the
215	215	administration of an assessment instrument under Section
216	216	39.027(a)(1) or (2). Each student of limited English proficiency
217	217	whose primary language is Spanish, other than a student to whom
218	218	Subsection (b) applies, may be assessed using assessment
219	219	instruments in Spanish under this subsection for up to three years
220	220	or assessment instruments in English under Subsection (a) and, as
221	221	applicable, Subsection (a-6). The language proficiency assessment
222	222	committee established under Section 29.063 shall determine which
223	223	students are administered assessment instruments in Spanish under
224	224	this subsection.
225	225	(m) The commissioner by rule shall develop procedures under
226	226	which the language proficiency assessment committee established
227	227	under Section 29.063 shall determine which students are exempt from
228	228	the administration of the assessment instruments under Section
229	229	39.027(a)(1) or (2). The rules adopted under this subsection shall
230	230	ensure that the language proficiency assessment committee provides
231	231	that the exempted students are administered the assessment
232	232	instruments under Subsections (a) and (c) and, to the extent
233	233	applicable, Subsections (a-6), (a-7), and (a-8) at the earliest
234	234	practical date.
235	235	(n) This subsection applies only to a student who is
236	236	determined to have dyslexia or a related disorder and who is an
237	237	individual with a disability under 29 U.S.C. Section 705(20) and
238	238	its subsequent amendments. The agency shall adopt or develop
239	239	appropriate criterion-referenced assessment instruments designed
240	240	to assess the ability of and to be administered to each student to
241	241	whom this subsection applies for whom the assessment instruments
242	242	adopted under Subsection (a) and, to the extent applicable, the
243	243	assessment instruments adopted under Subsections (a-6), (a-7), and
244	244	(a-8), even with allowable modifications, would not provide an
245	245	appropriate measure of student achievement, as determined by the
246	246	committee established by the board of trustees of the district to
247	247	determine the placement of students with dyslexia or related
248	248	disorders. The committee shall determine whether any allowable
249	249	modification is necessary in administering to a student an
250	250	assessment instrument required under this subsection. The
251	251	assessment instruments required under this subsection shall be
252	252	administered on the same schedule as the assessment instruments
253	253	administered under Subsections (a), (a-6), (a-7), and (a-8), as
254	254	applicable [Subsection (a)].
255	255	(p) On or before September 1 of each year, the commissioner
256	256	shall make the following information available on the agency's
257	257	Internet website for each assessment instrument administered under
258	258	Subsection (a), (a-6), (a-7), (a-8), (c), or (l):
259	259	(1) the number of questions on the assessment
260	260	instrument;
261	261	(2) the number of questions that must be answered
262	262	correctly to achieve satisfactory performance as determined by the
263	263	commissioner under Section 39.0241(a);
264	264	(3) the number of questions that must be answered
265	265	correctly to achieve satisfactory performance under the college
266	266	readiness performance standard as provided by Section 39.0241; and
267	267	(4) the corresponding scale scores.
268	268	SECTION 4. (a) This Act takes effect on any date not later
269	269	than September 1, 2023, on which the commissioner of education:
270	270	(1) obtains any necessary waiver from the application
271	271	of federal law or regulation conflicting with Section 39.023,
272	272	Education Code, as amended by this Act, as required by Section
273	273	39.023(a-17), Education Code, as added by this Act; or
274	274	(2) receives written notification from the United
275	275	States Department of Education that a waiver is not required.
276	276	(b) This Act applies beginning with the first school year
277	277	that begins after the date on which this Act takes effect under
278	278	Subsection (a) of this section.
279	279	(c) If the commissioner of education obtains any necessary
280	280	waiver or receives written notification as described by Subsection
281	281	(a) of this section, the commissioner shall certify that the
282	282	commissioner has obtained the waiver or received notification that
283	283	a waiver is not required, as applicable, and shall publish notice of
284	284	that fact in the Texas Register as soon as practicable after
285	285	obtaining the waiver or receiving notification.