| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to middle school civics education |
| 3 | assessment; amending s. 1003.4156, F.S.; providing |
| 4 | requirements for a civics education course that a student |
| 5 | must successfully complete for middle grades promotion |
| 6 | beginning with students entering grade 6 in the 2011-2012 |
| 7 | school year; amending s. 1008.22, F.S.; requiring the |
| 8 | administration of an end-of-course assessment in civics |
| 9 | education as a field test at the middle school level |
| 10 | during the 2011-2012 school year; providing requirements |
| 11 | for course grade and course credit for subsequent school |
| 12 | years; amending s. 1008.34, F.S.; requiring the inclusion |
| 13 | of civics education end-of-course assessment data in |
| 14 | determining school grades beginning with the 2012-2013 |
| 15 | school year; providing an effective date. |
| 16 |
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| 17 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 18 |
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| 19 | Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section |
| 20 | 1003.4156, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 21 | 1003.4156 General requirements for middle grades |
| 22 | promotion.-- |
| 23 | (1) Beginning with students entering grade 6 in the 2006- |
| 24 | 2007 school year, promotion from a school composed of middle |
| 25 | grades 6, 7, and 8 requires that: |
| 26 | (a) The student must successfully complete academic |
| 27 | courses as follows: |
| 28 | 1. Three middle school or higher courses in English. These |
| 29 | courses shall emphasize literature, composition, and technical |
| 30 | text. |
| 31 | 2. Three middle school or higher courses in mathematics. |
| 32 | Each middle school must offer at least one high school level |
| 33 | mathematics course for which students may earn high school |
| 34 | credit. |
| 35 | 3. Three middle school or higher courses in social |
| 36 | studies, one semester of which must include the study of state |
| 37 | and federal government and civics education. Beginning with |
| 38 | students entering grade 6 in the 2011-2012 school year, one of |
| 39 | these courses must be a one-semester civics education course |
| 40 | that a student successfully completes in accordance with s. |
| 41 | 1008.22(3)(c) and that includes the roles and responsibilities |
| 42 | of federal, state, and local governments; the structures and |
| 43 | functions of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches |
| 44 | of government; and the meaning and significance of historic |
| 45 | documents, such as the Articles of Confederation, the |
| 46 | Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution of the United |
| 47 | States. |
| 48 | 4. Three middle school or higher courses in science. |
| 49 | 5. One course in career and education planning to be |
| 50 | completed in 7th or 8th grade. The course may be taught by any |
| 51 | member of the instructional staff; must include career |
| 52 | exploration using CHOICES for the 21st Century or a comparable |
| 53 | cost-effective program; must include educational planning using |
| 54 | the online student advising system known as Florida Academic |
| 55 | Counseling and Tracking for Students at the Internet website |
| 56 | FACTS.org; and shall result in the completion of a personalized |
| 57 | academic and career plan. |
| 58 |
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| 59 | Each school must hold a parent meeting either in the evening or |
| 60 | on a weekend to inform parents about the course curriculum and |
| 61 | activities. Each student shall complete an electronic personal |
| 62 | education plan that must be signed by the student; the student's |
| 63 | instructor, guidance counselor, or academic advisor; and the |
| 64 | student's parent. By January 1, 2007, the Department of |
| 65 | Education shall develop course frameworks and professional |
| 66 | development materials for the career exploration and education |
| 67 | planning course. The course may be implemented as a stand-alone |
| 68 | course or integrated into another course or courses. The |
| 69 | Commissioner of Education shall collect longitudinal high school |
| 70 | course enrollment data by student ethnicity in order to analyze |
| 71 | course-taking patterns. |
| 72 | Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section |
| 73 | 1008.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 74 | 1008.22 Student assessment program for public schools.-- |
| 75 | (3) STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM.--The commissioner shall |
| 76 | design and implement a statewide program of educational |
| 77 | assessment that provides information for the improvement of the |
| 78 | operation and management of the public schools, including |
| 79 | schools operating for the purpose of providing educational |
| 80 | services to youth in Department of Juvenile Justice programs. |
| 81 | The commissioner may enter into contracts for the continued |
| 82 | administration of the assessment, testing, and evaluation |
| 83 | programs authorized and funded by the Legislature. Contracts may |
| 84 | be initiated in 1 fiscal year and continue into the next and may |
| 85 | be paid from the appropriations of either or both fiscal years. |
| 86 | The commissioner is authorized to negotiate for the sale or |
| 87 | lease of tests, scoring protocols, test scoring services, and |
| 88 | related materials developed pursuant to law. Pursuant to the |
| 89 | statewide assessment program, the commissioner shall: |
| 90 | (c) Develop and implement a student achievement testing |
| 91 | program known as the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test |
| 92 | (FCAT) as part of the statewide assessment program to measure a |
| 93 | student's content knowledge and skills in reading, writing, |
| 94 | science, and mathematics. Other content areas may be included as |
| 95 | directed by the commissioner. Comprehensive assessments of |
| 96 | reading and mathematics shall be administered annually in grades |
| 97 | 3 through 10. Comprehensive assessments of writing and science |
| 98 | shall be administered at least once at the elementary, middle, |
| 99 | and high school levels. End-of-course assessments for a subject |
| 100 | may be administered in addition to the comprehensive assessments |
| 101 | required for that subject under this paragraph. An end-of-course |
| 102 | assessment must be rigorous, statewide, standardized, and |
| 103 | developed or approved by the department. The content knowledge |
| 104 | and skills assessed by comprehensive and end-of-course |
| 105 | assessments must be aligned to the core curricular content |
| 106 | established in the Sunshine State Standards. During the 2011- |
| 107 | 2012 school year, an end-of-course assessment in civics |
| 108 | education shall be administered as a field test at the middle |
| 109 | school level. During the 2012-2013 school year, each student's |
| 110 | performance on the statewide, standardized end-of-course |
| 111 | assessment in civics education shall constitute 30 percent of |
| 112 | the student's final course grade. Beginning with the 2013-2014 |
| 113 | school year, a student must earn a passing score on the end-of- |
| 114 | course assessment in civics education in order to pass the |
| 115 | course and receive course credit. The commissioner may select |
| 116 | one or more nationally developed comprehensive examinations, |
| 117 | which may include, but need not be limited to, examinations for |
| 118 | a College Board Advanced Placement course, International |
| 119 | Baccalaureate course, or Advanced International Certificate of |
| 120 | Education course or industry-approved examinations to earn |
| 121 | national industry certifications as defined in s. 1003.492, for |
| 122 | use as end-of-course assessments under this paragraph, if the |
| 123 | commissioner determines that the content knowledge and skills |
| 124 | assessed by the examinations meet or exceed the grade level |
| 125 | expectations for the core curricular content established for the |
| 126 | course in the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. The |
| 127 | commissioner may collaborate with the American Diploma Project |
| 128 | in the adoption or development of rigorous end-of-course |
| 129 | assessments that are aligned to the Next Generation Sunshine |
| 130 | State Standards. The testing program must be designed as |
| 131 | follows: |
| 132 | 1. The tests shall measure student skills and competencies |
| 133 | adopted by the State Board of Education as specified in |
| 134 | paragraph (a). The tests must measure and report student |
| 135 | proficiency levels of all students assessed in reading, writing, |
| 136 | mathematics, and science. The commissioner shall provide for the |
| 137 | tests to be developed or obtained, as appropriate, through |
| 138 | contracts and project agreements with private vendors, public |
| 139 | vendors, public agencies, postsecondary educational |
| 140 | institutions, or school districts. The commissioner shall obtain |
| 141 | input with respect to the design and implementation of the |
| 142 | testing program from state educators, assistive technology |
| 143 | experts, and the public. |
| 144 | 2. The testing program shall be composed of criterion- |
| 145 | referenced tests that shall, to the extent determined by the |
| 146 | commissioner, include test items that require the student to |
| 147 | produce information or perform tasks in such a way that the core |
| 148 | content knowledge and skills he or she uses can be measured. |
| 149 | 3. Beginning with the 2008-2009 school year, the |
| 150 | commissioner shall discontinue administration of the selected- |
| 151 | response test items on the comprehensive assessments of writing. |
| 152 | Beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, the comprehensive |
| 153 | assessments of writing shall be composed of a combination of |
| 154 | selected-response test items, short-response performance tasks, |
| 155 | and extended-response performance tasks, which shall measure a |
| 156 | student's content knowledge of writing, including, but not |
| 157 | limited to, paragraph and sentence structure, sentence |
| 158 | construction, grammar and usage, punctuation, capitalization, |
| 159 | spelling, parts of speech, verb tense, irregular verbs, subject- |
| 160 | verb agreement, and noun-pronoun agreement. |
| 161 | 4. A score shall be designated for each subject area |
| 162 | tested, below which score a student's performance is deemed |
| 163 | inadequate. The school districts shall provide appropriate |
| 164 | remedial instruction to students who score below these levels. |
| 165 | 5. Except as provided in s. 1003.428(8)(b) or s. |
| 166 | 1003.43(11)(b), students must earn a passing score on the grade |
| 167 | 10 assessment test described in this paragraph or attain |
| 168 | concordant scores as described in subsection (10) in reading, |
| 169 | writing, and mathematics to qualify for a standard high school |
| 170 | diploma. The State Board of Education shall designate a passing |
| 171 | score for each part of the grade 10 assessment test. In |
| 172 | establishing passing scores, the state board shall consider any |
| 173 | possible negative impact of the test on minority students. The |
| 174 | State Board of Education shall adopt rules which specify the |
| 175 | passing scores for the grade 10 FCAT. Any such rules, which have |
| 176 | the effect of raising the required passing scores, shall apply |
| 177 | only to students taking the grade 10 FCAT for the first time |
| 178 | after such rules are adopted by the State Board of Education. |
| 179 | 6. Participation in the testing program is mandatory for |
| 180 | all students attending public school, including students served |
| 181 | in Department of Juvenile Justice programs, except as otherwise |
| 182 | prescribed by the commissioner. If a student does not |
| 183 | participate in the statewide assessment, the district must |
| 184 | notify the student's parent and provide the parent with |
| 185 | information regarding the implications of such nonparticipation. |
| 186 | A parent must provide signed consent for a student to receive |
| 187 | classroom instructional accommodations that would not be |
| 188 | available or permitted on the statewide assessments and must |
| 189 | acknowledge in writing that he or she understands the |
| 190 | implications of such instructional accommodations. The State |
| 191 | Board of Education shall adopt rules, based upon recommendations |
| 192 | of the commissioner, for the provision of test accommodations |
| 193 | for students in exceptional education programs and for students |
| 194 | who have limited English proficiency. Accommodations that negate |
| 195 | the validity of a statewide assessment are not allowable in the |
| 196 | administration of the FCAT. However, instructional |
| 197 | accommodations are allowable in the classroom if included in a |
| 198 | student's individual education plan. Students using |
| 199 | instructional accommodations in the classroom that are not |
| 200 | allowable as accommodations on the FCAT may have the FCAT |
| 201 | requirement waived pursuant to the requirements of s. |
| 202 | 1003.428(8)(b) or s. 1003.43(11)(b). |
| 203 | 7. A student seeking an adult high school diploma must |
| 204 | meet the same testing requirements that a regular high school |
| 205 | student must meet. |
| 206 | 8. District school boards must provide instruction to |
| 207 | prepare students to demonstrate proficiency in the core |
| 208 | curricular content established in the Next Generation Sunshine |
| 209 | State Standards adopted under s. 1003.41, including the core |
| 210 | content knowledge and skills necessary for successful grade-to- |
| 211 | grade progression and high school graduation. If a student is |
| 212 | provided with instructional accommodations in the classroom that |
| 213 | are not allowable as accommodations in the statewide assessment |
| 214 | program, as described in the test manuals, the district must |
| 215 | inform the parent in writing and must provide the parent with |
| 216 | information regarding the impact on the student's ability to |
| 217 | meet expected proficiency levels in reading, writing, and |
| 218 | mathematics. The commissioner shall conduct studies as necessary |
| 219 | to verify that the required core curricular content is part of |
| 220 | the district instructional programs. |
| 221 | 9. District school boards must provide opportunities for |
| 222 | students to demonstrate an acceptable level of performance on an |
| 223 | alternative standardized assessment approved by the State Board |
| 224 | of Education following enrollment in summer academies. |
| 225 | 10. The Department of Education must develop, or select, |
| 226 | and implement a common battery of assessment tools that will be |
| 227 | used in all juvenile justice programs in the state. These tools |
| 228 | must accurately measure the core curricular content established |
| 229 | in the Sunshine State Standards. |
| 230 | 11. For students seeking a special diploma pursuant to s. |
| 231 | 1003.438, the Department of Education must develop or select and |
| 232 | implement an alternate assessment tool that accurately measures |
| 233 | the core curricular content established in the Sunshine State |
| 234 | Standards for students with disabilities under s. 1003.438. |
| 235 | 12. The Commissioner of Education shall establish |
| 236 | schedules for the administration of statewide assessments and |
| 237 | the reporting of student test results. The commissioner shall, |
| 238 | by August 1 of each year, notify each school district in writing |
| 239 | and publish on the department's Internet website the testing and |
| 240 | reporting schedules for, at a minimum, the school year following |
| 241 | the upcoming school year. The testing and reporting schedules |
| 242 | shall require that: |
| 243 | a. There is the latest possible administration of |
| 244 | statewide assessments and the earliest possible reporting to the |
| 245 | school districts of student test results which is feasible |
| 246 | within available technology and specific appropriations; |
| 247 | however, test results must be made available no later than the |
| 248 | final day of the regular school year for students. |
| 249 | b. Beginning with the 2010-2011 school year, a |
| 250 | comprehensive statewide assessment of writing is not |
| 251 | administered earlier than the week of March 1 and a |
| 252 | comprehensive statewide assessment of any other subject is not |
| 253 | administered earlier than the week of April 15. |
| 254 | c. A statewide standardized end-of-course assessment is |
| 255 | administered within the last 2 weeks of the course. |
| 256 |
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| 257 | The commissioner may, based on collaboration and input from |
| 258 | school districts, design and implement student testing programs, |
| 259 | for any grade level and subject area, necessary to effectively |
| 260 | monitor educational achievement in the state, including the |
| 261 | measurement of educational achievement of the Sunshine State |
| 262 | Standards for students with disabilities. Development and |
| 263 | refinement of assessments shall include universal design |
| 264 | principles and accessibility standards that will prevent any |
| 265 | unintended obstacles for students with disabilities while |
| 266 | ensuring the validity and reliability of the test. These |
| 267 | principles should be applicable to all technology platforms and |
| 268 | assistive devices available for the assessments. The field |
| 269 | testing process and psychometric analyses for the statewide |
| 270 | assessment program must include an appropriate percentage of |
| 271 | students with disabilities and an evaluation or determination of |
| 272 | the effect of test items on such students. |
| 273 | Section 3. Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section |
| 274 | 1008.34, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 275 | 1008.34 School grading system; school report cards; |
| 276 | district grade.-- |
| 277 | (3) DESIGNATION OF SCHOOL GRADES.-- |
| 278 | (c) Student assessment data used in determining school |
| 279 | grades shall include: |
| 280 | 1. The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled |
| 281 | in the school who have been assessed on the FCAT and, beginning |
| 282 | with the 2012-2013 school year, the statewide, standardized end- |
| 283 | of-course assessment in civics education at the middle school |
| 284 | level. |
| 285 | 2. The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled |
| 286 | in the school who have been assessed on the FCAT and who have |
| 287 | scored at or in the lowest 25th percentile of students in the |
| 288 | school in reading, mathematics, or writing, unless these |
| 289 | students are exhibiting satisfactory performance. |
| 290 | 3. Effective with the 2005-2006 school year, the |
| 291 | achievement scores and learning gains of eligible students |
| 292 | attending alternative schools that provide dropout prevention |
| 293 | and academic intervention services pursuant to s. 1003.53. The |
| 294 | term "eligible students" in this subparagraph does not include |
| 295 | students attending an alternative school who are subject to |
| 296 | district school board policies for expulsion for repeated or |
| 297 | serious offenses, who are in dropout retrieval programs serving |
| 298 | students who have officially been designated as dropouts, or who |
| 299 | are in programs operated or contracted by the Department of |
| 300 | Juvenile Justice. The student performance data for eligible |
| 301 | students identified in this subparagraph shall be included in |
| 302 | the calculation of the home school's grade. As used in this |
| 303 | section and s. 1008.341, the term "home school" means the school |
| 304 | to which the student would be assigned if the student were not |
| 305 | assigned to an alternative school. If an alternative school |
| 306 | chooses to be graded under this section, student performance |
| 307 | data for eligible students identified in this subparagraph shall |
| 308 | not be included in the home school's grade but shall be included |
| 309 | only in the calculation of the alternative school's grade. A |
| 310 | school district that fails to assign the FCAT scores of each of |
| 311 | its students to his or her home school or to the alternative |
| 312 | school that receives a grade shall forfeit Florida School |
| 313 | Recognition Program funds for 1 fiscal year. School districts |
| 314 | must require collaboration between the home school and the |
| 315 | alternative school in order to promote student success. This |
| 316 | collaboration must include an annual discussion between the |
| 317 | principal of the alternative school and the principal of each |
| 318 | student's home school concerning the most appropriate school |
| 319 | assignment of the student. |
| 320 | 4. Beginning with the 2009-2010 school year for schools |
| 321 | comprised of high school grades 9, 10, 11, and 12, or grades 10, |
| 322 | 11, and 12, the data listed in subparagraphs 1.-3. and the |
| 323 | following data as the Department of Education determines such |
| 324 | data are valid and available: |
| 325 | a. The high school graduation rate of the school as |
| 326 | calculated by the Department of Education; |
| 327 | b. The participation rate of all eligible students |
| 328 | enrolled in the school and enrolled in College Board Advanced |
| 329 | Placement courses; International Baccalaureate courses; dual |
| 330 | enrollment courses; Advanced International Certificate of |
| 331 | Education courses; and courses or sequence of courses leading to |
| 332 | industry certification, as determined by the Agency for |
| 333 | Workforce Innovation under s. 1003.492(2) in a career and |
| 334 | professional academy, as described in s. 1003.493; |
| 335 | c. The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled |
| 336 | in the school in College Board Advanced Placement courses, |
| 337 | International Baccalaureate courses, and Advanced International |
| 338 | Certificate of Education courses; |
| 339 | d. Earning of college credit by all eligible students |
| 340 | enrolled in the school in dual enrollment programs under s. |
| 341 | 1007.271; |
| 342 | e. Earning of an industry certification, as determined by |
| 343 | the Agency for Workforce Innovation under s. 1003.492(2) in a |
| 344 | career and professional academy, as described in s. 1003.493; |
| 345 | f. The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled |
| 346 | in the school in reading, mathematics, and other subjects as |
| 347 | measured by the SAT, the ACT, and the common placement test for |
| 348 | postsecondary readiness; |
| 349 | g. The high school graduation rate of all eligible at-risk |
| 350 | students enrolled in the school who scored at Level 2 or lower |
| 351 | on the grade 8 FCAT Reading and Mathematics examinations; |
| 352 | h. The performance of the school's students on statewide |
| 353 | standardized end-of-course assessments administered under s. |
| 354 | 1008.22; and |
| 355 | i. The growth or decline in the data components listed in |
| 356 | sub-subparagraphs a.-h. from year to year. |
| 357 |
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| 358 | The State Board of Education shall adopt appropriate criteria |
| 359 | for each school grade. The criteria must also give added weight |
| 360 | to student achievement in reading. Schools designated with a |
| 361 | grade of "C," making satisfactory progress, shall be required to |
| 362 | demonstrate that adequate progress has been made by students in |
| 363 | the school who are in the lowest 25th percentile in reading, |
| 364 | mathematics, or writing on the FCAT, unless these students are |
| 365 | exhibiting satisfactory performance. Beginning with the 2009- |
| 366 | 2010 school year for schools comprised of high school grades 9, |
| 367 | 10, 11, and 12, or grades 10, 11, and 12, the criteria for |
| 368 | school grades must also give added weight to the graduation rate |
| 369 | of all eligible at-risk students, as defined in this paragraph. |
| 370 | Beginning in the 2009-2010 school year, in order for a high |
| 371 | school to be designated as having a grade of "A," making |
| 372 | excellent progress, the school must demonstrate that at-risk |
| 373 | students, as defined in this paragraph, in the school are making |
| 374 | adequate progress. |
| 375 | Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009. |