Georgia-2011-HB713-Introduced

To amend Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the "Quality Basic Education Act," so as to delay implementation of some career and college readiness initiatives until the 2013-2014 school year; to require career education in grades kindergarten through 12; to change the assessment for postsecondary readiness to the end of the eleventh grade; to mandate transitional courses; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the "Quality Basic Education Act," is amended by revising subsection (c) of Code Section 20-2-140, relating to the establishment of competencies and a uniformly sequenced core curriculum, as follows:

"(c) The State Board of the Technical College System of Georgia shall require its institutions to accept core curriculum coursework completed by high school students for purposes of admission into its institutions. This Code section shall apply beginning with students entering such postsecondary institutions in the fall of 2012 2013."

Said article is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:

The State Board of Education shall prescribe a minimum course of study in career education for students in grades kindergarten through 12. Such minimum course of study shall be age appropriate and shall include, but not be limited to, career awareness, career exploration, and career oriented learning experiences."

Said article is further amended by revising Code Section 20-2-159.1, relating to focused programs of study, as follows:

No later than July 1, 2012 2013, the Department of Education shall develop, and the State Board of Education shall approve, state models and curriculum framework for the following focused programs of study, as defined in Code Section 20-2-326, including, but not limited to:

(1) Agriculture, food, and natural resources;

(2) Architecture and construction;

(3) Arts, audio-video technology, and communications;

(4) Business, management, and administration;

(5) Education and training;

(8) Hospitality and tourism;

(10) Information technology;

(11) Law, public safety, and security;

(13) Government and public administration;

(14) Marketing, sales, and service;

(15) Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; and

(16) Transportation, distribution, and logistics.

Such focused programs of study may be combined around these and other related clusters."

Said article is further amended by revising Code Section 20-2-159.2, relating to coordination between high schools and postsecondary institutions to minimize the need for remedial course work for students in postsecondary institutions, as follows:

Stronger coordination between high schools and institutions of higher education is necessary to prepare students for more challenging postsecondary endeavors and to lessen the need for academic remediation in college, thereby reducing the costs of higher education for students, families, and the state. To this end, the State Board of Education, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, and the State Board of the Technical College System of Georgia shall:

(1) Develop policies to ensure that students who complete the core curriculum established pursuant to Code Section 20-2-140 will meet the requirements for purposes of admission into a postsecondary institution, such as grade point average and readiness levels in reading, writing, and mathematics, without having to take remedial coursework. Such policies shall:

(A) Establish the benchmarks for college readiness and the method in which students can demonstrate readiness in reading, writing, and mathematics for postsecondary coursework upon completing the core curriculum; and

(B) Set the conditions for ensuring college readiness;

(2) Define college-readiness standards in reading, writing, and mathematics needed for success in advanced training, certificate programs, and programs leading to an associate's or bachelor's degree;

(3) Identify one or more state-wide common assessments to determine postsecondary readiness in reading, writing, and mathematics and inform students of their performance on such assessments no later than the end of tenth grade;

(4) Develop transitional courses in reading, writing, and mathematics, with common standards, syllabus, and instruction materials for eleventh and twelfth grade students who fail to meet readiness standards, which courses shall be required by the state board to be offered by all local boards of education and which all students who are identified pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection as failing to meet readiness standards shall be required to take; and

(5) Establish a state-wide process for determining how successful completion of transitional courses will guarantee that students will meet readiness standards; and

(5)(6) Ensure dual credit courses reflect postsecondary coursework."

Said article is further amended by revising subsection (a) of Code Section 20-2-159.4, relating to policies and guidelines for awarding units of high school credit based on demonstrated proficiency, as follows:

"(a) The State Board of Education, in consultation with the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia and the State Board of the Technical College System of Georgia, shall adopt policies and establish guidelines for awarding units of high school credit to students based on a demonstration of subject area competency, instead of or in combination with completion of courses of classroom instruction. Such policies and guidelines shall clearly delineate the manner in which students can earn credit, how mastery of standards will be assessed, how locally developed assessments will be reviewed and approved, how such credit will be recorded on high school transcripts, and when outcomes as a result of these policies and guidelines will be reviewed. The state board shall adopt such policies and establish guidelines, and such policies and guidelines shall be applicable beginning with the 2012-2013 2013-2014 school year."