bill swapping state tests for national norm-referenced tests

The text as introduced · 2,511 words

By: Bernal
H.B. No. 5353

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the administration of certain assessment instruments

and the accountability rating system for assessing campus and

district performance.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 39.023, Education Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (a), (c), and (c-2) and adding Subsections (q)

and (r) to read as follows:

(a) The agency shall adopt or develop appropriate

criterion-referenced nationally norm-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.

(c) The agency shall also adopt Texas Success Initiative

assessments or nationally norm-referenced [ end-of-course ]

assessment instruments, such as the SAT or ACT, for secondary-level

courses in reading, mathematics, and science only as necessary to

comply with the Every Student Succeeds Act (20 U.S.C. Section 6301

et seq.) to be administered only as necessary to meet the minimum

requirements of that Act [ Algebra I, biology, English I, English

II, and United States history. The Algebra I end-of-course

assessment instrument must be administered with the aid of

technology, but may include one or more parts that prohibit the use

of technology. The English I and English II end-of-course

assessment instruments must each assess essential knowledge and

skills in both reading and writing and must provide a single score ].

A school district shall comply with State Board of Education rules

regarding administration of the assessment instruments adopted

under [ listed in ] this subsection. If a student is in a special

education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, the student's

admission, review, and dismissal committee shall determine whether

any allowable modification is necessary in administering to the

student an assessment instrument required under this subsection.

The State Board of Education shall administer the assessment

instruments. An [ end-of-course ] assessment instrument may be

administered in multiple parts over more than one day. The State

Board of Education shall adopt a schedule for the administration of

[ end-of-course ] assessment instruments that complies with the

requirements of Subsection (c-3).

(c-2) The agency may adopt [ end-of-course ] assessment

instruments for courses for which assessment instruments are not

adopted under [ not listed in ] Subsection (c). A student's

performance on an [ end-of-course ] assessment instrument adopted

under this subsection is not subject to the performance

requirements established under Subsection (c) or Section 39.025.

(q) Notwithstanding any provision of this section or other

law, if changes made to the Every Student Succeeds Act (20 U.S.C.

Section 6301 et seq.) reduce the number or frequency of assessment

instruments required to be administered to students, the State

Board of Education shall adopt rules reducing the number or

frequency of assessment instruments administered to students under

state law, and the commissioner shall ensure that students are not

assessed in subject areas or in grades that are no longer required

to meet the minimum requirements of that Act.

(r) If the commissioner determines that a waiver or

authorization from the United States Department of Education is

necessary for Texas Success Initiative assessments to be designated

as the state's high school test under the Every Student Succeeds Act

in this subsection, the commissioner shall conduct any technical

studies necessary to ensure compliance with federal guidelines and

request the waiver or authorization until the waiver or

authorization is granted.

SECTION 2. Section 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 an [ end-of-course ] assessment instrument listed in

Section 39.023(c) only for a course in which the student is enrolled

and for which an [ end-of-course ] assessment instrument is

administered. A student 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 administered to the student. For each scale

score 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. 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

demonstrates College, Career, or Military Readiness as defined

under Section 39.053(c)(1)(B) . 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

mathematics or English language arts course under Section 28.014

who satisfies the Texas Success Initiative college readiness

benchmarks prescribed by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating

Board under Section 51.334 on an assessment instrument designated

by the coordinating board under that section administered at the

end of the college preparatory mathematics or English language arts

course satisfies the requirements concerning and is exempt from the

administration of the mathematics or reading [ Algebra I or the

English I and English II ] [ end-of-course ] assessment instrument

[ instruments ], as applicable, [ as prescribed by Section

39.023(c), ] even if the student did not perform satisfactorily on a

previous administration of the applicable [ end-of-course ]

assessment instrument. A student who fails to perform

satisfactorily on the assessment instrument designated by the

coordinating board under Section 51.334 administered as provided by

this subsection may retake that assessment instrument for purposes

of this subsection or may take the [ end-of-course ] assessment

instrument.

SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 39.0521 to read as follows:

Sec. 39.0521. TEMPORARY PROVISION: ASSIGNMENT OF

PERFORMANCE RATINGS AND SCORING OF ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS. (a)

Notwithstanding any other law, for the 2022-2023,2023-2024, AND

2024-2025 school years, the commissioner shall use the cut points,

scaling, targets, indicators, standards, procedures, criteria, and

calculations prescribed by the 2022 Accountability Manual, adopted

under 19 T.A.C. Section 97.1001, as that rule existed on August 15,

2023, to:

(1) evaluate school district and campus performance

and assign each district and campus a performance rating; and

(2) score assessment instruments administered under

Subchapter B.

(b) If the commissioner determines that a waiver or

authorization from the United States Department of Education is

necessary for the implementation of this subsection, the

commissioner shall request the waiver or authorization util the

waiver or authorization is granted.

(c) This section expires August 31, 2026.

SECTION 4. Section 39.053, Education Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (c) and (c-2) and adding Subsections (c-4) and

(c-5) to read as follows:

Section 39.053, Education Code, is amended by amending

Subsections (c) and (c-2) and adding Subsections (c-4) and (c-5) to

read as follows:

(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;

(iii) an indicator that accounts for

extracurricular and cocurricular student success;

(iv) an indicator that accounts for

successful completion of middle school career and technology

education courses; and

(v) an indicator that accounts for middle

school student success in accelerated mathematics; 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 demonstrate military

readiness by:

(a) enlisting [ enlist ] in the armed

forces of the United States or the Texas National Guard;

(b) achieving a passing score set by

the applicable military branch on the Armed Services Vocational

Aptitude Battery test; or

(c) successfully completing a Junior

Reserve Officer Training Corps program;

(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, the use of

disaggregated data to demonstrate the differentials among students

from different racial and ethnic groups and [ , ] socioeconomic

backgrounds[ , and other factors, including:

[ (A) students formerly receiving special

education services;

[ (B) students continuously enrolled; and

[ (C) students who are mobile ].

(c-4) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section,

an indicator adopted under Subsection (c) may not be included in

determining the performance rating of a school district or campus

under Section 39.054 unless it has been determined to be valid and

reliable by the commissioner and through a peer review process.

(c-5) Beginning with the 2027-2028 school year, in

calculating the performance of a campus providing instruction in

grades three through eight in the student achievement domain under

Subsection (c)(1):

(1) indicators adopted under Subsections (c)(1)(A)(i)

and (ii) may not collectively contribute more than 80 percent of a

score assigned to the campus; and

(2) indicators adopted under Subsections

(c)(1)(A)(iii), (iv), and (v) may not collectively contribute more

than 20 percent of the score assigned to the campus.

SECTION 5. Section 39.054(b), Education Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(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 following:

(1) whenever the agency adds or removes assessments or

makes significant revisions to the state's assessment program, the

agency must review, adjust, and recalculate the accountability cut

scores and standards to ensure fairness and consistency in campus

and district ratings;

(2) each of the three domain ratings for elementary,

middle, and high schools have a weak or no statistical correlation

to the percentage of educationally disadvantaged students enrolled

in order to identify effective schools regardless of family income;

(3) any high school college, career, or military

readiness indicator or methodology changes, made either

statutorily or through the commissioner's rulemaking authority,

that rely on previous year data shall begin with the next incoming

ninth grade class to ensure that these changes are not applied

retroactively; and

(4) 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.

SECTION 6. Section 39.0541, Education Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(a) As soon as practicable, the [ The ] commissioner may shall

adopt indicators and standards under this subchapter at any time

during a school year before the evaluation of a school district or

campus prior to the school year in which the indicators or standards

are to be effective.

(b) The commissioner may not make changes to the indicators

or standards adopted under this subchapter during the school year

in which the adopted indicators or standards are effective .

SECTION 7. Section 39.0542(a), Education Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(a) Each school year, Not later than July 15 and prior to the

start of the new school year, the commissioner shall provide each

school district a document in a simple, accessible format that

explains the accountability performance measures, methods, and

procedures that will be applied for that school year in assigning

each school district and campus a performance rating under Section

39.054.

SECTION 8. Section 39.203(c), Education Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(c) In addition to the distinction designations described

by Subsections (a) and (b), a campus that satisfies the criteria

developed under Section 39.204 shall be awarded a distinction

designation by the commissioner for outstanding performance in

academic achievement in reading [ English language arts ],

mathematics, or science[ , or social studies ].

SECTION 9. Section 39.023(c-9), Education Code, is

repealed.

SECTION 10. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026

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, 2025.