"NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The superintendent of public instruction shall report to the governor, the state board of education, and the house of representatives and senate education committees on:

(a) The review, prioritization, and identification of the essential academic learning requirements and grade level content expectations in accordance with the following timelines:

(i) In the content areas of reading, writing, math, and science by November 1, 2004;

(b) Subject to available funding, the results of independent research on the alignment and technical review of the reading, writing, and science content areas of the Washington assessment of student learning for fourth and seventh grades and for high school. The review shall be comparable to the research conducted on the mathematics assessments.

(2) By November 30, 2004, the superintendent of public instruction shall report to the governor, the state board of education, and the house of representatives and senate education committees on the feasibility of returning the results of the Washington assessment of student learning, including individual student performance information, to schools, teachers, and parents in the same school year in which the assessment is administered. Subject to available funding, beginning no later than 2006, the results of the math component of the spring administration of the high school Washington assessment of student learning shall be available to students, parents, and schools before June 1st of each year.

(3) By November 30, 2006, subject to available funding, the academic achievement and accountability commission shall report to the governor, the superintendent of public instruction, the state board of education, and the house of representatives and senate education committees on the results of its review of the student performance scores needed to meet all grade level content standards on the Washington assessment of student learning. In its report, the commission shall include a schedule for the regular review and adjustment of the student performance scores. If the commission makes any adjustment of the student performance standards, then the commission shall present the recommended changes to the education committees of the house of representatives and the senate by January 31st of the school year in which the changes will take place in order to permit the legislature to take statutory action before the changes being implemented, if such action is deemed warranted by the legislature.

Sec. 2. RCW 28A.655.070 and 1999 c 388 s 501 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The superintendent of public instruction shall develop essential academic learning requirements that identify the knowledge and skills all public school students need to know and be able to do based on the student learning goals in RCW 28A.150.210, develop student assessments, and implement the accountability recommendations and requests regarding assistance, rewards, and recognition of the academic achievement and accountability commission.

(a) Periodically revise the essential academic learning requirements, as needed, based on the student learning goals in RCW 28A.150.210. Goals one and two shall be considered primary. To the maximum extent possible, the superintendent shall integrate goal four and the knowledge and skill areas in the other goals in the essential academic learning requirements; and

(b) Review and prioritize the essential academic learning requirements and identify, with clear and concise descriptions, the grade level content expectations to be assessed on the Washington assessment of student learning and used for state or federal accountability purposes. The review, prioritization, and identification shall result in more focus and targeting with an emphasis on depth over breadth in the number of grade level content expectations assessed at each grade level. Grade level content expectations shall be articulated over the grades as a sequence of expectations and performances that are logical, build with increasing depth after foundational knowledge and skills are acquired, and reflect, where appropriate, the sequential nature of the discipline.

(3) In consultation with the academic achievement and accountability commission, the superintendent of public instruction shall maintain and continue to develop and revise a statewide academic assessment system in the content areas of reading, writing, mathematics, and science for use in the elementary, middle, and high school years designed to determine if each student has mastered the essential academic learning requirements identified in subsection (1) of this section. The academic assessment system shall include a variety of assessment methods, including criterion-referenced and performance- based measures.

(4) If the superintendent proposes any modification to the essential academic learning requirements or the statewide assessments, then the superintendent shall, upon request, provide opportunities for the education committees of the house of representatives and the senate to review the proposed modifications to the essential academic learning requirements before the modifications are adopted.

(5)(a) The assessment system shall be designed so that the results under the assessment system are used by educators as tools to evaluate instructional practices, and to initiate appropriate educational support for students who have not mastered the essential academic learning requirements at the appropriate periods in the student's educational development.

(((5))) (b) Assessments measuring the essential academic learning requirements in the content areas of reading, writing, mathematics, and science shall be available for voluntary use by school districts and shall be required to be administered by school districts according to the following schedule unless the legislature takes action to delay or prevent implementation of the assessment system and essential academic learning requirements.

	Assessments available for voluntary use (School years)	Assessments required to be administered (School years)
Reading, Writing, Mathematics
- Elementary school	1996-97	1997-98
- Middle school	1997-98	2000-01
- High school	1998-99	2000-01
Science
- High school	2002-03	2003-04
- Middle school	2002-03	2003-04
- Elementary school	2003-04	2004-05

(c) School districts may design, develop, administer, score, and report classroom-based elementary, middle, and/or high school assessments in the content areas of communication, social studies, arts, and health and fitness. Such assessments shall be based on the student learning goals and measure the essential academic learning requirements.

(6) By September 2006, the results for reading and mathematics shall be reported in a format that will allow parents and teachers to determine the academic gain a student has acquired in those content areas from one school year to the next.

(7) In order to assist parents and teachers in their efforts to provide educational support to individual students, including students seeking a scholar's certificate or a certificate of achievement, the superintendent of public instruction shall provide as much individual student performance information as possible within the constraints of the assessment system's item bank. The superintendent shall also provide to school districts information on classroom-based and other assessments that may provide additional achievement information for individual students.

(8) To the maximum extent possible, the superintendent shall integrate knowledge and skill areas in development of the assessments.

(((6))) (9) Assessments for goals three and four of RCW 28A.150.210 shall be integrated in the essential academic learning requirements and assessments for goals one and two.

(((7))) (10) The superintendent shall develop assessments that are directly related to the essential academic learning requirements, and are not biased toward persons with different learning styles, racial or ethnic backgrounds, or on the basis of gender.

(((8))) (11) The superintendent shall consider methods to address the unique needs of special education students when developing the assessments under this section.

(((9))) (12) The superintendent shall consider methods to address the unique needs of highly capable students when developing the assessments under this section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. RCW 28A.655.060 (Essential academic learning requirements--Statewide academic assessment system--Certificate of mastery--Educational pathways--Accountability--Reports and recommendations--Washington commission on student learning, creation and expiration) and 2001 2nd sp.s. c 20 s 1, 1999 c 373 s 501, 1998 c 225 s 1, & 1997 c 268 s 1 are each repealed."

On page 1, line 1 of the title, after "standards;" strike the remainder of the title and insert "amending RCW 28A.655.070; creating a new section; and repealing RCW 28A.655.060."