Bill Text: FL S1524 | 2015 | Regular Session | Introduced


Bill Title: English Language Learners

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2015-05-01 - Died in Education Pre-K - 12 [S1524 Detail]

Download: Florida-2015-S1524-Introduced.html
       Florida Senate - 2015                                    SB 1524
       
       
        
       By Senator Simmons
       
       
       
       
       
       10-00485B-15                                          20151524__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to English language learners; amending
    3         s. 1003.4282, F.S.; requiring that a school district
    4         notify students and parents in writing of options for
    5         transferring high school credits and earning
    6         comparative, concordant, or passing scores on
    7         alternative assessments; providing transfer students
    8         with options for satisfying the English Language Arts
    9         (ELA) assessment requirement to earn a standard high
   10         school diploma; amending s. 1003.433, F.S.; providing
   11         alternatives and additional learning opportunities for
   12         transfer students who enter a Florida public school at
   13         grade 10 under certain circumstances; providing that a
   14         limited English proficient transfer student who has
   15         met certain requirements, but has not passed the grade
   16         10 ELA assessment by grade 12, may receive a standard
   17         high school diploma if the student earns a concordant
   18         or passing score on an alternative assessment;
   19         amending s. 1003.56, F.S.; requiring a school district
   20         to notify limited English proficient students and
   21         their parents of the requirements and options for
   22         earning a standard high school diploma; amending s.
   23         1008.22, F.S.; requiring the Commissioner of Education
   24         to identify concordant and passing scores on
   25         alternative assessments that are offered in languages
   26         other than English and demonstrate the college
   27         readiness of limited English proficient students;
   28         requiring that the State Board of Education adopt by
   29         rule alternative assessments and their respective
   30         concordant and passing scores; providing an effective
   31         date.
   32          
   33  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   34  
   35         Section 1. Subsections (2) and (8) of section 1003.4282,
   36  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   37         1003.4282 Requirements for a standard high school diploma.—
   38         (2) NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.—The school district must
   39  notify students and parents, in writing, of the requirements for
   40  a standard high school diploma, available designations, options
   41  for transferring high school credits and for earning
   42  comparative, concordant, or passing scores on alternative
   43  assessments, and the eligibility requirements for state
   44  scholarship programs and postsecondary admissions. The
   45  Department of Education shall directly and through the school
   46  districts notify registered private schools of public high
   47  school course credit and assessment requirements. Each private
   48  school must make this information available to students and
   49  their parents so they are aware of public high school graduation
   50  requirements.
   51         (8) UNIFORM TRANSFER OF HIGH SCHOOL CREDITS.—Beginning with
   52  the 2012-2013 school year, if a student transfers to a Florida
   53  public high school from out of country, out of state, a private
   54  school, or a home education program and the student’s transcript
   55  shows a credit in Algebra I, the student must pass the
   56  statewide, standardized Algebra I EOC assessment in order to
   57  earn a standard high school diploma unless the student earned a
   58  comparative score, passed a statewide assessment in Algebra I
   59  administered by the transferring entity, or passed the statewide
   60  mathematics assessment the transferring entity uses to satisfy
   61  the requirements of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act,
   62  20 U.S.C. s. 6301. If a transfer student’s transcript shows a
   63  credit in high school reading or English Language Arts (ELA) II,
   64  or III, or IV, in order to earn a standard high school diploma,
   65  the student must take and pass the statewide, standardized grade
   66  10 Reading assessment or, when implemented, the grade 10 ELA
   67  assessment, unless the student earned a concordant or passing
   68  score identified pursuant to s. 1008.22(7) and (9) or passed a
   69  statewide assessment in ELA II, III, or IV administered by the
   70  transferring entity to satisfy the requirements of the
   71  Elementary and Secondary Education Act, 20 U.S.C. s. 6301 or
   72  earn a concordant score. If a transfer student’s transcript
   73  shows a final course grade and course credit in Algebra I;,
   74  Geometry;, Biology I;, or United States History; or ELA II, III,
   75  or IV, the transferring course final grade and credit shall be
   76  honored without the student taking the requisite statewide,
   77  standardized EOC assessment and without the assessment results
   78  constituting 30 percent of the student’s final course grade.
   79         Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 1003.433, Florida
   80  Statutes, is amended to read:
   81         1003.433 Learning opportunities for out-of-state and out
   82  of-country transfer students and students needing additional
   83  instruction to meet high school graduation requirements.—
   84         (1) Students who enter a Florida public school at the 10th,
   85  11th, or 12th grade from out of state or out of country shall
   86  not be required to spend additional time in a Florida public
   87  school in order to meet the high school course requirements if
   88  the student has met all requirements of the school district,
   89  state, or country from which he or she is transferring. A
   90  district school board must notify a transfer student who is
   91  limited English proficient and his or her parent, as required in
   92  s. 1003.56(3)(i), of the requirements for earning a standard
   93  high school diploma and the options available under s.
   94  1003.4282, if applicable, including the opportunity to earn a
   95  concordant or passing score on an alternative assessment
   96  identified pursuant to s. 1008.22(7) and (9). Such students who
   97  are not proficient in English should receive immediate and
   98  intensive instruction in English language acquisition, including
   99  the instruction required pursuant to s. 1003.56. However, to
  100  receive a standard high school diploma, any a transfer student
  101  must earn at least a 2.0 grade point average and meet the
  102  requirements under s. 1008.22. A limited English proficient
  103  student who has met the minimum grade point average and has met
  104  the assessment requirements under s. 1008.22, except for passage
  105  of the grade 10 ELA assessment by the end of grade 12, may
  106  receive a standard high school diploma if he or she has earned a
  107  concordant or passing score on an alternative assessment
  108  identified pursuant to s. 1008.22(7) and (9), or passed a
  109  statewide assessment in ELA II, III, or IV administered by the
  110  transferring entity to satisfy the requirements of the
  111  Elementary and Secondary Education Act, 20 U.S.C. s. 6301.
  112         Section 3. Paragraph (i) is added to subsection (3) of
  113  section 1003.56, Florida Statutes, and subsection (4) of that
  114  section is amended, to read:
  115         1003.56 English language instruction for limited English
  116  proficient students.—
  117         (3) Each district school board shall implement the
  118  following procedures:
  119         (i) Notify a transfer student and his or her parent of the
  120  requirements for earning a standard high school diploma; any
  121  applicable options available under s. 1003.4282(8); and
  122  concordant and passing scores on alternative assessments as
  123  identified pursuant to s. 1008.22(7) and (9), which satisfy the
  124  grade 10 English Language Arts assessment requirement.
  125         (4) Each district school board’s program for limited
  126  English proficient students shall be evaluated and monitored
  127  periodically, including compliance with the notification
  128  requirements in paragraph (3)(i).
  129         Section 4. Present subsection (7) of section 1008.22,
  130  Florida Statutes, is amended, subsections (9), (10), and (11) of
  131  that section are redesignated as subsections (10), (11), and
  132  (12), respectively, and a new subsection (9) is added to that
  133  section, to read:
  134         1008.22 Student assessment program for public schools.—
  135         (7) CONCORDANT SCORES.—The Commissioner of Education must
  136  identify scores on the SAT and ACT that if achieved satisfy the
  137  graduation requirement that a student pass the grade 10
  138  statewide, standardized Reading assessment or, upon
  139  implementation, the grade 10 ELA assessment. The commissioner
  140  must may identify concordant scores on assessments other than
  141  the SAT and ACT. If the content or scoring procedures change for
  142  the grade 10 Reading assessment or, upon implementation, the
  143  grade 10 ELA assessment, new concordant scores must be
  144  determined. If new concordant scores are not timely adopted, the
  145  last-adopted concordant scores remain in effect until such time
  146  as new scores are adopted. The state board shall adopt by rule
  147  concordant scores in rule.
  148         (9) LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT STUDENTS; ALTERNATIVE
  149  ASSESSMENTS.—The Commissioner of Education must identify
  150  alternative assessments and their respective passing scores
  151  which are offered in languages other than English and are
  152  appropriate for demonstrating the college readiness of limited
  153  English proficient students as provided in ss. 1003.4282 and
  154  1003.433. The state board shall adopt by rule passing scores on
  155  alternative assessments identified pursuant to this subsection.
  156         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.

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