HB 0901

CS

CHAMBER ACTION

1	The Committee on Appropriations recommends the following:
2
3	Committee Substitute
4	Remove the entire bill and insert:
5	A bill to be entitled
6	An act relating to public school educational instruction;
7	creating s. 1003.415, F.S.; providing the popular name the
8	"Middle Grades Reform Act"; providing purpose and intent;
9	defining the term "middle grades"; requiring a review and
10	recommendations relating to curricula and courses;
11	requiring implementation of new or revised reading and
12	language arts courses; providing for implementation of a
13	rigorous reading requirement in certain schools; requiring
14	a study of the academic performance of middle grade
15	students and schools with recommendations for an increase
16	in performance; requiring a personalized middle school
17	success plan for certain students; providing authority for
18	State Board of Education rulemaking and enforcement;
19	amending s. 1001.42, F.S.; requiring a school improvement
20	plan to include the rigorous reading requirement if
21	applicable; amending s. 1008.25, F.S.; requiring a
22	personalized middle school success plan to be incorporated
23	in a student's academic improvement plan if applicable;
24	amending s. 1012.34, F.S.; revising assessment criteria
25	for instructional personnel; providing an effective date.
26
27	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
28
29	Section 1.  Section 1003.415, Florida Statutes, is created
30	to read:
31	1003.415  The Middle Grades Reform Act.--
32	(1)  POPULAR NAME.--This section shall be known by the
33	popular name the "Middle Grades Reform Act."
34	(2)  PURPOSE AND INTENT.--The purpose of this section is to
35	provide added focus and rigor to academics in the middle grades.
36	Using reading as the foundation, all middle grade students
37	should receive rigorous academic instruction through challenging
38	curricula delivered by highly qualified teachers in schools with
39	outstanding leadership, which schools are supported by engaged
40	and informed parents. It is the intent of the Legislature that
41	students promoted from the eighth grade will be ready for
42	success in high school.
43	(3)  DEFINITION.--As used in this section, the term "middle
44	grades" means grades 6, 7, and 8.
45	(4)  CURRICULA AND COURSES.--The Department of Education
46	shall review course offerings, teacher qualifications,
47	instructional materials, and teaching practices used in reading
48	and language arts programs in the middle grades. The department
49	must consult with the Florida Center for Reading Research at
50	Florida State University, the Just Read, Florida! Office,
51	reading researchers, reading specialists, and district
52	supervisors of curriculum in the development of findings and
53	recommendations. The Commissioner of Education shall make
54	recommendations to the State Board of Education regarding
55	changes to reading and language arts curricula in the middle
56	grades based on research-based proven effective programs. The
57	State Board of Education shall adopt rules based upon the
58	commissioner's recommendations no later than March 1, 2005.
59	Implementation of new or revised reading and language arts
60	courses in all middle grades shall be phased in beginning no
61	later than the 2005-2006 school year with completion no later
62	than the 2008-2009 school year.
63	(5)  RIGOROUS READING REQUIREMENT.--
64	(a)  Beginning with the 2004-2005 school year, each public
65	school serving middle grade students, including charter schools,
66	with fewer than 75 percent of its students reading at or above
67	grade level in grade 6, grade 7, or grade 8 as measured by a
68	student scoring at Level 3 or above on the FCAT during the prior
69	school year, must incorporate by October 1 a rigorous reading
70	requirement for reading and language arts programs as the
71	primary component of its school improvement plan. The department
72	shall annually provide to each district school board by June 30
73	a list of its schools that are required to incorporate a
74	rigorous reading requirement as the primary component of the
75	school's improvement plan. The department shall provide
76	technical assistance to school districts and school
77	administrators required to implement the rigorous reading
78	requirement.
79	(b)  The purpose of the rigorous reading requirement is to
80	assist each student who is not reading at or above grade level
81	to do so before entering high school. The rigorous reading
82	requirement must include for a middle school's low-performing
83	student population specific areas that address phonemic
84	awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary; the
85	desired levels of performance in those areas; and the
86	instructional and support services to be provided to meet the
87	desired levels of performance. The school shall utilize
88	research-based reading activities that have been shown to be
89	successful in teaching reading to low-performing students.
90	(c)  Schools required to implement the rigorous reading
91	requirement must provide quarterly reports to the district
92	school superintendent on the progress of students toward
93	increased reading achievement.
94	(d)  The results of implementation of a school's rigorous
95	reading requirement shall be used as part of the annual
96	evaluation of the school's instructional personnel and school
97	administrators as required in s. 1012.34.
98	(6)  COMPREHENSIVE REFORM STUDY ON THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
99	OF STUDENTS AND SCHOOLS.--
100	(a)  The department shall conduct a study on how the
101	overall academic performance of middle grade students and
102	schools can be improved. The department must consult with the
103	Florida Center for Reading Research at Florida State University,
104	the Just Read, Florida! Office, and key education stakeholders,
105	including district school board members, district school
106	superintendents, principals, parents, teachers, district
107	supervisors of curriculum, and students across the state, in the
108	development of its findings and recommendations. The department
109	shall review, at a minimum, each of the following elements:
110	1.  Academic expectations, which include, but are not
111	limited to:
112	a.  Alignment of middle school expectations with elementary
113	and high school graduation requirements.
114	b.  Best practices to improve reading and language arts
115	courses based on research-based programs for middle school
116	students in alignment with the Sunshine State Standards.
117	c.  Strategies that focus on improving academic success for
118	low?performing students.
119	d.  Rigor of curricula and courses.
120	e.  Instructional materials.
121	f.  Course enrollment by middle school students.
122	g.  Student support services.
123	h.  Measurement and reporting of student achievement.
124	2.  Attendance policies and student mobility issues.
125	3.  Teacher quality, which includes, but is not limited to:
126	a.  Preparedness of teachers to teach rigorous courses to
127	middle school students.
128	b.  Teacher evaluations.
129	c.  Substitute teachers.
130	d.  Certification and recertification requirements.
131	e.  Staff development requirements.
132	f.  Availability of effective staff development training.
133	g.  Teacher recruitment and vacancy issues.
134	h.  Federal requirements for highly qualified teachers
135	pursuant to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
136	4.  Identification and availability of diagnostic testing.
137	5.  Availability of personnel and scheduling issues.
138	6.  Middle school leadership and performance.
139	7.  Parental and community involvement.
140	(b)  By December 1, 2004, the Commissioner of Education
141	shall submit to the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the
142	House of Representatives, the chairs of the education committees
143	in the Senate and the House of Representatives, and the State
144	Board of Education recommendations to increase the academic
145	performance of middle grade students and schools.
146	(7)  PERSONALIZED MIDDLE SCHOOL SUCCESS PLAN.--
147	(a)  Beginning with the 2004-2005 school year, each
148	principal of a school with a middle grade shall designate
149	certified staff members at the school to develop and administer
150	a personalized middle school success plan for each entering
151	sixth grade student who scored below Level 3 in reading on the
152	most recently administered FCAT. The purpose of the success plan
153	is to assist the student in meeting state and school district
154	expectations in academic proficiency and to prepare the student
155	for a rigorous high school curriculum. The success plan shall be
156	developed in collaboration with the student and his or her
157	parent and must be implemented until the student completes the
158	eighth grade or achieves a score at Level 3 or above in reading
159	on the FCAT, whichever occurs first. The success plan must
160	minimize paperwork and may be incorporated into a parent/teacher
161	conference, included as part of a progress report or report
162	card, included as part of a general orientation at the beginning
163	of the school year, or provided by electronic mail or other
164	written correspondence.
165	(b)  The personalized middle school success plan must:
166	1.  Identify educational goals and intermediate benchmarks
167	for the student in the core curriculum areas which will prepare
168	the student for high school.
169	2.  Be based upon academic performance data and an
170	identification of the student's strengths and weaknesses.
171	3.  Include academic intervention strategies with frequent
172	progress monitoring.
173	4.  Provide innovative methods to promote the student's
174	advancement which may include, but not be limited to, flexible
175	scheduling, tutoring, focus on core curricula, online
176	instruction, an alternative learning environment, or other
177	interventions that have been shown to accelerate the learning
178	process.
179	(c)  The personalized middle school success plan must be
180	incorporated into any individual student plan required by
181	federal or state law, including the academic improvement plan
182	required in s. 1008.25, an individual education plan (IEP) for a
183	student with disabilities, a federal 504 plan, or an ESOL plan.
184	(d)  The Department of Education shall provide technical
185	assistance to school districts, school administrators, and
186	instructional personnel regarding the development of
187	personalized middle school success plans. The assistance shall
188	include strategies and techniques designed to maximize
189	interaction between students, parents, teachers, and other
190	instructional and administrative staff while minimizing
191	paperwork.
192	(8)  STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION AUTHORITY.--
193	(a)  The State Board of Education shall have authority to
194	adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement
195	the provisions of this section.
196	(b)  The State Board of Education shall have authority
197	pursuant to s. 1008.32 to enforce the provisions of this
198	section.
199	Section 2.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (16) of section
200	1001.42, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
201	1001.42  Powers and duties of district school board.--The
202	district school board, acting as a board, shall exercise all
203	powers and perform all duties listed below:
204	(16)  IMPLEMENT SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT AND
205	ACCOUNTABILITY.--Maintain a system of school improvement and
206	Maintain a system of school improvement and education
207	accountability as provided by statute and State Board of
208	Education rule. This system of school improvement and education
209	accountability shall be consistent with, and implemented
210	through, the district's continuing system of planning and
211	budgeting required by this section and ss. 1008.385, 1010.01,
212	and 1011.01. This system of school improvement and education
213	accountability shall include, but is not limited to, the
214	following:
215	(a)  School improvement plans.--Annually approve and
216	require implementation of a new, amended, or continuation school
217	improvement plan for each school in the district, except that a
218	district school board may establish a district school
219	improvement plan that includes all schools in the district
220	operating for the purpose of providing educational services to
221	youth in Department of Juvenile Justice programs. Such plan
222	shall be designed to achieve the state education priorities
223	pursuant to s. 1000.03(5) and student performance standards. In
224	addition, any school required to implement a rigorous reading
225	requirement pursuant to s. 1003.415 must include such component
226	in its school improvement plan. Each plan shall also address
227	issues relative to budget, training, instructional materials,
228	technology, staffing, student support services, specific school
229	safety and discipline strategies, and other matters of resource
230	allocation, as determined by district school board policy, and
231	shall be based on an analysis of student achievement and other
232	school performance data.
233	Section 3.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section
234	1008.25, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
235	1008.25  Public school student progression; remedial
236	instruction; reporting requirements.--
237	(4)  ASSESSMENT AND REMEDIATION.--
238	(b)  The school in which the student is enrolled must
239	develop, in consultation with the student's parent, and must
240	implement an academic improvement plan designed to assist the
241	student in meeting state and district expectations for
242	proficiency. For a student for whom a personalized middle school
243	success plan is required pursuant to s. 1003.415, the middle
244	school success plan must be incorporated in the student's
245	academic improvement plan. Beginning with the 2002-2003 school
246	year, if the student has been identified as having a deficiency
247	in reading, the academic improvement plan shall identify the
248	student's specific areas of deficiency in phonemic awareness,
249	phonics, fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary; the desired
250	levels of performance in these areas; and the instructional and
251	support services to be provided to meet the desired levels of
252	performance. Schools shall also provide for the frequent
253	monitoring of the student's progress in meeting the desired
254	levels of performance. District school boards shall assist
255	schools and teachers to implement research-based reading
256	activities that have been shown to be successful in teaching
257	reading to low-performing students. Remedial instruction
258	provided during high school may not be in lieu of English and
259	mathematics credits required for graduation.
260	Section 4.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section
261	1012.34, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
262	1012.34  Assessment procedures and criteria.--
263	(3)  The assessment procedure for instructional personnel
264	and school administrators must be primarily based on the
265	performance of students assigned to their classrooms or schools,
266	as appropriate. The procedures must comply with, but are not
267	limited to, the following requirements:
268	(a)  An assessment must be conducted for each employee at
269	least once a year. The assessment must be based upon sound
270	educational principles and contemporary research in effective
271	educational practices. The assessment must primarily use data
272	and indicators of improvement in student performance assessed
273	annually as specified in s. 1008.22 and may consider results of
274	peer reviews in evaluating the employee's performance. Student
275	performance must be measured by state assessments required under
276	s. 1008.22 and by local assessments for subjects and grade
277	levels not measured by the state assessment program. The
278	assessment criteria must include, but are not limited to,
279	indicators that relate to the following:
280	1.  Performance of students.
281	2.  Ability to maintain appropriate discipline.
282	3.  Knowledge of subject matter. The district school board
283	shall make special provisions for evaluating teachers who are
284	assigned to teach out-of-field.
285	4.  Ability to plan and deliver instruction, including
286	implementation of the rigorous reading requirement pursuant to
287	s. 1003.415, when applicable, and the use of technology in the
288	classroom.
289	5.  Ability to evaluate instructional needs.
290	6.  Ability to establish and maintain a positive
291	collaborative relationship with students' families to increase
292	student achievement.
293	7.  Other professional competencies, responsibilities, and
294	requirements as established by rules of the State Board of
295	Education and policies of the district school board.
296	Section 5.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.