Bill Text: TX HB4545 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relating to the assessment of public school students, the establishment of a strong foundations grant program, and providing accelerated instruction for students who fail to achieve satisfactory performance on certain assessment instruments.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2021-06-16 - Effective immediately [HB4545 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-HB4545-Introduced.html

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By: Dutton H.B. No. 4545

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the purchase of certain instruction-related materials,
the establishment of a strong foundations grant program, providing
accelerated instruction for students who fail to achieve
satisfactory performance on certain assessment instruments, and an
accelerated learning and sustainment outcomes bonus allotment
under the foundation school program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 7, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 7.071 to read as follows:
Sec. 7.071. INSTRUCTION-RELATED PURCHASE BY COMMISSIONER.
(a) Using available funds and in addition to the commissioner's
authority regarding instructional materials under Section
7.055(b)(28), the commissioner may purchase from available funds
curriculum programs and other instructional tools to provide for
use by school districts and open-enrollment charter schools.
(b) To leverage state purchasing power and ensure
cost-effective use of taxpayer funds, the commissioner may contract
on behalf of school districts and open-enrollment charter schools
to purchase any item for instructional purposes.
SECTION 2. The heading to Section 28.0211, Education Code,
is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 28.0211. ACCELERATED LEARNING COMMITTEE [SATISFACTORY
PERFORMANCE ON ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS REQUIRED]; ACCELERATED
INSTRUCTION; MODIFIED TEACHER ASSIGNMENT.
SECTION 3. Section 28.0211, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a), (a-1), (a-2), (a-3), (c), (f), (i), (k),
and (n) and adding Subsections (a-4), (a-5), (f-1), (f-2), (f-3),
(f-4), and (f-5) to read as follows:
(a) A school district shall establish an accelerated
learning committee described by Subsection (c) for each student who
does not perform satisfactorily on:
(1) the third grade mathematics or reading assessment
instrument under Section 39.023;
(2) [Except as provided by Subsection (b) or (e), a
student may not be promoted to:
[(1) the sixth grade program to which the student
would otherwise be assigned if the student does not perform
satisfactorily on] the fifth grade mathematics or [and] reading
assessment instrument [instruments] under Section 39.023; or
(3) [(2) the ninth grade program to which the student
would otherwise be assigned if the student does not perform
satisfactorily on] the eighth grade mathematics or [and] reading
assessment instrument [instruments] under Section 39.023.
(a-1) Each time a student fails to perform satisfactorily on
an assessment instrument administered under Section 39.023(a) in
the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth grade, the
school district in which the student attends school shall provide
to the student accelerated instruction in the applicable subject
area during the subsequent summer or school year. Accelerated
instruction provided during the following school year may require
participation of the student before or after normal school hours
[and may include participation at times of the year outside normal
school operations].
(a-2) [A student who fails to perform satisfactorily on an
assessment instrument specified under Subsection (a) and who is
promoted to the next grade level must complete accelerated
instruction required under Subsection (a-1) before placement in the
next grade level. A student who fails to complete required
accelerated instruction may not be promoted.] Accelerated
instruction provided by a district must:
(1) ensure the student's participation in and exposure
to all of the grade level content in the foundation and enrichment
curriculum adopted under Section 28.002 that is available to
students at the same grade level not receiving accelerated
instruction;
(2) allow the parent or guardian of the student to
choose the teacher of record for the subsequent grade and subject or
subsequent aligned course if more than one teacher of record is
available for the subsequent grade or subject; and
(3) provide one of the following options:
(A) supplemental instruction as described by
Subsection (a-3); or
(B) the student is offered a teacher of record
for the subsequent grade and subject or subsequent aligned course
who is designated a recognized, exemplary, or master teacher under
Section 21.3521 effective that year.
(a-3) Supplemental instruction provided by a district under
Subsection (a-2)(3)(A) must:
(1) include targeted instruction in the essential
knowledge and skills;
(2) be provided in addition to instruction normally
provided to students in the grade level in which the student is
enrolled;
(3) be provided for no less than 30 total hours during
the following summer and school year, and include instruction no
less than once per week unless the instruction is provided fully
during summer;
(4) be designed to assist the student in achieving
grade level performance in the applicable subject area;
(5) include effective instructional materials
designed for supplemental instruction;
(6) be provided to a student individually or in a group
of no more than three students, unless the parent or guardian of
each student in the group authorizes a larger group;
(7) be provided by a person with training in the
instructional materials used for supplemental instruction and who
receives ongoing oversight while providing supplemental
instruction; and
(7) to the extent possible, be provided by the same
person for the student for the entirety of the supplemental
instruction period.
(a-4) [(a-3)] The commissioner shall provide guidelines to
school districts on research-based best practices and effective
strategies that a district may use in developing an accelerated
instruction program and may provide resources to districts to
assist in the provision of an accelerated instruction program.
(c) [Each time a student fails to perform satisfactorily on
an assessment instrument specified under Subsection (a), the school
district in which the student attends school shall provide to the
student accelerated instruction in the applicable subject area,
including reading instruction for a student who fails to perform
satisfactorily on a reading assessment instrument.] After a student
fails to perform satisfactorily on an assessment instrument
specified under Subsection (a), an accelerated learning [a second
time, a grade placement] committee shall be established [to
prescribe the accelerated instruction the district shall provide to
the student before the student is administered the assessment
instrument the third time]. The accelerated learning [grade
placement] committee shall be composed of the principal or the
principal's designee, the student's parent or guardian, and the
teacher of the subject of an assessment instrument on which the
student failed to perform satisfactorily. The district shall notify
the parent or guardian of the time and place for convening the
accelerated learning [grade placement] committee and the purpose of
the committee. [An accelerated instruction group administered by a
school district under this section may not have a ratio of more than
10 students for each teacher.]
(f) An accelerated learning [A school district shall
provide to a student who, after three attempts, has failed to
perform satisfactorily on an assessment instrument specified under
Subsection (a) accelerated instruction during the next school year
as prescribed by an educational plan developed for the student by
the student's grade placement] committee described by [established
under] Subsection (c) shall, not later than the start of the
subsequent school year, develop an[. The district shall provide
that accelerated instruction regardless of whether the student has
been promoted or retained. The] educational plan for the student
that provides the necessary accelerated instruction [must be
designed] to enable the student to perform at the appropriate grade
level by the conclusion of the school year.
(f-1) The educational plan under Subsection (f) must be
documented in writing, and a copy must be provided to the student's
parent or guardian.
(f-2) During the school year, the student shall be monitored
to ensure that the student is progressing in accordance with the
plan developed under Subsection (f). The district shall administer
to the student the assessment instrument for the grade level in
which the student is placed at the time the district regularly
administers the assessment instruments for that school year.
(f-3) The board of trustees of each school district shall
adopt a policy consistent with the grievance procedure adopted
under Section 26.011 to allow a parent to contest the content or
implementation of an educational plan developed under Subsection
(f).
(f-4) If a student who fails to perform satisfactorily on an
assessment instrument specified under Subsection (a) fails in the
subsequent school year to perform satisfactorily on an assessment
instrument in the same subject, the superintendent of the district,
or the superintendent's designee, shall meet with the student's
accelerated learning committee to:
(1) identify the reason the student did not perform
satisfactorily; and
(2) determine, in order to ensure the student performs
satisfactorily on the assessment instrument at the next
administration of the assessment instrument, whether:
(A) the educational plan developed for the
student under Subsection (f) must be modified to provide the
necessary accelerated instruction for that student; and
(B) any additional resources are required for
that student.
(f-5) The superintendent's designee under Subsection (f-4):
(1) may be an employee of a regional education service
center; and
(2) may not be a person who served on the student's
accelerated learning committee.
(i) The admission, review, and dismissal committee of a
student who participates in a district's special education program
under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, and who does not perform
satisfactorily on an assessment instrument specified under
Subsection (a) and administered under Section 39.023(a) or (b) must
meet to [before the student is administered the assessment
instrument for the second time. The committee shall] determine[:
[(1)] the manner in which the student will participate
in an accelerated instruction program under this section[; and
[(2) whether the student will be promoted in
accordance with Subsection (i-1) or retained under this section].
(k) The commissioner may [shall] adopt rules as necessary to
implement this section[, including rules concerning when school
districts shall administer assessment instruments required under
this section and which administration of the assessment instruments
will be used for purposes of Section 39.054].
(n) A student who fails to perform satisfactorily on an
assessment instrument specified under Subsection (a) and is
promoted to the next grade level [by a grade placement committee
under this section] must be assigned in the subsequent school year
in each subject in which the student failed to perform
satisfactorily on an assessment instrument specified under
Subsection (a) to a teacher who meets all state and federal
qualifications to teach that subject and grade.
SECTION 4. Section 28.0217, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 28.0217. ACCELERATED INSTRUCTION FOR HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS. (a) Each time a student fails to perform satisfactorily
on an assessment instrument administered under Section 39.023(c),
the school district in which the student attends school shall
provide to the student accelerated instruction in the applicable
subject area[, using funds appropriated for accelerated
instruction under Section 28.0211].
(b) Accelerated instruction provided under this section:
(1) may require participation of the student before or
after normal school hours and may include participation at times of
the year outside normal school operations; and
(2) must comply with the requirements for accelerated
instruction provided under Section 28.0211.
SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 29, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 29.0881 to read as follows:
Sec. 29.0881. STRONG FOUNDATIONS GRANT PROGRAM. (a) The
commissioner shall establish and administer a strong foundations
grant program for campuses or a program at a campus serving students
enrolled in prekindergarten through grade five to implement a
rigorous school approach that combines high-quality instruction,
materials, and support structures.
(b) The commissioner shall adopt components that school
districts, open-enrollment charter schools, and campuses of the
districts or schools must implement under the strong foundations
grant program. The components must include:
(1) use of high-quality instructional materials,
curricula, and curricular tools;
(2) aligned professional supports; and
(3) measurement of fidelity of implementation of the
program.
(c) The commissioner shall use funds appropriated, federal
funds, and other funds available for the strong foundations grant
program to assist school districts and open-enrollment charter
schools in implementing the program.
(d) The commissioner may accept gifts, grants, and
donations from any source, including private and nonprofit
organizations, for the program. A private or nonprofit
organization that contributes to the program may receive an award
under Section 7.113.
(e) The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to
administer the strong foundations grant program.
SECTION 6. Sections 39.023 (a-4), (c-3), and (e), Education
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a-4) For purposes of Subsection (a)(1), the State Board of
Education by rule must require the mathematics assessment
instrument for a grade level to align with the technology
expectations included in the essential knowledge and skills for
that grade level and may designate sections of a mathematics
assessment instrument for a grade level that:
(1) may be completed with the aid of technology; and
(2) must be completed without the aid of technology.
(c-3) Except as provided by Subsection (c-7), as added by
Chapter 1315 (H.B. 3906), Acts of the 86th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2019, in adopting a schedule for the administration of
assessment instruments under this section, the State Board of
Education shall ensure that assessment instruments administered
under Subsection (a) or (c) are not administered on the first
instructional day of a week unless the superintendent of a school
district applies to the commissioner for a waiver of the
requirement under this subsection due to local conditions which
have significantly affected the district's ability to comply with
the requirement of this subsection.
(e) Under rules adopted by the State Board of Education, at
least every third year, the agency shall release the questions and
answer keys to each assessment instrument administered under
Subsection (a), (b), (c), (d), or (l), excluding any assessment
instrument administered to a student for the purpose of retaking
the assessment instrument, after the last time the instrument is
administered for that school year. To ensure a valid bank of
questions for use each year, the agency is not required to release a
question that is being field-tested and was not used to compute the
student's score on the instrument. The agency shall also release ,
under board rule, each question that is no longer being
field-tested and that was not used to compute a student's score.
[During the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 school years, the agency shall
release the questions and answer keys to assessment instruments as
described by this subsection each year.]
SECTION 7. Section 39.025(b-1), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b-1) A school district shall provide each student who fails
to perform satisfactorily as determined by the commissioner under
Section 39.0241(a) on an end-of-course assessment instrument with
accelerated instruction under Section 28.0217 in the subject
assessed by the assessment instrument.
SECTION 8. Section 39.301(c), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(c) Indicators for reporting purposes must include:
(1) the percentage of graduating students who meet the
course requirements established by State Board of Education rule
for:
(A) the foundation high school program;
(B) the distinguished level of achievement under
the foundation high school program; and
(C) each endorsement described by Section
28.025(c-1);
(2) the results of the SAT, ACT, and certified
workforce training programs described by Chapter 311, Labor Code;
(3) for students who have failed to perform
satisfactorily, under each performance standard under Section
39.0241, on an assessment instrument required under Section
39.023(a) or (c), the performance of those students on subsequent
assessment instruments required under those sections, aggregated
by grade level and subject area;
(4) for each campus, the number of students,
disaggregated by major student subpopulations, that take courses
under the foundation high school program and take additional
courses to earn an endorsement under Section 28.025(c-1),
disaggregated by type of endorsement;
(5) the percentage of students, aggregated by grade
level, provided accelerated instruction under Section 28.0211
[28.0211(c)], the results of assessment instruments administered
under that section, [the percentage of students promoted through
the grade placement committee process under Section 28.0211,] the
subject of the assessment instrument on which each student failed
to perform satisfactorily under each performance standard under
Section 39.0241, and the performance of those students in the
subsequent school year [following that promotion] on the assessment
instruments required under Section 39.023;
(6) the percentage of students of limited English
proficiency exempted from the administration of an assessment
instrument under Sections 39.027(a)(1) and (2);
(7) the percentage of students in a special education
program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, assessed through assessment
instruments developed or adopted under Section 39.023(b);
(8) the percentage of students who satisfy the college
readiness measure;
(9) the measure of progress toward dual language
proficiency under Section 39.034(b), for students of limited
English proficiency, as defined by Section 29.052;
(10) the percentage of students who are not
educationally disadvantaged;
(11) the percentage of students who enroll and begin
instruction at an institution of higher education in the school
year following high school graduation; and
(12) the percentage of students who successfully
complete the first year of instruction at an institution of higher
education without needing a developmental education course.
SECTION 9. Subchapter C, Chapter 48, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 48.1102 to read as follows:
Sec. 48.1102. ACCELERATED LEARNING AND SUSTAINMENT
OUTCOMES BONUS. (a) For purposes of this section, a student is a:
(1) successfully accelerated student if the student:
(A) performs satisfactorily or better on an
assessment instrument administered under Section 39.023(a); and
(B) was administered but did not perform
satisfactorily on the assessment instrument administered under
Section 39.023(a) for the same subject in the student's preceding
grade level; and
(2) sustained accelerated student if the student:
(A) performs at the level determined under
Section 39.0241(a-1) or the equivalent to determine preparedness
for the student's next grade level or better on an assessment
instrument administered under Section 39.023(a);
(B) performs satisfactorily or better on the
assessment instrument administered under Section 39.023(a) for the
same subject in the student's preceding grade level; and
(C) was administered but did not perform
satisfactorily on the assessment instrument administered under
Section 39.023(a) for the grade level and subject preceding the
assessment described by Paragraph (B).
(b) For each successfully accelerated student enrolled in a
school district or open-enrollment charter school who exceeds the
threshold established by the commissioner under Subsection (d), a
school district or open-enrollment charter school is entitled to
$500 for each successfully accelerated student who is not
educationally disadvantaged and $1,000 for each successfully
accelerated student who is educationally disadvantaged.
(c) For each sustained accelerated student enrolled in a
school district or open-enrollment charter school, a school
district or open-enrollment charter school is entitled to $250 for
each sustained accelerated student who is not educationally
disadvantaged and $500 for each sustained accelerated student who
is educationally disadvantaged.
(d) Using a percentile determined by the commissioner based
on the median performance of school districts and open-enrollment
charter schools on assessments administered under Section
39.023(a) during the 2017-2018 school year, for each subject and
grade the commissioner shall:
(1) establish the threshold percentage of
successfully accelerated students who are not educationally
disadvantaged; and
(2) establish the threshold percentage of
successfully accelerated students who are educationally
disadvantaged.
(e) Each year, the commissioner shall determine for each
school district and open-enrollment charter school, the minimum
number of successfully accelerated students the district must have
in order for the district to achieve the percentage equal to the
threshold percentage established for that group of students under
Subsection (b).
(f) After five years of the same threshold performance
standard, the commissioner may modify the thresholds under
Subsection (d) if the commissioner determines that substantial
performance in the median performance of districts has occurred.
SECTION 10. Section 51.338(d), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) A student who has demonstrated the performance standard
for college readiness as provided by Section 28.008 on the
postsecondary readiness assessment instruments adopted under
Section 39.0238 for Algebra II and English III, as that section
existed before repeal by _.B.____, Acts of the 87th Legislature,
Regular Session, 2021, is exempt from the requirements of this
subchapter with respect to those content areas. The commissioner of
higher education by rule shall establish the period for which an
exemption under this subsection is valid.
SECTION 11. The following provisions of the Education Code
are repealed:
(1) Sections 28.0211(b), (d), (e), (i-1), (i-2), (m),
and (m-1);
(2) Section 39.0231; and
(3) Section 39.0238.
SECTION 12. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act, the board of trustees of a school district shall adopt
a policy as required by Section 28.0211(f-3), Education Code, as
added by this Act.
SECTION 13. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
over another Act of the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, 2021,
relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
codes.
SECTION 14. This Act applies beginning with the 2021-2022
school year.
SECTION 15. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2021.