HF 2586

as introduced - 89th Legislature (2015 - 2016) Posted on 04/07/2016 04:28pm

A bill for an act
relating to education; offering guidelines for student preparation; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2015 Supplement, section 120B.30, subdivision 1; proposing
coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 136F.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2015 Supplement, section 120B.30, subdivision 1, is
amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Statewide testing.

(a) The commissioner, with advice from experts
with appropriate technical qualifications and experience and stakeholders, consistent with
subdivision 1a, shall include in the comprehensive assessment system, for each grade
level to be tested, state-constructed tests developed as computer-adaptive reading and
mathematics assessments for students that are aligned with the state's required academic
standards under section 120B.021, include multiple choice questions, and are administered
annually to all students in grades 3 through 8. State-developed high school tests aligned
with the state's required academic standards under section 120B.021 and administered
to all high school students in a subject other than writing must include multiple choice
questions. The commissioner shall establish one or more months during which schools
shall administer the tests to students each school year.

(1) Students enrolled in grade 8 through the 2009-2010 school year are eligible
to be assessed under (i) the graduation-required assessment for diploma in reading,
mathematics, or writing under Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 120B.30, subdivision 1,
paragraphs (c), clauses (1) and (2), and (d), (ii) the WorkKeys job skills assessment, (iii)
the Compass college placement test, (iv) the ACT assessment for college admission, (v) a
nationally recognized armed services vocational aptitude test.

(2) Students enrolled in grade 8 in the 2010-2011 or 2011-2012 school year are
eligible to be assessed under (i) the graduation-required assessment for diploma in reading,
mathematics, or writing under Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 120B.30, subdivision
1, paragraph (c), clauses (1) and (2), (ii) the WorkKeys job skills assessment, (iii) the
Compass college placement test, (iv) the ACT assessment for college admission, (v) a
nationally recognized armed services vocational aptitude test.

(3) For students under clause (1) or (2), a school district may substitute a score from
an alternative, equivalent assessment to satisfy the requirements of this paragraph.

(b) The state assessment system must be aligned to the most recent revision of
academic standards as described in section 120B.023 in the following manner:

(1) mathematics;

(i) grades 3 through 8 beginning in the 2010-2011 school year; and

(ii) high school level beginning in the 2013-2014 school year;

(2) science; grades 5 and 8 and at the high school level beginning in the 2011-2012
school year; and

(3) language arts and reading; grades 3 through 8 and high school level beginning in
the 2012-2013 school year.

(c) For students enrolled in grade 8 in the 2012-2013 school year and later, students'
state graduation requirements, based on a longitudinal, systematic approach to student
education and career planning, assessment, instructional support, and evaluation, include
the following:

(1) an opportunity to participate on a nationally normed college entrance exam,
in grade 11 or grade 12;

(2) achievement and career and college readiness in mathematics, reading, and
writing, consistent with paragraph deleted text begin (j) deleted text end new text begin (k) new text end and to the extent available, to monitor students'
continuous development of and growth in requisite knowledge and skills; analyze
students' progress and performance levels, identifying students' academic strengths and
diagnosing areas where students require curriculum or instructional adjustments, targeted
interventions, or remediation; and, based on analysis of students' progress and performance
data, determine students' learning and instructional needs and the instructional tools and
best practices that support academic rigor for the student; and

(3) consistent with this paragraph and section 120B.125, age-appropriate exploration
and planning activities and career assessments to encourage students to identify personally
relevant career interests and aptitudes and help students and their families develop a
regularly reexamined transition plan for postsecondary education or employment without
need for postsecondary remediation.

Based on appropriate state guidelines, students with an individualized education program
may satisfy state graduation requirements by achieving an individual score on the
state-identified alternative assessments.

(d) Expectations of schools, districts, and the state for career or college readiness
under this subdivision must be comparable in rigor, clarity of purpose, and rates of
student completion.

new text begin (e) The chancellor of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, in consultation
with the commissioner, must identify scores on the Minnesota comprehensive assessments
for high school math and reading, and for writing when available, indicating when students
are prepared to successfully complete credit-bearing coursework at a two-year or four-year
college or university or other credit-bearing postsecondary program, consistent with
paragraph (q). These scores are intended to be used as guidelines to help inform families,
students, and teachers about student preparation. new text end A student under paragraph (c), clause (2),
must receive targeted, relevant, academically rigorous, and resourced instruction, which
may include a targeted instruction and intervention plan focused on improving the student's
knowledge and skills in core subjects so that the student has a reasonable chance to succeed
in a career or college without need for postsecondary remediation. Consistent with sections
120B.13, 124D.09, 124D.091, 124D.49, and related sections, an enrolling school or district
must actively encourage a student in grade 11 or 12 who is identified as academically
ready for a career or college to participate in courses and programs awarding college credit
to high school students. Students are not required to achieve a specified score or level of
proficiency on an assessment under this subdivision to graduate from high school.

deleted text begin (e) deleted text end new text begin (f) new text end Though not a high school graduation requirement, students are encouraged to
participate in a nationally recognized college entrance exam. With funding provided by
the state, a district must pay the cost, one time, for an interested student in grade 11 or 12
to take a nationally recognized college entrance exam before graduating. A student must
be able to take the exam under this paragraph at the student's high school during the school
day and at any one of the multiple exam administrations available to students in the district.

deleted text begin (f) deleted text end new text begin (g) new text end The commissioner and the chancellor of the Minnesota State Colleges
and Universities must collaborate in aligning instruction and assessments for adult
basic education students and English learners to provide the students with diagnostic
information about any targeted interventions, accommodations, modifications, and
supports they need so that assessments and other performance measures are accessible
to them and they may seek postsecondary education or employment without need for
postsecondary remediation. When administering formative or summative assessments
used to measure the academic progress, including the oral academic development, of
English learners and inform their instruction, schools must ensure that the assessments are
accessible to the students and students have the modifications and supports they need to
sufficiently understand the assessments.

deleted text begin (g) deleted text end new text begin (h) new text end Districts and schools, on an annual basis, must use career exploration
elements to help students, beginning no later than grade 9, and their families explore and
plan for postsecondary education or careers based on the students' interests, aptitudes, and
aspirations. Districts and schools must use timely regional labor market information and
partnerships, among other resources, to help students and their families successfully
develop, pursue, review, and revise an individualized plan for postsecondary education or a
career. This process must help increase students' engagement in and connection to school,
improve students' knowledge and skills, and deepen students' understanding of career
pathways as a sequence of academic and career courses that lead to an industry-recognized
credential, an associate's degree, or a bachelor's degree and are available to all students,
whatever their interests and career goals.

deleted text begin (h) deleted text end new text begin (i) new text end A student who demonstrates attainment of required state academic standards,
which include career and college readiness benchmarks, on high school assessments
under subdivision 1a is academically ready for a career or college and is encouraged to
participate in courses awarding college credit to high school students. Such courses and
programs may include sequential courses of study within broad career areas and technical
skill assessments that extend beyond course grades.

deleted text begin (i) deleted text end new text begin (j) new text end As appropriate, students through grade 12 must continue to participate in
targeted instruction, intervention, or remediation and be encouraged to participate in
courses awarding college credit to high school students.

deleted text begin (j) deleted text end new text begin (k) new text end In developing, supporting, and improving students' academic readiness for a
career or college, schools, districts, and the state must have a continuum of empirically
derived, clearly defined benchmarks focused on students' attainment of knowledge and
skills so that students, their parents, and teachers know how well students must perform to
have a reasonable chance to succeed in a career or college without need for postsecondary
remediation. The commissioner, in consultation with local school officials and educators,
and Minnesota's public postsecondary institutions must ensure that the foundational
knowledge and skills for students' successful performance in postsecondary employment
or education and an articulated series of possible targeted interventions are clearly
identified and satisfy Minnesota's postsecondary admissions requirements.

deleted text begin (k) deleted text end new text begin (l) new text end For students in grade 8 in the 2012-2013 school year and later, a school,
district, or charter school must record on the high school transcript a student's progress
toward career and college readiness, and for other students as soon as practicable.

deleted text begin (l) deleted text end new text begin (m) new text end The school board granting students their diplomas may formally decide to
include a notation of high achievement on the high school diplomas of those graduating
seniors who, according to established school board criteria, demonstrate exemplary
academic achievement during high school.

deleted text begin (m) deleted text end new text begin (n) new text end The 3rd through 8th grade computer-adaptive assessment results and
high school test results shall be available to districts for diagnostic purposes affecting
student learning and district instruction and curriculum, and for establishing educational
accountability. The commissioner must establish empirically derived benchmarks on
adaptive assessments in grades 3 through 8 that reveal a trajectory toward career and
college readiness new text begin , consistent with paragraph (e) new text end . The commissioner must disseminate to
the public the computer-adaptive assessments and high school test results upon receiving
those results.

deleted text begin (n) deleted text end new text begin (o) new text end The grades 3 through 8 computer-adaptive assessments and high school tests
must be aligned with state academic standards. The commissioner shall determine the
testing process and the order of administration. The statewide results shall be aggregated
at the site and district level, consistent with subdivision 1a.

deleted text begin (o) deleted text end new text begin (p) new text end The commissioner shall include the following components in the statewide
public reporting system:

(1) uniform statewide computer-adaptive assessments of all students in grades 3
through 8 and testing at the high school levels that provides appropriate, technically sound
accommodations or alternate assessments;

(2) educational indicators that can be aggregated and compared across school
districts and across time on a statewide basis, including average daily attendance, high
school graduation rates, and high school drop-out rates by age and grade level;

(3) state results on the American College Test; and

(4) state results from participation in the National Assessment of Educational
Progress so that the state can benchmark its performance against the nation and other
states, and, where possible, against other countries, and contribute to the national effort
to monitor achievement.

deleted text begin (p) deleted text end new text begin (q) new text end For purposes of statewide accountability, "career and college ready" means a
high school graduate has the knowledge, skills, and competencies to successfully pursue a
career pathway, including postsecondary credit leading to a degree, diploma, certificate, or
industry-recognized credential and employment. Students who are career and college ready
are able to successfully complete credit-bearing coursework at a two- or four-year college
or university or other credit-bearing postsecondary program without need for remediation.

deleted text begin (q) deleted text end new text begin (r) new text end For purposes of statewide accountability, "cultural competence," "cultural
competency," or "culturally competent" means the ability and will to interact effectively
with people of different cultures, native languages, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective for the 2016-2017 school year and
later.
new text end

Sec. 2.

new text begin [136F.3025] MCA COLLEGE-READY SCORE.
new text end

new text begin A state college or university may not require an individual to take a remedial,
noncredit course in a subject area if the individual has received a college-ready MCA
score in that subject area, consistent with section 120B.30, subdivision 1, paragraph (e).
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective for the 2018-2019 school year and
later.
new text end