Senate Bill sb0008B

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B

    By Senators Diaz de la Portilla and Wilson





    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to high school graduation;

  3         creating s. 1003.433, F.S.; providing learning

  4         opportunities for certain students to meet high

  5         school graduation requirements; providing

  6         requirements for certain transfer students;

  7         authorizing alternate assessments; authorizing

  8         rules; amending s. 1008.22, F.S., relating to

  9         student assessment for public schools;

10         providing for alternate assessments for the

11         grade 10 FCAT; directing the Commissioner of

12         Education to approve certain standardized tests

13         if determined to meet certain criteria as

14         equivalents to the FCAT and to permit passage

15         of such tests in lieu of passage of the grade

16         10 FCAT for students graduating in the

17         2002-2003 school year or thereafter; providing

18         for construction of the act in pari materia

19         with laws enacted during the 2003 Regular

20         Session or the 2003 Special Session A of the

21         Legislature; providing an effective date.

22  

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

24  

25         Section 1.  Section 1003.433, Florida Statutes, is

26  created to read:

27         1003.433  Learning opportunities for out-of-state and

28  out-of-country transfer students and students needing

29  additional instruction to meet high school graduation

30  requirements.--

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B
    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B




 1         (1)  Students who enter a Florida public school at the

 2  eleventh or twelfth grade from out of state or from a foreign

 3  country shall not be required to spend additional time in a

 4  Florida public school in order to meet the high school course

 5  requirements if the student has met all requirements of the

 6  school district, state, or country from which he or she is

 7  transferring. Such students who are not proficient in English

 8  should receive immediate and intensive instruction in English

 9  language acquisition. However, to receive a standard high

10  school diploma, a transfer student must earn a 2.0 grade point

11  average and pass the grade 10 FCAT required in s. 1008.22(3)

12  or an alternate assessment as described in s. 1008.22(9).

13         (2)  Students who have met all requirements for the

14  standard high school diploma except for passage of the grade

15  10 FCAT or an alternate assessment by the end of grade 12 must

16  be provided the following learning opportunities:

17         (a)  Participation in an accelerated high school

18  equivalency diploma preparation program during the summer.

19         (b)  Upon receipt of a certificate of completion, to be

20  allowed to take the College Placement Test and be admitted to

21  remedial or credit courses at a state community college, as

22  appropriate.

23         (c)  Participation in an adult general education

24  program as provided in s. 1004.93 for such time as the student

25  requires to master English, reading, mathematics, or any other

26  subject required for high school graduation. Students

27  attending adult basic, adult secondary, or

28  vocational-preparatory instruction are exempt from any

29  requirement for the payment of tuition and fees, including lab

30  fees, pursuant to s. 1009.25. A student attending an adult

31  general education program shall have the opportunity to take

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B
    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B




 1  the grade 10 FCAT an unlimited number of times in order to

 2  receive a standard high school diploma.

 3         (3)  Students who have been enrolled in an ESOL program

 4  for less than 2 school years and have met all requirements for

 5  the standard high school diploma except for passage of the

 6  grade 10 FCAT or alternate assessment may receive immersion

 7  English language instruction during the summer following their

 8  senior year. Students receiving such instruction are eligible

 9  to take the FCAT or alternate assessment and receive a

10  standard high school diploma upon passage of the grade 10 FCAT

11  or the alternate assessment. This subsection shall be

12  implemented to the extent that funding is provided in the

13  General Appropriations Act.

14         (4)  The State Board of Education may adopt rules

15  pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to administer this

16  section.

17         Section 2.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section

18  1008.22, Florida Statutes, as amended by chapter 2003-8, Laws

19  of Florida, is amended, subsection (9) is renumbered as

20  subsection (10), and a new subsection (9) is added to that

21  section, to read:

22         1008.22  Student assessment program for public

23  schools.--

24         (3)  STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM.--The commissioner

25  shall design and implement a statewide program of educational

26  assessment that provides information for the improvement of

27  the operation and management of the public schools, including

28  schools operating for the purpose of providing educational

29  services to youth in Department of Juvenile Justice programs.

30  Pursuant to the statewide assessment program, the commissioner

31  shall:

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B
    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B




 1         (c)  Develop and implement a student achievement

 2  testing program known as the Florida Comprehensive Assessment

 3  Test (FCAT) as part of the statewide assessment program, to be

 4  administered annually in grades 3 through 10 to measure

 5  reading, writing, science, and mathematics.  Other content

 6  areas may be included as directed by the commissioner.  The

 7  testing program must be designed so that:

 8         1.  The tests measure student skills and competencies

 9  adopted by the State Board of Education as specified in

10  paragraph (a).  The tests must measure and report student

11  proficiency levels in reading, writing, mathematics, and

12  science.  The commissioner shall provide for the tests to be

13  developed or obtained, as appropriate, through contracts and

14  project agreements with private vendors, public vendors,

15  public agencies, postsecondary educational institutions, or

16  school districts. The commissioner shall obtain input with

17  respect to the design and implementation of the testing

18  program from state educators and the public.

19         2.  The testing program will include a combination of

20  norm-referenced and criterion-referenced tests and include, to

21  the extent determined by the commissioner, questions that

22  require the student to produce information or perform tasks in

23  such a way that the skills and competencies he or she uses can

24  be measured.

25         3.  Each testing program, whether at the elementary,

26  middle, or high school level, includes a test of writing in

27  which students are required to produce writings that are then

28  scored by appropriate methods.

29         4.  A score is designated for each subject area tested,

30  below which score a student's performance is deemed

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B
    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B




 1  inadequate.  The school districts shall provide appropriate

 2  remedial instruction to students who score below these levels.

 3         5.  Except as provided in s. 1003.43(11)(b), students

 4  must earn a passing score on the grade 10 assessment test

 5  described in this paragraph or on an alternate assessment as

 6  described in subsection (9) in reading, writing, and

 7  mathematics to qualify for a regular high school diploma. The

 8  State Board of Education shall designate a passing score for

 9  each part of the grade 10 assessment test. In establishing

10  passing scores, the state board shall consider any possible

11  negative impact of the test on minority students. All students

12  who took the grade 10 FCAT during the 2000-2001 school year

13  shall be required to earn the passing scores in reading and

14  mathematics established by the State Board of Education for

15  the March 2001 test administration. Such students who did not

16  earn the established passing scores and must repeat the grade

17  10 FCAT are required to earn the passing scores established

18  for the March 2001 test administration. All students who take

19  the grade 10 FCAT for the first time in March 2002 and

20  thereafter shall be required to earn the passing scores in

21  reading and mathematics established by the State Board of

22  Education for the March 2002 test administration. The State

23  Board of Education shall adopt rules which specify the passing

24  scores for the grade 10 FCAT. Any such rules, which have the

25  effect of raising the required passing scores, shall only

26  apply to students taking the grade 10 FCAT after such rules

27  are adopted by the State Board of Education.

28         6.  Participation in the testing program is mandatory

29  for all students attending public school, including students

30  served in Department of Juvenile Justice programs, except as

31  otherwise prescribed by the commissioner. If a student does

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B
    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B




 1  not participate in the statewide assessment, the district must

 2  notify the student's parent and provide the parent with

 3  information regarding the implications of such

 4  nonparticipation. If modifications are made in the student's

 5  instruction to provide accommodations that would not be

 6  permitted on the statewide assessment tests, the district must

 7  notify the student's parent of the implications of such

 8  instructional modifications. A parent must provide signed

 9  consent for a student to receive instructional modifications

10  that would not be permitted on the statewide assessments and

11  must acknowledge in writing that he or she understands the

12  implications of such accommodations. The State Board of

13  Education shall adopt rules, based upon recommendations of the

14  commissioner, for the provision of test accommodations and

15  modifications of procedures as necessary for students in

16  exceptional education programs and for students who have

17  limited English proficiency. Accommodations that negate the

18  validity of a statewide assessment are not allowable.

19         7.  A student seeking an adult high school diploma must

20  meet the same testing requirements that a regular high school

21  student must meet.

22         8.  District school boards must provide instruction to

23  prepare students to demonstrate proficiency in the skills and

24  competencies necessary for successful grade-to-grade

25  progression and high school graduation. If a student is

26  provided with accommodations or modifications that are not

27  allowable in the statewide assessment program, as described in

28  the test manuals, the district must inform the parent in

29  writing and must provide the parent with information regarding

30  the impact on the student's ability to meet expected

31  proficiency levels in reading, writing, and math. The

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B
    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B




 1  commissioner shall conduct studies as necessary to verify that

 2  the required skills and competencies are part of the district

 3  instructional programs.

 4         9.  The Department of Education must develop, or

 5  select, and implement a common battery of assessment tools

 6  that will be used in all juvenile justice programs in the

 7  state. These tools must accurately measure the skills and

 8  competencies established in the Florida Sunshine State

 9  Standards.

10  

11  The commissioner may design and implement student testing

12  programs, for any grade level and subject area, necessary to

13  effectively monitor educational achievement in the state.

14         (9)  EQUIVALENCIES FOR STANDARDIZED TESTS.--The

15  Commissioner of Education shall determine the comparable

16  validity of other available standardized tests, including the

17  SAT, ACT, College Placement Test, PSAT, PLAN, and tests used

18  for entry into the military. If such tests are deemed to be

19  valid and reliable measures, the commissioner shall approve

20  the use of such tests as alternate assessments to the grade 10

21  FCAT. Beginning with the 2002-2003 school year, students who

22  attain scores that equate to the passing scores on the grade

23  10 FCAT for purposes of high school graduation on any of the

24  approved alternate assessments shall satisfy the assessment

25  requirement for a standard high school diploma as provided in

26  s. 1003.43(5)(a).

27         Section 3.  If any law amended by this act was also

28  amended by a law enacted at the 2003 Regular Session of the

29  Legislature or at the 2003 Special Session A of the

30  Legislature, such laws shall be construed as if they had been

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 8-B
    36-2690-03                                          See HB 23B




 1  enacted at the same session of the Legislature, and full

 2  effect shall be given to each if possible.

 3         Section 4.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

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