This document includes House Committee Amendments incorporated into the bill on Wed, Mar 9, 2016 at 1:36 PM by cynthiahopkin.
Representative Kraig Powell proposes the following substitute bill:


1     
EDUCATIONAL TESTING AMENDMENTS

2     
2016 GENERAL SESSION

3     
STATE OF UTAH

4     
Chief Sponsor: Kraig Powell

5     
Senate Sponsor: Ann Millner

6     

7     LONG TITLE
8     General Description:
9          This bill amends provisions related to certain student assessments administered in
10     public schools.
11     Highlighted Provisions:
12          This bill:
13          ▸     requires the State Board of Education to make rules providing that scores on certain
14     assessments may be considered in determining a student's academic grade or
15     whether a student may advance to the next grade level;
16          ▸     amends provisions related to a parent's or guardian's right to excuse a student from
17     taking certain assessments;
18          ▸     amends other provisions related to student assessments; and
19          ▸     makes technical and conforming changes.
20     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
21          None
22     Other Special Clauses:
23          This bill provides a special effective date.
24     Utah Code Sections Affected:
25     AMENDS:
26          53A-1-603, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapters 258, 415, and 444
27          53A-1-609, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2013, Chapter 161
28          53A-15-1403, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 444
29     

30     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
31          Section 1. Section 53A-1-603 is amended to read:
32          53A-1-603. Duties of State Board of Education.
33          (1) The State Board of Education shall:
34          (a) require each school district and charter school to implement the Utah Performance
35     Assessment System for Students, hereafter referred to as U-PASS;
36          (b) require the state superintendent of public instruction to submit and recommend
37     criterion-referenced achievement tests or online computer adaptive tests, college readiness
38     assessments, an online writing assessment for grades 5 and 8, and a test for students in grade 3
39     to measure reading grade level to the board for approval and adoption and distribution to each
40     school district and charter school by the state superintendent;
41          (c) develop an assessment method to uniformly measure statewide performance, school
42     district performance, and school performance of students in grades 3 through 12 in mastering
43     basic academic subjects; and
44          (d) provide for the state to participate in the National Assessment of Educational
45     Progress state-by-state comparison testing program.
46          (2) Except as provided in Subsection (3) and Subsection 53A-1-611[(3)](4), under
47     U-PASS, the State Board of Education shall annually require each school district and charter
48     school, as applicable, to administer:
49          (a) as determined by the State Board of Education, statewide criterion-referenced tests
50     or online computer adaptive tests in grades 3 through 12 and courses in basic academic subjects
51     of the core standards for Utah public schools;
52          (b) an online writing assessment to all students in grades 5 and 8;
53          (c) college readiness assessments as detailed in Section 53A-1-611; and
54          (d) a test to all students in grade 3 to measure reading grade level.
55          (3) Beginning with the 2014-15 school year, the State Board of Education shall
56     annually require each school district and charter school, as applicable, to administer a computer
57     adaptive assessment system that is:
58          (a) adopted by the State Board of Education; and
59          (b) aligned to the core standards for Utah public schools.
60          (4) The board shall adopt rules for the conduct and administration of U-PASS to
61     include the following:
62          (a) the computation of student performance based on information that is disaggregated
63     with respect to race, ethnicity, gender, limited English proficiency, and those students who
64     qualify for free or reduced price school lunch;
65          (b) security features to maintain the integrity of the system, which could include
66     statewide uniform testing dates, multiple test forms, and test administration protocols;
67          (c) the exemption of student test scores, by exemption category, such as limited
68     English proficiency, mobility, and students with disabilities, with the percent or number of
69     student test scores exempted being publically reported at a district level;
70          (d) compiling of criterion-referenced, online computer adaptive, and online writing test
71     scores and test score averages at the classroom level to allow for:
72          (i) an annual review of those scores by parents of students and professional and other
73     appropriate staff at the classroom level at the earliest point in time;
74          (ii) the assessment of year-to-year student progress in specific classes, courses, and
75     subjects; and
76          (iii) a teacher to review, prior to the beginning of a new school year, test scores from
77     the previous school year of students who have been assigned to the teacher's class for the new
78     school year;
79          (e) allowing a school district or charter school to have its tests administered and scored
80     electronically to accelerate the review of test scores and their usefulness to parents and
81     educators under Subsection (4)(d), without violating the integrity of U-PASS; and
82          (f) providing that scores on the tests and assessments required under Subsection (2)(a)
83     and Subsection (3) may [not] be considered in determining Ĥ→ [:
84          (i)] ←Ĥ a student's academic grade for the appropriate course Ĥ→ [; or
85          (ii) whether a student may advance to the next grade level.] . ←Ĥ
86          (5) (a) A school district or charter school, as applicable, is encouraged to administer an
87     online writing assessment to students in grade 11.
88          (b) The State Board of Education may award a grant to a school district or charter
89     school to pay for an online writing assessment and instruction program that may be used to
90     assess the writing of students in grade 11.
91          (6) The State Board of Education shall make rules:
92          (a) establishing procedures for applying for and awarding money for computer adaptive
93     tests;
94          (b) specifying how money for computer adaptive tests shall be allocated among school
95     districts and charter schools that qualify to receive the money; and
96          (c) requiring reporting of the expenditure of money awarded for computer adaptive
97     testing and evidence that the money was used to implement computer adaptive testing.
98          (7) The State Board of Education shall assure that computer adaptive tests are
99     administered in compliance with the requirements of Chapter 13, Part 3, Utah Family
100     Educational Rights and Privacy Act.
101          (8) (a) The State Board of Education shall establish a committee consisting of 15
102     parents of Utah public education students to review all computer adaptive test questions.
103          (b) The committee established in Subsection (8)(a) shall include the following parent
104     members:
105          (i) five members appointed by the chair of the State Board of Education;
106          (ii) five members appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives; and
107          (iii) five members appointed by the president of the Senate.
108          (c) The State Board of Education shall provide staff support to the parent committee.
109          (d) The term of office of each member appointed in Subsection (8)(b) is four years.
110          (e) The chair of the State Board of Education, the speaker of the House of
111     Representatives, and the president of the Senate shall adjust the length of terms to stagger the
112     terms of committee members so that approximately 1/2 of the committee members are
113     appointed every two years.
114          (f) No member may receive compensation or benefits for the member's service on the
115     committee.
116          (9) (a) School districts and charter schools shall require each licensed employee to
117     complete two hours of professional development on youth suicide prevention within their
118     license cycle in accordance with Section 53A-6-104.
119          (b) The State Board of Education shall develop or adopt sample materials to be used by
120     a school district or charter school for professional development training on youth suicide
121     prevention.
122          (c) The training required by this Subsection (9) shall be incorporated into professional
123     development training required by rule in accordance with Section 53A-6-104.
124          Section 2. Section 53A-1-609 is amended to read:
125          53A-1-609. Construction of part.
126          Nothing in this part shall be construed to mean or represented to require that graduation
127     from a high school or promotion to another grade [is in any way dependent upon successful]
128     may be based solely on a student's performance [of] on any test administered as a part of the
129     testing program established under this part.
130          Section 3. Section 53A-15-1403 is amended to read:
131          53A-15-1403. Parental right to academic accommodations.
132          (1) (a) A student's parent or guardian is the primary person responsible for the
133     education of the student, and the state is in a secondary and supportive role to the parent or
134     guardian. As such, a student's parent or guardian has the right to reasonable academic
135     accommodations from the student's LEA as specified in this section.
136          (b) Each accommodation shall be considered on an individual basis and no student
137     shall be considered to a greater or lesser degree than any other student.
138          (c) The parental rights specified in this section do not include all the rights or
139     accommodations that may be available to a student's parent or guardian as a user of the public
140     education system.
141          (d) An accommodation under this section may only be provided if the accommodation
142     is:
143          (i) consistent with federal law; and
144          (ii) consistent with a student's IEP if the student already has an IEP.
145          (2) An LEA shall reasonably accommodate a parent's or guardian's written request to
146     retain a student in kindergarten through grade 8 on grade level based on the student's academic
147     ability or the student's social, emotional, or physical maturity.
148          (3) An LEA shall reasonably accommodate a parent's or guardian's initial selection of a
149     teacher or request for a change of teacher.
150          (4) An LEA shall reasonably accommodate the request of a student's parent or guardian
151     to visit and observe any class the student attends.
152          (5) Notwithstanding Chapter 11, Part 1, Compulsory Education Requirements, an LEA
153     shall record an excused absence for a scheduled family event or a scheduled proactive visit to a
154     health care provider if:
155          (a) the parent or guardian submits a written statement at least one school day before the
156     scheduled absence; and
157          (b) the student agrees to make up course work for school days missed for the scheduled
158     absence in accordance with LEA policy.
159          (6) (a) An LEA shall reasonably accommodate a parent's or guardian's written request
160     to place a student in a specialized class, a specialized program, or an advanced course.
161          (b) An LEA shall consider multiple academic data points when determining an
162     accommodation under Subsection (6)(a).
163          (7) Consistent with Section 53A-13-108, which requires the State Board of Education
164     to establish graduation requirements that use competency-based standards and assessments, an
165     LEA shall allow a student to earn course credit towards high school graduation without
166     completing a course in school by:
167          (a) testing out of the course; or
168          (b) demonstrating competency in course standards.
169          (8) An LEA shall reasonably accommodate a parent's or guardian's request to meet
170     with a teacher at a mutually agreeable time if the parent or guardian is unable to attend a
171     regularly scheduled parent teacher conference.
172          (9) (a) At the request of a student's parent or guardian, an LEA shall excuse a student
173     from taking an assessment that:
174          (i) is federally mandated;
175          (ii) is mandated by the state under this title; or
176          [(iii) requires the use of:]
177          [(A)] (iii) is an end-of-grade-level assessment utilizing a state assessment system[; or].
178          [(B) software that is provided or paid for by the state.]
179          (b) In accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, the
180     State Board of Education shall make rules to:
181          (i) [to] establish a statewide procedure for excusing a student under Subsection (9)(a)
182     that:
183          (A) does not place an undue burden on a parent or guardian; and
184          (B) may be completed online; [and]
185          (ii) [to] prevent negative impact, to the extent authorized by state statute, to an LEA or
186     an LEA's employees through school grading or employee evaluations due to a student not
187     taking a test under Subsection (9)(a)[.]; and
188          (iii) subject to Subsection (9)(c)(iii), establish conditions under which incentives or
189     rewards may be offered to a student for taking an assessment described in Subsection (9)(a).
190          (c) An LEA:
191          (i) shall follow the procedures outlined in rules made by the State Board of Education
192     under Subsection (9)(b) to excuse a student under Subsection (9)(a);
193          (ii) may not require procedures to excuse a student under Subsection (9)(a) in addition
194     to the procedures outlined in rules made by the State Board of Education under Subsection
195     (9)(b); [and]
196          [(iii) may not reward a student for taking an assessment described in Subsection
197     (9)(a).]
198          (iii) may not penalize a student who is excused from taking an assessment under
199     Subsection (9)(a) for not taking the assessment; and
200          (iv) may require a student who is excused from taking an assessment under Subsection
201     (9)(a) to complete an alternate assignment if the alternate assignment is not more rigorous than
202     the state's content or end-of-grade-level assessment.
203          (d) The State Board of Education shall:
204          (i) maintain and publish a list of state assessments[,] and state assessment systems[,
205     and software] that qualify under Subsection (9)(a); and
206          (ii) audit and verify an LEA's compliance with the requirements of this Subsection (9).
207          (10) (a) An LEA shall provide for:
208          (i) the distribution of a copy of a school's discipline and conduct policy to each student
209     in accordance with Section 53A-11-903; and
210          (ii) a parent's or guardian's signature acknowledging receipt of the school's discipline
211     and conduct policy.
212          (b) An LEA shall notify a parent or guardian of a student's violation of a school's
213     discipline and conduct policy and allow a parent or guardian to respond to the notice in
214     accordance with Chapter 11, Part 9, School Discipline and Conduct Plans.
215          Section 4. Effective date.
216          (1) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (2), if approved by two-thirds of all the
217     members elected to each house, Section 53A-1-603 takes effect upon approval by the governor,
218     or the day following the constitutional time limit of Utah Constitution, Article VII, Section 8,
219     without the governor's signature, or in the case of a veto, the date of veto override.
220          (b) If Section 53A-1-603 is not approved by two-thirds of all the members elected to
221     each house, Section 53A-1-603 takes effect on July 1, 2016.
222          (2) Section 53A-15-1403 takes effect on July 1, 2016.