98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
SB3460

 

Introduced 2/14/2014, by Sen. Bill Cunningham

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
105 ILCS 5/2-3.64  from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.64

    Amends the School Code. Prohibits the State Board of Education and school districts from administering State-developed assessments or other comparable assessments to students enrolled in kindergarten, grade one, or grade 2 that are being used for any reason other than diagnostic purposes. Effective July 1, 2014.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
52-3.64 as follows:
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/2-3.64)  (from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.64)
7    Sec. 2-3.64. State goals and assessment.
8    (a) Beginning in the 1998-1999 school year, the State Board
9of Education shall establish standards and periodically, in
10collaboration with local school districts, conduct studies of
11student performance in the learning areas of fine arts and
12physical development/health.
13    Beginning with the 1998-1999 school year until the
142004-2005 school year, the State Board of Education shall
15annually test: (i) all pupils enrolled in the 3rd, 5th, and 8th
16grades in English language arts (reading, writing, and English
17grammar) and mathematics; and (ii) all pupils enrolled in the
184th and 7th grades in the biological and physical sciences and
19the social sciences (history, geography, civics, economics,
20and government). Unless the testing required to be implemented
21no later than the 2005-2006 school year under this subsection
22(a) is implemented for the 2004-2005 school year, for the
232004-2005 school year, the State Board of Education shall test:

 

 

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1(i) all pupils enrolled in the 3rd, 5th, and 8th grades in
2English language arts (reading and English grammar) and
3mathematics and (ii) all pupils enrolled in the 4th and 7th
4grades in the biological and physical sciences. The maximum
5time allowed for all actual testing required under this
6paragraph shall not exceed 25 hours, as allocated among the
7required tests by the State Board of Education, across all
8grades tested.
9    Beginning no later than the 2005-2006 school year, the
10State Board of Education shall annually test: (i) all pupils
11enrolled in the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grades in
12reading and mathematics and (ii) all pupils enrolled in the 4th
13and 7th grades in the biological and physical sciences. In
14addition, the State Board of Education shall test (1) all
15pupils enrolled in the 5th and 8th grades in writing during the
162006-2007 school year; (2) all pupils enrolled in the 5th, 6th,
17and 8th grades in writing during the 2007-2008 school year; and
18(3) all pupils enrolled in the 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 8th grades in
19writing during the 2008-2009 school year and each school year
20thereafter. After the addition of grades and change in subjects
21as delineated in this paragraph and including whatever other
22tests that may be approved from time to time no later than the
232005-2006 school year, the maximum time allowed for all State
24testing in grades 3 through 8 shall not exceed 38 hours across
25those grades.
26    Beginning with the 2004-2005 school year, the State Board

 

 

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1of Education shall not test pupils under this subsection (a) in
2physical development and health, fine arts, and the social
3sciences (history, geography, civics, economics, and
4government). The State Board of Education shall not test pupils
5under this subsection (a) in writing during the 2005-2006
6school year.
7    The State Board of Education shall establish the academic
8standards that are to be applicable to pupils who are subject
9to State tests under this Section beginning with the 1998-1999
10school year. However, the State Board of Education shall not
11establish any such standards in final form without first
12providing opportunities for public participation and local
13input in the development of the final academic standards. Those
14opportunities shall include a well-publicized period of public
15comment, public hearings throughout the State, and
16opportunities to file written comments. Beginning with the
171998-99 school year and thereafter, the State tests will
18identify pupils in the 3rd grade or 5th grade who do not meet
19the State standards.
20    If, by performance on the State tests or local assessments
21or by teacher judgment, a student's performance is determined
22to be 2 or more grades below current placement, the student
23shall be provided a remediation program developed by the
24district in consultation with a parent or guardian. Such
25remediation programs may include, but shall not be limited to,
26increased or concentrated instructional time, a remedial

 

 

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1summer school program of not less than 90 hours (with an
2emphasis on reading and mathematics if the student has
3performed below grade level for 2 consecutive school years),
4improved instructional approaches, tutorial sessions,
5retention in grade, and modifications to instructional
6materials. Each pupil for whom a remediation program is
7developed under this subsection shall be required to enroll in
8and attend whatever program the district determines is
9appropriate for the pupil. Districts may combine students in
10remediation programs where appropriate and may cooperate with
11other districts in the design and delivery of those programs.
12The parent or guardian of a student required to attend a
13remediation program under this Section shall be given written
14notice of that requirement by the school district a reasonable
15time prior to commencement of the remediation program that the
16student is to attend. The State shall be responsible for
17providing school districts with the new and additional funding,
18under Section 2-3.51.5 or by other or additional means, that is
19required to enable the districts to operate remediation
20programs for the pupils who are required to enroll in and
21attend those programs under this Section. Every individualized
22educational program as described in Article 14 shall identify
23if the State test or components thereof are appropriate for
24that student. The State Board of Education shall develop rules
25and regulations governing the administration of alternative
26tests prescribed within each student's individualized

 

 

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1educational program which are appropriate to the disability of
2each student.
3    All pupils who are in a State approved transitional
4bilingual education program or transitional program of
5instruction shall participate in the State tests. The time
6allotted to take the State tests, however, may be extended as
7determined by the State Board of Education by rule. Any student
8who has been enrolled in a State approved bilingual education
9program less than 3 cumulative academic years may take an
10accommodated Limited English Proficient student academic
11content assessment, as determined by the State Board of
12Education, if the student's lack of English as determined by an
13English language proficiency test would keep the student from
14understanding the regular State test. If the school district
15determines, on a case-by-case individual basis, that a Limited
16English Proficient student academic content assessment would
17likely yield more accurate and reliable information on what the
18student knows and can do, the school district may make a
19determination to assess the student using a Limited English
20Proficient student academic content assessment for a period
21that does not exceed 2 additional consecutive years, provided
22that the student has not yet reached a level of English
23language proficiency sufficient to yield valid and reliable
24information on what the student knows and can do on the regular
25State test.
26    Reasonable accommodations as prescribed by the State Board

 

 

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1of Education shall be provided for individual students in the
2testing procedure. All test procedures prescribed by the State
3Board of Education shall require: (i) that each test used for
4State and local student testing under this Section identify by
5name the pupil taking the test; (ii) that the name of the pupil
6taking the test be placed on the test at the time the test is
7taken; (iii) that the results or scores of each test taken
8under this Section by a pupil of the school district be
9reported to that district and identify by name the pupil who
10received the reported results or scores; and (iv) that the
11results or scores of each test taken under this Section be made
12available to the parents of the pupil. In addition, in each
13school year the scores attained by a student on the Prairie
14State Achievement Examination administered under subsection
15(c) of this Section and any Prairie State Achievement Awards
16received by the student shall become part of the student's
17permanent record and shall be entered on the student's
18transcript pursuant to regulations that the State Board of
19Education shall promulgate for that purpose in accordance with
20Section 3 and subsection (e) of Section 2 of the Illinois
21School Student Records Act. Beginning with the 1998-1999 school
22year and in every school year thereafter, scores received by
23students on the State assessment tests administered in grades 3
24through 8 shall be placed into students' temporary records.
25    The State Board of Education shall establish a period of
26time, to be referred to as the State test window, in each

 

 

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1school year for which State testing shall occur to meet the
2objectives of this Section. However, if the schools of a
3district are closed and classes are not scheduled during any
4week that is established by the State Board of Education as the
5State test window, the school district may (at the discretion
6of the State Board of Education) move its State test window one
7week earlier or one week later than the established State test
8window, so long as the school district gives the State Board of
9Education written notice of its intention to deviate from the
10established schedule by December 1 of the school year in which
11falls the State test window established by the State Board of
12Education for the testing.
13    (a-5) All tests administered pursuant to this Section shall
14be academically based. For the purposes of this Section
15"academically based tests" shall mean tests consisting of
16questions and answers that are measurable and quantifiable to
17measure the knowledge, skill, and ability of students in the
18subject matters covered by tests. The scoring of academically
19based tests shall be reliable, valid, unbiased and shall meet
20the guidelines for test development and use prescribed by the
21American Psychological Association, the National Council of
22Measurement and Evaluation, and the American Educational
23Research Association. Academically based tests shall not
24include assessments or evaluations of attitudes, values, or
25beliefs, or testing of personality, self-esteem, or
26self-concept. Nothing in this amendatory Act is intended, nor

 

 

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1shall it be construed, to nullify, supersede, or contradict the
2legislative intent on academic testing expressed during the
3passage of HB 1005/P.A. 90-296. Nothing in this Section is
4intended, nor shall it be construed, to nullify, supersede, or
5contradict the legislative intent on academic testing
6expressed in the preamble of this amendatory Act of the 93rd
7General Assembly.
8    The State Board of Education shall monitor the use of short
9answer questions in the math and reading assessments or in
10other assessments in order to demonstrate that the use of short
11answer questions results in a statistically significant
12improvement in student achievement as measured on the State
13assessments for math and reading or on other State assessments
14and is justifiable in terms of cost and student performance.
15    (b) It shall be the policy of the State to encourage school
16districts to continuously test pupil proficiency in the
17fundamental learning areas in order to: (i) provide timely
18information on individual students' performance relative to
19State standards that is adequate to guide instructional
20strategies; (ii) improve future instruction; and (iii)
21complement the information provided by the State testing system
22described in this Section. To assist school districts in
23testing pupil proficiency in reading in the primary grades, the
24State Board shall make optional reading inventories for
25diagnostic purposes available to each school district that
26requests such assistance. Districts that administer the

 

 

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1reading inventories may develop remediation programs for
2students who perform in the bottom half of the student
3population. Those remediation programs may be funded by moneys
4provided under the School Safety and Educational Improvement
5Block Grant Program established under Section 2-3.51.5.
6    (b-5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law or any
7administrative rule to the contrary, the State Board of
8Education and school districts may not administer
9State-developed assessments or other comparable assessments to
10students enrolled in kindergarten, grade one, or grade 2 that
11are being used for any reason other than diagnostic purposes.
12This subsection (b-5) does not limit an educator's ability to
13deliver individual student assessments related to student
14achievement.
15    (c) Beginning with the 2000-2001 school year, each school
16district that operates a high school program for students in
17grades 9 through 12 shall annually administer the Prairie State
18Achievement Examination established under this subsection to
19its students as set forth below. The Prairie State Achievement
20Examination shall be developed by the State Board of Education
21to measure student performance in the academic areas of
22reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social sciences.
23Beginning with the 2004-2005 school year, however, the State
24Board of Education shall not test a student in the social
25sciences (history, geography, civics, economics, and
26government) as part of the Prairie State Achievement

 

 

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1Examination unless the student is retaking the Prairie State
2Achievement Examination in the fall of 2004. In addition, the
3State Board of Education shall not test a student in writing as
4part of the Prairie State Achievement Examination during the
52005-2006 school year. The State Board of Education shall
6establish the academic standards that are to apply in measuring
7student performance on the Prairie State Achievement
8Examination including the minimum examination score in each
9area that will qualify a student to receive a Prairie State
10Achievement Award from the State in recognition of the
11student's excellent performance. Each school district that is
12subject to the requirements of this subsection (c) shall afford
13all students one opportunity to take the Prairie State
14Achievement Examination beginning as late as practical during
15the spring semester of grade 11, but in no event before March
161. The State Board of Education shall annually notify districts
17of the weeks during which this test administration shall be
18required to occur. Every individualized educational program as
19described in Article 14 shall identify if the Prairie State
20Achievement Examination or components thereof are appropriate
21for that student. Each student, exclusive of a student whose
22individualized educational program developed under Article 14
23identifies the Prairie State Achievement Examination as
24inappropriate for the student, shall be required to take the
25examination in grade 11. For each academic area the State Board
26of Education shall establish the score that qualifies for the

 

 

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1Prairie State Achievement Award on that portion of the
2examination. Districts shall inform their students of the
3timelines and procedures applicable to their participation in
4every yearly administration of the Prairie State Achievement
5Examination. Students receiving special education services
6whose individualized educational programs identify the Prairie
7State Achievement Examination as inappropriate for them
8nevertheless shall have the option of taking the examination,
9which shall be administered to those students in accordance
10with standards adopted by the State Board of Education to
11accommodate the respective disabilities of those students. A
12student who successfully completes all other applicable high
13school graduation requirements but fails to receive a score on
14the Prairie State Achievement Examination that qualifies the
15student for receipt of a Prairie State Achievement Award shall
16nevertheless qualify for the receipt of a regular high school
17diploma. In no case, however, shall a student receive a regular
18high school diploma without taking the Prairie State
19Achievement Examination, unless the student is exempted from
20taking the Prairie State Achievement Examination under this
21subsection (c) because (i) the student's individualized
22educational program developed under Article 14 of this Code
23identifies the Prairie State Achievement Examination as
24inappropriate for the student, (ii) the student is exempt due
25to the student's lack of English language proficiency under
26subsection (a) of this Section, (iii) the student is enrolled

 

 

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1in a program of Adult and Continuing Education as defined in
2the Adult Education Act, (iv) the school district is not
3required to test the individual student for purposes of
4accountability under federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
5requirements, or (v) the student is otherwise identified by the
6State Board of Education through rules as being exempt from the
7assessment.
8    (d) Beginning with the 2002-2003 school year, all schools
9in this State that are part of the sample drawn by the National
10Center for Education Statistics, in collaboration with their
11school districts and the State Board of Education, shall
12administer the biennial State academic assessments of 4th and
138th grade reading and mathematics under the National Assessment
14of Educational Progress carried out under Section 411(b)(2) of
15the National Education Statistics Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 9010)
16if the Secretary of Education pays the costs of administering
17the assessments.
18    (e) Beginning no later than the 2005-2006 school year,
19subject to available federal funds to this State for the
20purpose of student assessment, the State Board of Education
21shall provide additional tests and assessment resources that
22may be used by school districts for local diagnostic purposes.
23These tests and resources shall include without limitation
24additional high school writing, physical development and
25health, and fine arts assessments. The State Board of Education
26shall annually distribute a listing of these additional tests

 

 

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1and resources, using funds available from appropriations made
2for student assessment purposes.
3    (f) For the assessment and accountability purposes of this
4Section, "all pupils" includes those pupils enrolled in a
5public or State-operated elementary school, secondary school,
6or cooperative or joint agreement with a governing body or
7board of control, a charter school operating in compliance with
8the Charter Schools Law, a school operated by a regional office
9of education under Section 13A-3 of this Code, or a public
10school administered by a local public agency or the Department
11of Human Services.
12(Source: P.A. 96-430, eff. 8-13-09; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10;
1397-86, eff. 1-1-12.)
 
14    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1,
152014.