88R14345 GCB-F
By: Allison H.B. No. 4514
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to public school accountability, including the assessment
of academic performance, and district and campus performance
standards and sanctions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 39.023(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) The agency shall adopt or develop appropriate
criterion-referenced assessment instruments designed to assess
essential knowledge and skills in reading, mathematics, [social
studies,] and science. Except as provided by Subsection (a-2), all
students, other than students assessed under Subsection (b) or (l)
or exempted under Section 39.027, shall be assessed in:
(1) mathematics, annually in grades three through
eight;
(2) reading, annually in grades three through eight;
(3) [social studies, in grade eight;
[(4)] science, in grades five and eight; and
(4) [(5)] any other subject and grade required by
federal law.
SECTION 2. Section 39.053, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (b-1) and amending Subsection (c) to read as
follows:
(b-1) For purposes of assigning a domain performance rating
under Subsection (a), the commissioner shall attribute:
(1) for the student achievement domain under
Subsection (c)(1), not more than 50 percent of the domain
performance rating to the indicators under Subsections
(c)(1)(A)(i) and (ii); and
(2) for the closing the gaps domain under Subsection
(c)(3), not more than 50 percent of the domain performance rating to
the academic achievement component under Subsections (c)(1)(A)(i)
and (ii).
(c) School districts and campuses must be evaluated based on
three domains of indicators of achievement adopted under this
section that include:
(1) in the student achievement domain, indicators of
student achievement that must include:
(A) for evaluating the performance of districts
and campuses generally:
(i) an indicator that accounts for the
results of assessment instruments required under Sections
39.023(a), (c), and (l), as applicable for the district and campus,
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), the
percentage of students who performed satisfactorily 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, the
percentage of students who performed satisfactorily on the
assessment instruments, aggregated across grade levels by subject
area; [and]
(ii) an indicator that accounts for the
results of assessment instruments required under Section
39.023(b), as applicable for the district and campus, including the
percentage of students who performed satisfactorily on the
assessment instruments, as determined by the performance standard
adopted by the agency, aggregated across grade levels by subject
area; [and]
(iii) an indicator that accounts for the
number of students who participate in and successfully complete
courses in the enrichment curriculum under Section 28.002(a)(2);
(iv) an indicator that accounts for
students who participate in school-sponsored extracurricular and
cocurricular student activities, taking into consideration the
duration, intensity, and levels of engagement required for the
activities;
(v) an indicator that accounts for the
results from the state-developed school and student safety survey
of districts and campuses administered under Section 39.0531;
(vi) an indicator that accounts for the
efforts by districts and campuses relating to providing teacher
mentoring programs and professional development opportunities that
meet standards established by the State Board for Educator
Certification by rule; and
(vii) an indicator that accounts for
students who are not in attendance fewer than 15 days during the
current school year;
(A-1) for evaluating the performance of
elementary and middle school campuses, indicators that account for:
(i) student participation in full-day
prekindergarten programs, for campuses that serve students
enrolled in prekindergarten;
(ii) students in grades six, seven, and
eight who successfully complete and receive credit for a course
designated for a grade higher than the grade in which the student is
enrolled; and
(iii) students in grades six, seven, and
eight, who successfully complete a career and technology course
approved for purposes of the career and technology allotment under
Section 48.106; and
(B) for evaluating the performance of high school
campuses and districts that include high school campuses,
indicators that account for:
(i) students who satisfy the Texas Success
Initiative (TSI) college readiness benchmarks prescribed by the
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board under Section 51.334 on
an assessment instrument in reading or mathematics designated by
the coordinating board under that section;
(ii) students who satisfy relevant
performance standards on advanced placement tests or similar
assessments;
(iii) students who earn dual course credits
in the dual credit courses;
(iv) students who enlist in the armed
forces of the United States or the Texas National Guard;
(v) students who earn industry
certifications;
(vi) students admitted into postsecondary
industry certification programs that require as a prerequisite for
entrance successful performance at the secondary level;
(vii) students whose successful completion
of a course or courses under Section 28.014 indicates the student's
preparation to enroll and succeed, without remediation, in an
entry-level general education course for a baccalaureate degree or
associate degree;
(viii) students who successfully met
standards on a composite of indicators that through research
indicates the student's preparation to enroll and succeed, without
remediation, in an entry-level general education course for a
baccalaureate degree or associate degree;
(ix) high school graduation rates, computed
in accordance with standards and definitions adopted in compliance
with the Every Student Succeeds Act (20 U.S.C. Section 6301 et seq.)
subject to the exclusions provided by Subsections (g), (g-1),
(g-2), (g-3), and (g-4);
(x) students who successfully completed an
OnRamps dual enrollment course;
(xi) students who successfully completed a
practicum or internship approved by the State Board of Education;
(xii) students who are awarded an associate
degree; and
(xiii) students who successfully completed
a program of study in career and technical education;
(2) in the school progress domain, indicators for
effectiveness in promoting student learning, which must include:
(A) for assessment instruments, including
assessment instruments under Subdivisions (1)(A)(i) and (ii), the
percentage of students who met the standard for improvement, as
determined by the commissioner; and
(B) for evaluating relative performance, the
performance of districts and campuses compared to similar districts
or campuses; and
(3) in the closing the gaps domain:
(A) [,] the use of disaggregated data to
demonstrate the differentials among students from different racial
and ethnic groups, socioeconomic backgrounds, and other factors,
including:
(i) [(A)] students formerly receiving
special education services;
(ii) [(B)] students continuously enrolled;
and
(iii) [(C)] students who are mobile; and
(B) for evaluating the performance of elementary
and middle school campuses, the indicators described by Subsections
(c)(1)(A)(iii), (iv), (v), and (vi) and (c)(1)(A-1) for the school
quality component.
SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 39.0531 to read as follows:
Sec. 39.0531. SCHOOL AND STUDENT SAFETY AND CLIMATE SURVEY.
(a) The commissioner shall incorporate a school and student safety
and climate survey as an indicator for the student achievement
domain under Section 39.053(c)(1) and the closing the gaps domain
under Section 39.053(c)(3). A school and student safety and
climate survey shall be administered to administrators and teachers
employed by school districts, students enrolled in school
districts, and parents of those students.
(b) The commissioner shall adopt rules to implement this
section, including rules to:
(1) determine the format of the survey;
(2) determine the questions that the survey must
include;
(3) establish a period during a school year in which
the survey must be conducted;
(4) establish requirements for administering and
reporting the results of the survey; and
(5) authorize the manner in which the survey may be
administered, including the local administration of the survey.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code,
including Section 21.355, school and student safety and climate
survey information must be reported to the agency in accordance
with rules adopted by the commissioner.
(d) The commissioner may contract with a third party to
provide any service necessary under this section.
SECTION 4. Section 39.054, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a), (a-4), (a-5), and (b) and adding
Subsection (f) to read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (a-4), the
commissioner shall adopt rules to evaluate school district and
campus performance and assign each district and campus [an overall
performance rating of A, B, C, D, or F. In addition to the overall
performance rating, the commissioner shall assign each district and
campus] a separate domain performance rating of A, B, C, D, or F for
each domain under Section 39.053(c). A [An overall or] domain
performance rating of A reflects exemplary performance. A [An
overall or] domain performance rating of B reflects recognized
performance. A [An overall or] domain performance rating of C
reflects acceptable performance. A [An overall or] domain
performance rating of D reflects performance that needs
improvement. A [An overall or] domain performance rating of F
reflects unacceptable performance. A district may not receive a
[an overall or] domain performance rating of A if the district
includes any campus with a corresponding [overall or] domain
performance rating of D or F. If a school district has been
approved under Section 39.0544 to assign campus performance ratings
and the commissioner has not assigned a campus a domain [an overall]
performance rating of D or F, the commissioner shall assign the
campus a domain [an overall] performance rating based on the school
district assigned performance rating under Section 39.0544.
(a-4) Notwithstanding any other law, the commissioner may
assign a school district or campus a domain [an overall]
performance rating of "Not Rated" if the commissioner determines
that the assignment of a performance rating of A, B, C, D, or F would
be inappropriate because:
(1) the district or campus is located in an area that
is subject to a declaration of a state of disaster under Chapter
418, Government Code, and due to the disaster, performance
indicators for the district or campus are difficult to measure or
evaluate and would not accurately reflect quality of learning and
achievement for the district or campus;
(2) the district or campus has experienced breaches or
other failures in data integrity to the extent that accurate
analysis of data regarding performance indicators is not possible;
(3) the number of students enrolled in the district or
campus is insufficient to accurately evaluate the performance of
the district or campus; or
(4) for other reasons outside the control of the
district or campus, the performance indicators would not accurately
reflect quality of learning and achievement for the district or
campus.
(a-5) Notwithstanding any other law, a domain [an overall]
performance rating of "Not Rated" is not included in calculating
consecutive school years of unacceptable performance ratings and is
not considered a break in consecutive school years of unacceptable
performance ratings for purposes of any provision of this code.
(b) For purposes of assigning school districts and campuses
[an overall and] a domain performance rating under Subsection (a),
the commissioner shall ensure that the method used to evaluate
performance is implemented in a manner that provides the
mathematical possibility that all districts and campuses receive an
A rating.
(f) For purposes of a provision of this title, a reference
to the overall performance rating of a district or campus means:
(1) for a school year before the 2023-2024 school
year, the overall performance rating assigned for the district or
campus for that year under this section as it existed before
amendment by Chapter ____ (_.B. No. ____), Acts of the 88th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2023; and
(2) for the 2023-2024 school year and each subsequent
school year, the highest of the three domain performance ratings
assigned to the district or campus under Section 39.054 for that
school year.
SECTION 5. Section 39.0543(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) A reference in law to an acceptable performance rating
or acceptable performance includes a [an overall or] domain
performance rating of A, B, or C or performance that is exemplary,
recognized, or acceptable. A reference in law to an unacceptable
performance rating or unacceptable performance includes a closing
the gaps [an overall or] domain performance rating of F. For the
purposes of public reporting requirements, a [an overall or] domain
performance rating of D shall be referred to as performance that
needs improvement.
SECTION 6. Section 39.0544, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (e) to read as follows:
(a) The commissioner shall adopt rules regarding the
assignment of campus performance ratings by school districts and
open-enrollment charter schools. The rules:
(1) must require a district or school [, in assigning
an overall performance rating for a campus,] to incorporate:
(A) domain performance ratings assigned by the
commissioner under Section 39.054; and
(B) performance ratings based on locally
developed domains or sets of accountability measures;
(2) may permit a district or school to assign weights
to each domain or set of accountability measures described in
Subdivision (1), as determined by the district or school, provided
that the domains specified in Subdivision (1)(A) must in the
aggregate account for at least 50 percent of the overall
performance rating;
(3) must require that each locally developed domain or
set of accountability measures:
(A) contains levels of performance that allow for
differentiation, with assigned standards for achieving the
differentiated levels;
(B) provides for the assignment of a letter grade
of A, B, C, D, or F; and
(C) meets standards for reliability and
validity;
(4) must require that calculations for [overall
performance ratings and] each locally developed domain or set of
accountability measures be capable of being audited by a third
party;
(5) must require that a district or school produce a
campus score card that may be displayed on the agency's website; and
(6) must require that a district or school develop and
make available to the public an explanation of the methodology used
to assign performance ratings under this section.
(e) A school district or open-enrollment charter school
authorized under this section to assign campus performance ratings
shall evaluate the performance of each campus as provided by this
section and assign each campus a performance rating of A, B, C, D,
or F [for overall performance and] for each locally developed
domain or set of accountability measures. Not later than a date
established by the commissioner, the district or school shall:
(1) report the performance ratings to the agency; and
(2) make the performance ratings available to the
public as provided by commissioner rule.
SECTION 7. The following provisions of the Education Code
are repealed:
(1) Sections 39.054(a-1) and (a-2); and
(2) Sections 39.0543(b), (b-1), (b-2), (b-3), (c), and
(d).
SECTION 8. Before the first administration of the
assessment instruments adopted under Section 39.023(a), Education
Code, as amended by this Act, the Texas Education Agency shall
develop evidence, through a peer review process, to demonstrate
that the assessment instruments are aligned with the essential
knowledge and skills for each subject assessed.
SECTION 9. The Texas Education Agency shall, to the
greatest extent practicable, apply cost savings that result from
implementing the changes made by this Act to support any program
eligible under Title I, Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. Section 6301 et seq.).
SECTION 10. This Act applies beginning with the 2023-2024
school year.
SECTION 11. 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, 2023.