HB 0185 2004
1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to student assessment; amending s.
3	1003.433, F.S.; authorizing certain students who are not
4	proficient in English to take a translated version of a
5	portion of the grade 10 FCAT; amending s. 1008.22, F.S.;
6	requiring the Department of Education to prepare a
7	translated version of the mathematics portion of the grade
8	10 FCAT in certain languages identified by school
9	districts; authorizing use of alternate assessments to the
10	grade 10 FCAT for the 2003-2004 school year; permitting
11	the passage of such tests to satisfy the assessment
12	requirement for a standard high school diploma for the
13	2003-2004 school year graduating class; providing an
14	effective date.
15
16	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
17
18	Section 1. Subsections (1) and (3) of section 1003.433,
19	Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
20	1003.433 Learning opportunities for out-of-state and out-
21	of-country transfer students and students needing additional
22	instruction to meet high school graduation requirements.--
23	(1) Students who enter a Florida public school at the
24	eleventh or twelfth grade from out of state or from a foreign
25	country shall not be required to spend additional time in a
26	Florida public school in order to meet the high school course
27	requirements if the student has met all requirements of the
28	school district, state, or country from which he or she is
29	transferring. Such students who are not proficient in English
30	should receive immediate and intensive instruction in English
31	language acquisition. However, to receive a standard high school
32	diploma, a transfer student must earn a 2.0 grade point average
33	and pass the grade 10 FCAT required in s. 1008.22(3) or an
34	alternate assessment as described in s. 1008.22(9). A student
35	who enters a Florida public school at the eleventh or twelfth
36	grade and who is not proficient in English shall be allowed to
37	take the mathematics portion of the grade 10 FCAT in his or her
38	native language if the Department of Education has prepared a
39	translated version according to the provisions of s.
40	1008.22(3)(c).
41	(3) Students who have been enrolled in an ESOL program for
42	less than 2 school years and have met all requirements for the
43	standard high school diploma except for passage of the grade 10
44	FCAT or alternate assessment may receive immersion English
45	language instruction during the summer following their senior
46	year. Students receiving such instruction are eligible to take
47	the grade 10 FCAT, including a translated version of the
48	mathematics portion of the test pursuant to subsection (1),or
49	alternate assessment and receive a standard high school diploma
50	upon passage of the grade 10 FCAT or the alternate assessment.
51	This subsection shall be implemented to the extent funding is
52	provided in the General Appropriations Act.
53	Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) and subsection
54	(9) of section 1008.22, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
55	1008.22 Student assessment program for public schools.--
56	(3) STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM.--The commissioner shall
57	design and implement a statewide program of educational
58	assessment that provides information for the improvement of the
59	operation and management of the public schools, including
60	schools operating for the purpose of providing educational
61	services to youth in Department of Juvenile Justice programs.
62	Pursuant to the statewide assessment program, the commissioner
63	shall:
64	(c) Develop and implement a student achievement testing
65	program known as the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test
66	(FCAT) as part of the statewide assessment program, to be
67	administered annually in grades 3 through 10 to measure reading,
68	writing, science, and mathematics. Other content areas may be
69	included as directed by the commissioner. The testing program
70	must be designed so that:
71	1. The tests measure student skills and competencies
72	adopted by the State Board of Education as specified in
73	paragraph (a). The tests must measure and report student
74	proficiency levels in reading, writing, mathematics, and
75	science. The commissioner shall provide for the tests to be
76	developed or obtained, as appropriate, through contracts and
77	project agreements with private vendors, public vendors, public
78	agencies, postsecondary educational institutions, or school
79	districts. The commissioner shall obtain input with respect to
80	the design and implementation of the testing program from state
81	educators and the public.
82	2. The testing program will include a combination of norm-
83	referenced and criterion-referenced tests and include, to the
84	extent determined by the commissioner, questions that require
85	the student to produce information or perform tasks in such a
86	way that the skills and competencies he or she uses can be
87	measured.
88	3. Each testing program, whether at the elementary,
89	middle, or high school level, includes a test of writing in
90	which students are required to produce writings that are then
91	scored by appropriate methods.
92	4. A score is designated for each subject area tested,
93	below which score a student's performance is deemed inadequate.
94	The school districts shall provide appropriate remedial
95	instruction to students who score below these levels.
96	5.a.Except as provided in s. 1003.43(11)(b), students
97	must earn a passing score on the grade 10 assessment test
98	described in this paragraph or on an alternate assessment as
99	described in subsection (9) in reading, writing, and mathematics
100	to qualify for a regular high school diploma. The State Board of
101	Education shall designate a passing score for each part of the
102	grade 10 assessment test. In establishing passing scores, the
103	state board shall consider any possible negative impact of the
104	test on minority students. All students who took the grade 10
105	FCAT during the 2000-2001 school year shall be required to earn
106	the passing scores in reading and mathematics established by the
107	State Board of Education for the March 2001 test administration.
108	Such students who did not earn the established passing scores
109	and must repeat the grade 10 FCAT are required to earn the
110	passing scores established for the March 2001 test
111	administration. All students who take the grade 10 FCAT for the
112	first time in March 2002 and thereafter shall be required to
113	earn the passing scores in reading and mathematics established
114	by the State Board of Education for the March 2002 test
115	administration. The State Board of Education shall adopt rules
116	which specify the passing scores for the grade 10 FCAT. Any such
117	rules, which have the effect of raising the required passing
118	scores, shall only apply to students taking the grade 10 FCAT
119	after such rules are adopted by the State Board of Education.
120	b. The Department of Education shall prepare a translated
121	version of the mathematics portion of the grade 10 FCAT in each
122	language determined by a school district to be the predominant
123	language other than English spoken by students in each of the
124	school district's high school attendance zones. Prior to the
125	2004-2005 school year and at the end of each school year
126	thereafter, each school district shall submit to the department
127	a list of the predominant second languages spoken in the school
128	district. Based on the identified second languages, the
129	department shall make available a translated version of the
130	mathematics portion of the grade 10 FCAT for use in testing the
131	following school year.
132	6. Participation in the testing program is mandatory for
133	all students attending public school, including students served
134	in Department of Juvenile Justice programs, except as otherwise
135	prescribed by the commissioner. If a student does not
136	participate in the statewide assessment, the district must
137	notify the student's parent and provide the parent with
138	information regarding the implications of such nonparticipation.
139	If modifications are made in the student's instruction to
140	provide accommodations that would not be permitted on the
141	statewide assessment tests, the district must notify the
142	student's parent of the implications of such instructional
143	modifications. A parent must provide signed consent for a
144	student to receive instructional modifications that would not be
145	permitted on the statewide assessments and must acknowledge in
146	writing that he or she understands the implications of such
147	accommodations. The State Board of Education shall adopt rules,
148	based upon recommendations of the commissioner, for the
149	provision of test accommodations and modifications of procedures
150	as necessary for students in exceptional education programs and
151	for students who have limited English proficiency.
152	Accommodations that negate the validity of a statewide
153	assessment are not allowable.
154	7. A student seeking an adult high school diploma must
155	meet the same testing requirements that a regular high school
156	student must meet.
157	8. District school boards must provide instruction to
158	prepare students to demonstrate proficiency in the skills and
159	competencies necessary for successful grade-to-grade progression
160	and high school graduation. If a student is provided with
161	accommodations or modifications that are not allowable in the
162	statewide assessment program, as described in the test manuals,
163	the district must inform the parent in writing and must provide
164	the parent with information regarding the impact on the
165	student's ability to meet expected proficiency levels in
166	reading, writing, and math. The commissioner shall conduct
167	studies as necessary to verify that the required skills and
168	competencies are part of the district instructional programs.
169	9. The Department of Education must develop, or select,
170	and implement a common battery of assessment tools that will be
171	used in all juvenile justice programs in the state. These tools
172	must accurately measure the skills and competencies established
173	in the Florida Sunshine State Standards.
174
175	The commissioner may design and implement student testing
176	programs, for any grade level and subject area, necessary to
177	effectively monitor educational achievement in the state.
178	(9) EQUIVALENCIES FOR STANDARDIZED TESTS.--The
179	Commissioner of Education shall determine the comparable
180	validity of other available standardized tests, including the
181	SAT, ACT, College Placement Test, PSAT, PLAN, and tests used for
182	entry into the military. If such tests are deemed to be valid
183	and reliable measures, the commissioner shall approve the use of
184	such tests as alternate assessments to the grade 10 FCAT for the
185	2003-2004 2002-2003school year. Students who attain scores that
186	equate to the passing scores on the grade 10 FCAT for purposes
187	of high school graduation on any of the approved alternative
188	assessments shall satisfy the assessment requirement for a
189	standard high school diploma as provided in s. 1003.43(5)(a) for
190	the 2003-2004 2002-2003school year graduating class. Prior to
191	the application of these alternative assessments in subsequent
192	school years, the Legislature shall review the continued use of
193	these alternative tests.
194	Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.