AN
ACT Relating to student achievement accountability; amending RCW 28A.300.320
and 28A.230.190; adding a new section to chapter 28A.630 RCW; creating new
sections; and providing expiration dates.
BE IT
ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
PART
I
ESTABLISHMENT OF
READING ACCOUNTABILITY GOALS
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 101. (1)
By December 15, 1998, each school district board of directors shall:
(a)
Select the reading standard results on either the 1997 or 1998 Washington
assessment of student learning as the school district's initial baseline
reading standard;
(b)
Establish a three-year, district-wide goal to increase, by the end of the
2000-01 school year, the percentage of students who meet or exceed the reading
standard on the fourth grade Washington assessment of student learning. The
three-year percentage increase goal may not be less than the district's total
percentage of students who did not meet the baseline reading standard
multiplied by twenty-five percent;
(c)
Specify the annual district-wide percentage improvement increments to meet the
three-year goal; and
(d)
Direct each elementary school to establish a three-year goal for its fourth
grade students, subject to approval by the board. The aggregate of the
elementary goals must meet or exceed the district-wide goals established by the
board.
(2)
Each school district board of directors shall:
(a)
Report biannually to parents in writing and to the community in a public
meeting the following information:
(i)
District-wide and school-level three-year goals;
(ii)
Student performance relative to the goals; and
(iii)
District-wide and school-level plans to achieve the reading goal in
kindergarten through fourth grade, including grade-level expectations,
curriculum and instruction, parental or guardian involvement, and resources
available to parents and guardians to help students meet the reading standard;
(b)
Report annually to the superintendent of public instruction and in a news
release to the local media the district's progress toward meeting the
district-wide and school-level goals; and
(c)
Include the reported information in each school's annual school performance
report under RCW 28A.320.205.
(3)
By December 1, 2000, the superintendent of public instruction shall report to
the education committees of the house of representatives and the senate on the
progress that has been made in achieving the three-year reading goal, and
provide recommendations to the legislature on setting reading goals for the
next three years.
(4)
This section expires July 1, 2006.
PART
II
ADMINISTRATION
OF READING ASSESSMENTS
Sec.
201. RCW
28A.300.320 and 1997 c 262 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
The superintendent of public instruction shall create a pilot project to
identify which second grade reading tests selected under RCW 28A.300.310 will
be included in the final collection of tests that must be available by June 30,
1998.
(2)
Schools and school districts may voluntarily participate in the second grade
reading test pilot projects in the 1997-98 school year. Schools and school
districts voluntarily participating in the pilot project test are not required
to have the results available by the fall parent-teacher conference.
(3)(a)
Starting in the 1998-99 school year, school districts must select a test from
the collection adopted by the superintendent of public instruction. Selection
must be at the entire school district level and must remain in place at that
school district for at least three years.
(b)
The second grade reading test selected by the school district must be
administered annually in the fall beginning with the 1998-99 school year.
Students who score substantially below grade level when tested in the fall
shall be tested at least one more time during the second grade. Test
performance deemed to be "substantially below grade level" is to be
determined for each test in the collection by the superintendent of public
instruction during the pilot year of 1997-98.
(c)
If a student, while taking the test, reaches a point at which the student's
performance will be considered "substantially below grade level" regardless
of the student's performance on the remainder of the test, the test may be
discontinued.
(d) Each school must have the test results available by the fall
parent-teacher conference. Schools must notify parents about the second grade
reading test during the conferences, inform the parents of their students'
performance on the test, identify actions the school intends to take to improve
the child's reading skills, and provide parents with strategies to help the
parents improve their child's score.
Sec.
202. RCW
28A.230.190 and 1997 c 262 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
((Every school district is encouraged to test pupils in grade two by an
assessment device designed or selected by the school district. This test shall
be used to help teachers in identifying those pupils in need of assistance in
the skills of reading, writing, mathematics, and language arts. The test
results are not to be compiled by the superintendent of public instruction, but
are only to be used by the local school district.)) School districts shall
test students for second grade reading accuracy and fluency skills starting in
the 1998-99 school year as provided in RCW 28A.300.320.
(2)
The superintendent of public instruction shall prepare and conduct, with the
assistance of school districts, a norm-referenced standardized
achievement test to be given annually to all pupils in grade ((four)) three.
The test shall assess students' skill in reading((,)) and
mathematics, ((and language arts)) and shall focus upon appropriate
input variables. Results of such tests shall be compiled by the superintendent
of public instruction, who shall make those results available annually to the
legislature, to all local school districts and subsequently to parents of those
children tested. The results shall allow parents to ascertain the achievement
levels and input variables of their children as compared with the other
students within the district, the state and, if applicable, the nation.
(3)
The superintendent of public instruction shall report annually to the
legislature on the achievement levels of students in grade ((four)) three.
PART
III
REPORTING
ASSESSMENT RESULTS
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 301. A
new section is added to chapter 28A.630 RCW to read as follows:
(1)
By September 10, 1998, and by September 10th each year thereafter, the superintendent
of public instruction shall:
(a)
Report to schools, school districts, and the legislature on the results of the
fourth grade Washington assessment of student learning; and
(b)
Post individual school results of the fourth grade Washington assessment of
student learning on the superintendent of public instruction's internet
world-wide web site. The reports shall include the assessment results by
school and school district, and include changes over time.
(2)
This section expires July 1, 2006.
PART
IV
MISCELLANEOUS
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 401. PART
HEADINGS NOT LAW. Part headings used in this act are not any part of the law.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 402. If
specific funding for the purposes of this act, referencing this act by bill or
chapter number, is not provided by June 30, 1998, in the omnibus appropriations
act, this act is null and void.
