HB 105

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to middle school civics education
3assessment; providing a short title; amending s.
41003.4156, F.S.; providing requirements for a civics
5education course that a student must successfully complete
6for middle grades promotion beginning with students
7entering grade 6 in the 2012-2013 school year; amending s.
81008.22, F.S.; requiring the administration of an end-of-
9course assessment in civics education as a field test at
10the middle school level during the 2012-2013 school year;
11providing requirements for course grade and course credit
12for subsequent school years; amending s. 1008.34, F.S.;
13requiring the inclusion of civics education end-of-course
14assessment data in determining school grades beginning
15with the 2013-2014 school year; providing an effective
16date.
17
18Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
19
20     Section 1.  This act may be cited as the "Justice Sandra
21Day O'Connor Civics Education Act."
22     Section 2.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
231003.4156, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
24     1003.4156  General requirements for middle grades
25promotion.--
26     (1)  Beginning with students entering grade 6 in the 2006-
272007 school year, promotion from a school composed of middle
28grades 6, 7, and 8 requires that:
29     (a)  The student must successfully complete academic
30courses as follows:
31     1.  Three middle school or higher courses in English. These
32courses shall emphasize literature, composition, and technical
33text.
34     2.  Three middle school or higher courses in mathematics.
35Each middle school must offer at least one high school level
36mathematics course for which students may earn high school
37credit.
38     3.  Three middle school or higher courses in social
39studies, one semester of which must include the study of state
40and federal government and civics education. Beginning with
41students entering grade 6 in the 2012-2013 school year, one of
42these courses must be at least a one-semester civics education
43course that a student successfully completes in accordance with
44s. 1008.22(3)(c) and that includes the roles and
45responsibilities of federal, state, and local governments; the
46structures and functions of the legislative, executive, and
47judicial branches of government; and the meaning and
48significance of historic documents, such as the Articles of
49Confederation, the Declaration of Independence, and the
50Constitution of the United States.
51     4.  Three middle school or higher courses in science.
52     5.  One course in career and education planning to be
53completed in 7th or 8th grade. The course may be taught by any
54member of the instructional staff; must include career
55exploration using CHOICES for the 21st Century or a comparable
56cost-effective program; must include educational planning using
57the online student advising system known as Florida Academic
58Counseling and Tracking for Students at the Internet website
59FACTS.org; and shall result in the completion of a personalized
60academic and career plan.
61
62Each school must hold a parent meeting either in the evening or
63on a weekend to inform parents about the course curriculum and
64activities. Each student shall complete an electronic personal
65education plan that must be signed by the student; the student's
66instructor, guidance counselor, or academic advisor; and the
67student's parent. By January 1, 2007, the Department of
68Education shall develop course frameworks and professional
69development materials for the career exploration and education
70planning course. The course may be implemented as a stand-alone
71course or integrated into another course or courses. The
72Commissioner of Education shall collect longitudinal high school
73course enrollment data by student ethnicity in order to analyze
74course-taking patterns.
75     Section 3.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section
761008.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
77     1008.22  Student assessment program for public schools.--
78     (3)  STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM.--The commissioner shall
79design and implement a statewide program of educational
80assessment that provides information for the improvement of the
81operation and management of the public schools, including
82schools operating for the purpose of providing educational
83services to youth in Department of Juvenile Justice programs.
84The commissioner may enter into contracts for the continued
85administration of the assessment, testing, and evaluation
86programs authorized and funded by the Legislature. Contracts may
87be initiated in 1 fiscal year and continue into the next and may
88be paid from the appropriations of either or both fiscal years.
89The commissioner is authorized to negotiate for the sale or
90lease of tests, scoring protocols, test scoring services, and
91related materials developed pursuant to law. Pursuant to the
92statewide assessment program, the commissioner shall:
93     (c)  Develop and implement a student achievement testing
94program known as the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test
95(FCAT) as part of the statewide assessment program to measure a
96student's content knowledge and skills in reading, writing,
97science, and mathematics. Other content areas may be included as
98directed by the commissioner. Comprehensive assessments of
99reading and mathematics shall be administered annually in grades
1003 through 10. Comprehensive assessments of writing and science
101shall be administered at least once at the elementary, middle,
102and high school levels. End-of-course assessments for a subject
103may be administered in addition to the comprehensive assessments
104required for that subject under this paragraph. An end-of-course
105assessment must be rigorous, statewide, standardized, and
106developed or approved by the department. The content knowledge
107and skills assessed by comprehensive and end-of-course
108assessments must be aligned to the core curricular content
109established in the Sunshine State Standards. During the 2012-
1102013 school year, an end-of-course assessment in civics
111education shall be administered as a field test at the middle
112school level. During the 2013-2014 school year, each student's
113performance on the statewide, standardized end-of-course
114assessment in civics education shall constitute 30 percent of
115the student's final course grade. Beginning with the 2014-2015
116school year, a student must earn a passing score on the end-of-
117course assessment in civics education in order to pass the
118course and receive course credit. The commissioner may select
119one or more nationally developed comprehensive examinations,
120which may include, but need not be limited to, examinations for
121a College Board Advanced Placement course, International
122Baccalaureate course, or Advanced International Certificate of
123Education course or industry-approved examinations to earn
124national industry certifications as defined in s. 1003.492, for
125use as end-of-course assessments under this paragraph, if the
126commissioner determines that the content knowledge and skills
127assessed by the examinations meet or exceed the grade level
128expectations for the core curricular content established for the
129course in the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. The
130commissioner may collaborate with the American Diploma Project
131in the adoption or development of rigorous end-of-course
132assessments that are aligned to the Next Generation Sunshine
133State Standards. The testing program must be designed as
134follows:
135     1.  The tests shall measure student skills and competencies
136adopted by the State Board of Education as specified in
137paragraph (a). The tests must measure and report student
138proficiency levels of all students assessed in reading, writing,
139mathematics, and science. The commissioner shall provide for the
140tests to be developed or obtained, as appropriate, through
141contracts and project agreements with private vendors, public
142vendors, public agencies, postsecondary educational
143institutions, or school districts. The commissioner shall obtain
144input with respect to the design and implementation of the
145testing program from state educators, assistive technology
146experts, and the public.
147     2.  The testing program shall be composed of criterion-
148referenced tests that shall, to the extent determined by the
149commissioner, include test items that require the student to
150produce information or perform tasks in such a way that the core
151content knowledge and skills he or she uses can be measured.
152     3.  Beginning with the 2008-2009 school year, the
153commissioner shall discontinue administration of the selected-
154response test items on the comprehensive assessments of writing.
155Beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, the comprehensive
156assessments of writing shall be composed of a combination of
157selected-response test items, short-response performance tasks,
158and extended-response performance tasks, which shall measure a
159student's content knowledge of writing, including, but not
160limited to, paragraph and sentence structure, sentence
161construction, grammar and usage, punctuation, capitalization,
162spelling, parts of speech, verb tense, irregular verbs, subject-
163verb agreement, and noun-pronoun agreement.
164     4.  A score shall be designated for each subject area
165tested, below which score a student's performance is deemed
166inadequate. The school districts shall provide appropriate
167remedial instruction to students who score below these levels.
168     5.  Except as provided in s. 1003.428(8)(b) or s.
1691003.43(11)(b), students must earn a passing score on the grade
17010 assessment test described in this paragraph or attain
171concordant scores as described in subsection (10) in reading,
172writing, and mathematics to qualify for a standard high school
173diploma. The State Board of Education shall designate a passing
174score for each part of the grade 10 assessment test. In
175establishing passing scores, the state board shall consider any
176possible negative impact of the test on minority students. The
177State Board of Education shall adopt rules which specify the
178passing scores for the grade 10 FCAT. Any such rules, which have
179the effect of raising the required passing scores, shall apply
180only to students taking the grade 10 FCAT for the first time
181after such rules are adopted by the State Board of Education.
182     6.  Participation in the testing program is mandatory for
183all students attending public school, including students served
184in Department of Juvenile Justice programs, except as otherwise
185prescribed by the commissioner. If a student does not
186participate in the statewide assessment, the district must
187notify the student's parent and provide the parent with
188information regarding the implications of such nonparticipation.
189A parent must provide signed consent for a student to receive
190classroom instructional accommodations that would not be
191available or permitted on the statewide assessments and must
192acknowledge in writing that he or she understands the
193implications of such instructional accommodations. The State
194Board of Education shall adopt rules, based upon recommendations
195of the commissioner, for the provision of test accommodations
196for students in exceptional education programs and for students
197who have limited English proficiency. Accommodations that negate
198the validity of a statewide assessment are not allowable in the
199administration of the FCAT. However, instructional
200accommodations are allowable in the classroom if included in a
201student's individual education plan. Students using
202instructional accommodations in the classroom that are not
203allowable as accommodations on the FCAT may have the FCAT
204requirement waived pursuant to the requirements of s.
2051003.428(8)(b) or s. 1003.43(11)(b).
206     7.  A student seeking an adult high school diploma must
207meet the same testing requirements that a regular high school
208student must meet.
209     8.  District school boards must provide instruction to
210prepare students to demonstrate proficiency in the core
211curricular content established in the Next Generation Sunshine
212State Standards adopted under s. 1003.41, including the core
213content knowledge and skills necessary for successful grade-to-
214grade progression and high school graduation. If a student is
215provided with instructional accommodations in the classroom that
216are not allowable as accommodations in the statewide assessment
217program, as described in the test manuals, the district must
218inform the parent in writing and must provide the parent with
219information regarding the impact on the student's ability to
220meet expected proficiency levels in reading, writing, and
221mathematics. The commissioner shall conduct studies as necessary
222to verify that the required core curricular content is part of
223the district instructional programs.
224     9.  District school boards must provide opportunities for
225students to demonstrate an acceptable level of performance on an
226alternative standardized assessment approved by the State Board
227of Education following enrollment in summer academies.
228     10.  The Department of Education must develop, or select,
229and implement a common battery of assessment tools that will be
230used in all juvenile justice programs in the state. These tools
231must accurately measure the core curricular content established
232in the Sunshine State Standards.
233     11.  For students seeking a special diploma pursuant to s.
2341003.438, the Department of Education must develop or select and
235implement an alternate assessment tool that accurately measures
236the core curricular content established in the Sunshine State
237Standards for students with disabilities under s. 1003.438.
238     12.  The Commissioner of Education shall establish
239schedules for the administration of statewide assessments and
240the reporting of student test results. The commissioner shall,
241by August 1 of each year, notify each school district in writing
242and publish on the department's Internet website the testing and
243reporting schedules for, at a minimum, the school year following
244the upcoming school year. The testing and reporting schedules
245shall require that:
246     a.  There is the latest possible administration of
247statewide assessments and the earliest possible reporting to the
248school districts of student test results which is feasible
249within available technology and specific appropriations;
250however, test results must be made available no later than the
251final day of the regular school year for students.
252     b.  Beginning with the 2010-2011 school year, a
253comprehensive statewide assessment of writing is not
254administered earlier than the week of March 1 and a
255comprehensive statewide assessment of any other subject is not
256administered earlier than the week of April 15.
257     c.  A statewide standardized end-of-course assessment is
258administered within the last 2 weeks of the course.
259
260The commissioner may, based on collaboration and input from
261school districts, design and implement student testing programs,
262for any grade level and subject area, necessary to effectively
263monitor educational achievement in the state, including the
264measurement of educational achievement of the Sunshine State
265Standards for students with disabilities. Development and
266refinement of assessments shall include universal design
267principles and accessibility standards that will prevent any
268unintended obstacles for students with disabilities while
269ensuring the validity and reliability of the test. These
270principles should be applicable to all technology platforms and
271assistive devices available for the assessments. The field
272testing process and psychometric analyses for the statewide
273assessment program must include an appropriate percentage of
274students with disabilities and an evaluation or determination of
275the effect of test items on such students.
276     Section 4.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section
2771008.34, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
278     1008.34  School grading system; school report cards;
279district grade.--
280     (3)  DESIGNATION OF SCHOOL GRADES.--
281     (c)  Student assessment data used in determining school
282grades shall include:
283     1.  The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled
284in the school who have been assessed on the FCAT and, beginning
285with the 2013-2014 school year, the statewide, standardized end-
286of-course assessment in civics education at the middle school
287level.
288     2.  The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled
289in the school who have been assessed on the FCAT and who have
290scored at or in the lowest 25th percentile of students in the
291school in reading, mathematics, or writing, unless these
292students are exhibiting satisfactory performance.
293     3.  Effective with the 2005-2006 school year, the
294achievement scores and learning gains of eligible students
295attending alternative schools that provide dropout prevention
296and academic intervention services pursuant to s. 1003.53. The
297term "eligible students" in this subparagraph does not include
298students attending an alternative school who are subject to
299district school board policies for expulsion for repeated or
300serious offenses, who are in dropout retrieval programs serving
301students who have officially been designated as dropouts, or who
302are in programs operated or contracted by the Department of
303Juvenile Justice. The student performance data for eligible
304students identified in this subparagraph shall be included in
305the calculation of the home school's grade. As used in this
306section and s. 1008.341, the term "home school" means the school
307to which the student would be assigned if the student were not
308assigned to an alternative school. If an alternative school
309chooses to be graded under this section, student performance
310data for eligible students identified in this subparagraph shall
311not be included in the home school's grade but shall be included
312only in the calculation of the alternative school's grade. A
313school district that fails to assign the FCAT scores of each of
314its students to his or her home school or to the alternative
315school that receives a grade shall forfeit Florida School
316Recognition Program funds for 1 fiscal year. School districts
317must require collaboration between the home school and the
318alternative school in order to promote student success. This
319collaboration must include an annual discussion between the
320principal of the alternative school and the principal of each
321student's home school concerning the most appropriate school
322assignment of the student.
323     4.  Beginning with the 2009-2010 school year for schools
324comprised of high school grades 9, 10, 11, and 12, or grades 10,
32511, and 12, the data listed in subparagraphs 1.-3. and the
326following data as the Department of Education determines such
327data are valid and available:
328     a.  The high school graduation rate of the school as
329calculated by the Department of Education;
330     b.  The participation rate of all eligible students
331enrolled in the school and enrolled in College Board Advanced
332Placement courses; International Baccalaureate courses; dual
333enrollment courses; Advanced International Certificate of
334Education courses; and courses or sequence of courses leading to
335industry certification, as determined by the Agency for
336Workforce Innovation under s. 1003.492(2) in a career and
337professional academy, as described in s. 1003.493;
338     c.  The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled
339in the school in College Board Advanced Placement courses,
340International Baccalaureate courses, and Advanced International
341Certificate of Education courses;
342     d.  Earning of college credit by all eligible students
343enrolled in the school in dual enrollment programs under s.
3441007.271;
345     e.  Earning of an industry certification, as determined by
346the Agency for Workforce Innovation under s. 1003.492(2) in a
347career and professional academy, as described in s. 1003.493;
348     f.  The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled
349in the school in reading, mathematics, and other subjects as
350measured by the SAT, the ACT, and the common placement test for
351postsecondary readiness;
352     g.  The high school graduation rate of all eligible at-risk
353students enrolled in the school who scored at Level 2 or lower
354on the grade 8 FCAT Reading and Mathematics examinations;
355     h.  The performance of the school's students on statewide
356standardized end-of-course assessments administered under s.
3571008.22; and
358     i.  The growth or decline in the data components listed in
359sub-subparagraphs a.-h. from year to year.
360
361The State Board of Education shall adopt appropriate criteria
362for each school grade. The criteria must also give added weight
363to student achievement in reading. Schools designated with a
364grade of "C," making satisfactory progress, shall be required to
365demonstrate that adequate progress has been made by students in
366the school who are in the lowest 25th percentile in reading,
367mathematics, or writing on the FCAT, unless these students are
368exhibiting satisfactory performance. Beginning with the 2009-
3692010 school year for schools comprised of high school grades 9,
37010, 11, and 12, or grades 10, 11, and 12, the criteria for
371school grades must also give added weight to the graduation rate
372of all eligible at-risk students, as defined in this paragraph.
373Beginning in the 2009-2010 school year, in order for a high
374school to be designated as having a grade of "A," making
375excellent progress, the school must demonstrate that at-risk
376students, as defined in this paragraph, in the school are making
377adequate progress.
378     Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.


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