Senate Bill sb1388c1

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    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1388

    By the Committee on Education; and Senator Pruitt





    304-1886-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to instructional personnel;

  3         amending s. 231.17, F.S.; requiring certain

  4         competencies as a prerequisite to initial

  5         professional certification; amending s. 231.29,

  6         F.S.; requiring procedures to be included in

  7         school district evaluation systems for

  8         instructional personnel; requiring review by

  9         the Department of Education; requiring

10         development and implementation of certain

11         professional development training components;

12         providing an effective date.

13  

14  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

15  

16         Section 1.  Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (5) of

17  section 231.17, Florida Statutes, to read:

18         231.17  Teacher certification requirements.--

19         (5)  MASTERY OF PROFESSIONAL PREPARATION AND EDUCATION

20  COMPETENCE.--

21         (c)  To qualify for initial professional certification,

22  an educator must be able to use research-based, effective

23  instructional and behavioral strategies for speech and

24  language development, emerging literacy, and developmentally

25  appropriate practices and learning strategies for diverse

26  learners.

27         Section 2.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (2), paragraphs

28  (a) and (c) of subsection (3), and subsection (8) of section

29  231.29, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (9) is

30  added to that section, to read:

31         231.29  Assessment procedures and criteria.--

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    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1388
    304-1886-02




  1         (2)  The following conditions must be considered in the

  2  design of the district's instructional personnel assessment

  3  system:

  4         (b)  The system must provide appropriate instruments,

  5  procedures, and criteria for continuous quality improvement of

  6  the professional skills of instructional personnel including

  7  updated skills related to preventing or identifying early

  8  signs of learning disabilities.

  9         (3)  The assessment procedure for instructional

10  personnel and school administrators must be primarily based on

11  the performance of students assigned to their classrooms or

12  schools, as appropriate. The procedures must comply with, but

13  are not limited to, the following requirements:

14         (a)  An assessment must be conducted for each employee

15  at least once a year. The assessment must be based upon sound

16  educational principles and contemporary research in effective

17  educational practices. Beginning with the full implementation

18  of an annual assessment of learning gains, the assessment must

19  primarily use data and indicators of improvement in student

20  performance assessed annually as specified in s. 229.57 and

21  may consider results of peer reviews in evaluating the

22  employee's performance. Student performance must be measured

23  by state assessments required under s. 229.57 and by local

24  assessments for subjects and grade levels not measured by the

25  state assessment program. The assessment criteria must

26  include, but are not limited to, indicators that relate to the

27  following:

28         1.  Performance of students.

29         2.  Ability to maintain appropriate discipline.

30  

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1388
    304-1886-02




  1         3.  Knowledge of subject matter. The district school

  2  board shall make special provisions for evaluating teachers

  3  who are assigned to teach out-of-field.

  4         4.  Ability to plan and deliver instruction, including

  5  the use of technology in the classroom.

  6         5.  Ability to evaluate instructional needs, including

  7  the evaluation of learning problems using research-based,

  8  effective instructional and behavioral strategies for speech

  9  and language development, emerging literacy, and

10  developmentally appropriate practices and learning strategies

11  for diverse learners.

12         6.  Ability to establish and maintain a positive

13  collaborative relationship with students' families to increase

14  student achievement.

15         7.  Other professional competencies, responsibilities,

16  and requirements as established by rules of the State Board of

17  Education and policies of the district school board.

18         (c)  The individual responsible for supervising the

19  employee must assess the employee's performance. The evaluator

20  must submit a written report of the assessment to the

21  superintendent of schools for the purpose of reviewing the

22  employee's contract, and that report must include the specific

23  evaluation of the educator's ability to identify and work with

24  students who have learning problems or learning disabilities.

25  If the employee is assigned to a school designated in

26  performance grade category "D" or "F" and was rated

27  unsatisfactory on any function related to the employee's

28  instructional or administrative duties, the superintendent of

29  schools, in consultation with the employee's evaluator, shall

30  review the employee's performance assessment. If the

31  superintendent of schools determines that the lack of general

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    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1388
    304-1886-02




  1  knowledge, subject area expertise, or other professional

  2  competencies contributed to the employee's unsatisfactory

  3  performance, the superintendent of schools shall notify the

  4  district school board of that determination.  The district

  5  school board shall require those employees, as part of their

  6  performance probation, to take and receive a passing score on

  7  a test of general knowledge, subject area expertise, or

  8  professional competencies, whichever is appropriate.  The

  9  tests required by this paragraph shall be those required for

10  certification under this chapter and rules of the State Board

11  of Education.  The evaluator must submit the written report to

12  the employee no later than 10 days after the assessment takes

13  place.  The evaluator must discuss the written report of

14  assessment with the employee. The employee shall have the

15  right to initiate a written response to the assessment, and

16  the response shall become a permanent attachment to his or her

17  personnel file.

18         (8)  The State Board of Education shall adopt rules

19  pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54, that establish uniform

20  guidelines for the submission, review, and approval of

21  district procedures for the annual assessment of instructional

22  personnel and that include criteria for evaluating

23  professional performance. The department shall ensure that the

24  assessment systems contain the appropriate focus on the

25  ability of instructional personnel to address learning

26  problems and learning disabilities that can impede school

27  success.

28         (9)  The department shall make available to each school

29  district a professional development program for teachers who

30  seek to improve their competencies or whose annual evaluation

31  indicates a need for improvement. The department shall

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    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1388
    304-1886-02




  1  cooperate with the state-approved teacher-preparation programs

  2  and with others having expertise in developmental or learning

  3  disabilities to design and implement these programs that must

  4  primarily address competencies and strategies for improving

  5  academic progress of students having learning problems.

  6         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

  7  law.

  8  

  9          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
10                             SB 1388

11                                 

12  The Committee Substitute:

13  Limits the required competency demonstration to teachers who
    are applying for initial professional certificates, not
14  teachers who apply for temporary certificates or renewal
    certificates.
15  
    Requires the evaluation system for educators to focus on their
16  ability to work with students who have learning problems. This
    focus is required for individual teachers evaluated by their
17  principals and the school district's evaluation system.

18  Does not amend the requirements for the alternate route to
    certification.
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