Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB5397
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Full Text of HB5397  98th General Assembly

HB5397 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  

 


 
98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
HB5397

 

Introduced , by Rep. Rita Mayfield

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
105 ILCS 5/27-6.5 new

    Amends the School Code. Provides that the State Board of Education shall require all schools under its jurisdiction to use, during the 2016-2017 school year and every school year thereafter, the FITNESSGRAM physical fitness assessment and report fitness information to the State Board of Education to assess student fitness indicators. Requires schools to integrate health-related fitness testing into the curriculum as an instructional tool, except in the early elementary grades. Provides that the testing shall be used to teach students how to assess their fitness levels, set goals for improvement, and monitor progress in reaching their goals. Provides that on or before October 1, 2014, the State Superintendent of Education shall appoint a 15-member stakeholder and expert task force that will make recommendations to the State Board of Education. Requires the task force to submit its recommendations on physical fitness assessment on or before April 1, 2015 and the State Board of Education to use the recommendations to adopt rules for the implementation of physical fitness assessments by each school on or before October 1, 2015. Provides that on or before September 1, 2016, the State Board of Education shall develop a system for collecting and reporting the aggregated fitness information from the physical fitness assessments. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    WHEREAS, Regular physical activity is associated with a
3healthier, longer life and a lower risk of cardiovascular
4disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and some
5cancers; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Physical activity offers young people many health
7benefits, including improved aerobic endurance and muscular
8strength, better weight control, and the opportunity to build
9lean muscle and bone mass and reduce fat; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Physically-fit children have higher scholastic
11achievement, better classroom behavior, greater ability to
12focus, and less absenteeism than their physically-unfit
13counterparts; and
 
14    WHEREAS, One important way to stop this rise in childhood
15obesity is by establishing lifelong physical activity habits
16with strong physical education programs and regular physical
17activity opportunities in our nation's schools, both during and
18outside of the regular school day; and
 
19    WHEREAS, The Enhance Physical Education Task Force,
20created by Public Act 97-1102, recommends enhancing physical
21education to increase the amount of time students spend in
22moderate to vigorous physical activity with an emphasis on

 

 

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1fitness, skill-building, and cooperation; and
 
2    WHEREAS, The Enhance Physical Education Task Force
3recommends using the Presidential Youth Fitness Program as a
4statewide tool for measuring fitness, accessing professional
5development, recognizing achievement, aggregating data from
6schools, and linking and reporting aggregate data with academic
7achievement, attendance, and discipline data; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The FITNESSGRAM methodology of physical fitness
9assessments is recognized nationally by numerous professional
10organizations as the gold standard; therefore
 
11    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
12represented in the General Assembly:
 
13    Section 35. The School Code is amended by adding Section
1427-6.5 as follows:
 
15    (105 ILCS 5/27-6.5 new)
16    Sec. 27-6.5. Physical education and fitness assessment in
17schools.
18    (a) As used in this Section:
19    "FITNESSGRAM" means a criteria-based, health-related
20fitness assessment tool offered by the Cooper Institute.
21    "FITNESSGRAM Physical Fitness Assessment" means a series

 

 

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1of assessments to measure aerobic capacity, body composition,
2muscular strength, muscular endurance, and flexibility.
3    "Presidential Youth Fitness Program" means a free program
4that includes use of a health-related fitness assessment,
5including access to a free version of the FITNESSGRAM physical
6fitness assessment tools, and educational and motivational
7tools to support teachers and empower students to adopt an
8active lifestyle.
9    (b) To measure the effectiveness of State Goal 20 of the
10Illinois Learning Standards for Physical Development and
11Health, the State Board of Education shall require all schools
12under its jurisdiction to use, during the 2016-2017 school year
13and every school year thereafter, the FITNESSGRAM physical
14fitness assessment, as outlined in the Presidential Youth
15Fitness Program or an equivalent program, and report fitness
16information to the State Board of Education, as set forth in
17subsection (e) of this Section, to assess student fitness
18indicators.
19    Schools shall integrate health-related fitness testing
20into the curriculum as an instructional tool, except in the
21early elementary grades. Following Presidential Youth Fitness
22Program or equivalent program guidelines, fitness tests shall
23be appropriate to students' developmental levels and physical
24abilities. The testing shall be used to teach students how to
25assess their fitness levels, set goals for improvement, and
26monitor progress in reaching their goals.

 

 

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1    (c) On or before October 1, 2014, the State Superintendent
2of Education shall appoint a 15-member stakeholder and expert
3task force, including members representing organizations that
4represent physical education teachers, school officials,
5principals, health promotion and disease prevention advocates
6and experts, school health advocates and experts, and other
7experts with operational and academic expertise in the
8measurement of fitness. The task force shall make
9recommendations to the State Board of Education on:
10        (1) protocols for implementing the FITNESSGRAM
11    physical fitness assessment in all schools, including how
12    often fitness assessments shall occur and how fitness
13    assessments shall be conducted;
14        (2) how often fitness assessment data shall be
15    aggregated and reported to the State Board of Education;
16    and
17        (3) how fitness assessment data shall be reported to
18    the public, including potential correlations with student
19    academic achievement, attendance, and discipline data, and
20    recommended uses of the reported data.
21    (d) The task force shall submit its recommendations on
22physical fitness assessments on or before April 1, 2015. The
23task force may also recommend protocols for assessing student
24progress on State Goals 19 and 21 through 24 of the Illinois
25Learning Standards for Physical Development and Health. The
26task force is dissolved on April 30, 2015.

 

 

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1    On or before October 1, 2015, the State Board of Education
2shall use the recommendations of the task force under this
3subsection (d) to adopt rules for the implementation of
4physical fitness assessments by each school for the 2016-2017
5school year and every school year thereafter.
6    (e) On or before September 1, 2016, the State Board of
7Education shall by rule develop a system for collecting and
8reporting the aggregated fitness information from the physical
9fitness assessments. This system shall also support collection
10of data from districts that use FITNESSGRAM, the expanded and
11paid version of the fitness testing program, or another
12equivalent fitness testing software program.
13    (f) School districts may report the aggregate findings of
14student fitness assessments by grade level and school to
15parents and members of the community through typical
16communication channels, such as Internet websites, school
17newsletters, school board reports, and presentations.
18    (g) Nothing in this Act shall preclude schools from
19implementing the FITNESSGRAM physical fitness assessment
20sooner than January 1, 2016 or from implementing more robust
21forms of the program, such as the paid version of FITNESSGRAM
22or equivalent software program.
 
23    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
24becoming law.