Senate Bill sb1560

    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1560

    By Senator Constantine





    22-1429-05                                           See HB 91

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to student assessment; amending

  3         s. 1008.22, F.S.; requiring the Department of

  4         Education to conduct a concordance study to

  5         identify alternative examinations for the grade

  6         10 FCAT for certain students with limited

  7         English proficiency; requiring approval of such

  8         examinations by the Commissioner of Education;

  9         providing student eligibility requirements;

10         providing for satisfaction of the assessment

11         requirement for high school graduation;

12         providing an effective date.

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

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16         Section 1.  Subsection (9) of section 1008.22, Florida

17  Statutes, is amended to read:

18         1008.22  Student assessment program for public

19  schools.--

20         (9)  EQUIVALENCIES FOR STANDARDIZED TESTS.--

21         (a)1.  The Commissioner of Education shall approve the

22  use of the SAT and ACT tests as alternative assessments to the

23  grade 10 FCAT for the 2003-2004 school year. Students who

24  attain scores on the SAT or ACT which equate to the passing

25  scores on the grade 10 FCAT for purposes of high school

26  graduation shall satisfy the assessment requirement for a

27  standard high school diploma as provided in s. 1003.429(6)(a)

28  or s. 1003.43(5)(a) for the 2003-2004 school year if the

29  students meet the requirement in subparagraph 2. paragraph

30  (b).

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    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1560
    22-1429-05                                           See HB 91




 1         2.(b)  A student shall be required to take the grade 10

 2  FCAT a total of three times without earning a passing score in

 3  order to use the scores on an alternative assessment pursuant

 4  to subparagraph 1. paragraph (a). This requirement shall not

 5  apply to a student who is a new student to the public school

 6  system in grade 12.

 7         (b)  The Department of Education shall conduct a

 8  concordance study to identify, and the Commissioner of

 9  Education shall approve the use of, alternative examinations

10  for the grade 10 FCAT that exist for major

11  non-English-speaking subgroups in the state's high school

12  student population. To be eligible to take an alternative

13  examination in his or her native language pursuant to this

14  paragraph, a limited English proficient student must have been

15  enrolled in an ESOL program for fewer than 3 years and not

16  have passed the grade 10 FCAT by the end of grade 12. Students

17  who attain scores on an alternative examination pursuant to

18  this paragraph which equate to the passing scores on the grade

19  10 FCAT for purposes of high school graduation shall satisfy

20  the assessment requirement for a standard high school diploma

21  as provided in s. 1003.43(5)(a).

22         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2005.

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