Florida Senate - 2015                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. PCS (610298) for SB 616
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì5370562Î537056                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                 Comm: UNFAV           .                                
                  03/04/2015           .                                
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       The Committee on Education Pre-K - 12 (Bullard) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete lines 387 - 482
    4  and insert:
    5  school improvement ratings pursuant to s. 1008.341 for the 2014
    6  2015 and 2015-2016 2013-2014 school years year shall be
    7  calculated based on statutes and rules in effect on June 30,
    8  2014. To assist in the transition to 2014-2015 school grades,
    9  calculated based on new statewide, standardized assessments
   10  administered pursuant to s. 1008.22, the 2014-2015 school grades
   11  shall serve as an informational baseline for schools to work
   12  toward improved performance in future years. Accordingly,
   13  notwithstanding any other provision of law:
   14         (a) A school may not be required to select and implement a
   15  turnaround option pursuant to s. 1008.33 in the 2015-2016 or
   16  2016-2017 school year based on the school’s 2014-2015 or 2015
   17  2016 grade or school improvement rating under s. 1008.341, as
   18  applicable.
   19         (b)1. A school or approved provider under s. 1002.45 that
   20  receives the same or a lower school grade or school improvement
   21  rating for the 2014-2015 school year compared to the 2013-2014
   22  school year is not subject to sanctions or penalties that would
   23  otherwise occur as a result of the 2014-2015 or 2015-2016 school
   24  grade or rating. A charter school system or a school district
   25  designated as high performing may not lose the designation based
   26  on the 2014-2015 or 2015-2016 school grades of any of the
   27  schools within the charter school system or school district, as
   28  applicable.
   29         2. The Florida School Recognition Program established under
   30  s. 1008.36 shall continue to be implemented as otherwise
   31  provided in the General Appropriations Act.
   32         (c) For purposes of determining grade 3 retention pursuant
   33  to s. 1008.25(5) and high school graduation pursuant to s.
   34  1003.4282, student performance on the 2014-2015 statewide,
   35  standardized assessments shall be linked to 2013-2014 student
   36  performance expectations.
   37  
   38  This subsection is repealed July 1, 2017.
   39         Section 6. Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) and subsections
   40  (7) and (8) of section 1012.34, Florida Statutes, are amended to
   41  read:
   42         1012.34 Personnel evaluation procedures and criteria.—
   43         (3) EVALUATION PROCEDURES AND CRITERIA.—Instructional
   44  personnel and school administrator performance evaluations must
   45  be based upon the performance of students assigned to their
   46  classrooms or schools, as provided in this section. Pursuant to
   47  this section, a school district’s performance evaluation is not
   48  limited to basing unsatisfactory performance of instructional
   49  personnel and school administrators solely upon student
   50  performance, but may include other criteria approved to evaluate
   51  instructional personnel and school administrators’ performance,
   52  or any combination of student performance and other approved
   53  criteria. Evaluation procedures and criteria must comply with,
   54  but are not limited to, the following:
   55         (a) A performance evaluation must be conducted for each
   56  employee at least once a year, except that a classroom teacher,
   57  as defined in s. 1012.01(2)(a), excluding substitute teachers,
   58  who is newly hired by the district school board must be observed
   59  and evaluated at least twice in the first year of teaching in
   60  the school district. The performance evaluation must be based
   61  upon sound educational principles and contemporary research in
   62  effective educational practices. The evaluation criteria must
   63  include:
   64         1. Performance of students.—At least 33 50 percent of a
   65  performance evaluation must be based upon data and indicators of
   66  student learning growth assessed annually by statewide
   67  assessments or, for subjects and grade levels not measured by
   68  statewide assessments, by school district assessments pursuant
   69  to subsection (7) as provided in s. 1008.22(6). Each school
   70  district must use the formula adopted pursuant to paragraph
   71  (7)(a) for measuring student learning growth in all courses
   72  associated with statewide assessments and must select an equally
   73  appropriate formula for measuring student learning growth for
   74  all other grades and subjects, except as otherwise provided in
   75  subsection (7).
   76         a. For classroom teachers, as defined in s. 1012.01(2)(a),
   77  excluding substitute teachers, the student learning growth
   78  portion of the evaluation must include growth data for students
   79  assigned to the teacher over the course of at least 3 years. If
   80  less than 3 years of data are available, the years for which
   81  data are available must be used and the percentage of the
   82  evaluation based upon student learning growth may be reduced to
   83  not less than 30 40 percent.
   84         b. For instructional personnel who are not classroom
   85  teachers, the student learning growth portion of the evaluation
   86  must include growth data on statewide assessments for students
   87  assigned to the instructional personnel over the course of at
   88  least 3 years, or may include a combination of student learning
   89  growth data and other measurable student outcomes that are
   90  specific to the assigned position, provided that the student
   91  learning growth data accounts for not less than 30 percent of
   92  the evaluation. If less than 3 years of student growth data are
   93  available, the years for which data are available must be used
   94  and the percentage of the evaluation based upon student learning
   95  growth may be reduced to not less than 20 percent.
   96         c. For school administrators, the student learning growth
   97  portion of the evaluation must include growth data for students
   98  assigned to the school over the course of at least 3 years. If
   99  less than 3 years of data are available, the years for which
  100  data are available must be used and the percentage of the
  101  evaluation based upon student learning growth may be reduced to
  102  not less than 30 40 percent.
  103         d. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, performance
  104  evaluations based upon data and indicators for the 2014-2015 and
  105  2015-2016 school years may not use student learning growth as
  106  required under this subparagraph if such use would result in a
  107  lower level of performance as specified in paragraph (2)(e) than
  108  the level of performance which would result without the use of
  109  student learning growth.
  110  
  111  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  112  And the title is amended as follows:
  113         Delete lines 40 - 44
  114  and insert:
  115         amending s. 1008.34, F.S.; providing that school
  116         grades and school improvement ratings for specified
  117         school years shall serve as an informational baseline;
  118         prohibiting a school from being required to implement
  119         a school turnaround option in a specified school year
  120         based on certain school grades or improvement ratings;
  121         prohibiting a virtual instruction program from being
  122         subject to sanctions or penalties based on certain
  123         school grades or improvement ratings; prohibiting a
  124         charter school system or school district from losing a
  125         designation as high performing based on certain school
  126         grades or improvement ratings in a specified school
  127         year; amending s. 1012.34, F.S.; revising the
  128         percentage thresholds for performance evaluation
  129         criteria for instructional personnel and school
  130         administrators; prohibiting the use of student
  131         learning growth in performance evaluations under
  132         certain circumstances; authorizing use of peer reviews