BILL ANALYSIS Ķ AB 1521 Page 1 Date of Hearing: March 21, 2012 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION Julia Brownley, Chair AB 1521 (Brownley) - As Amended: March 14, 2012 SUBJECT : Pupil assessment SUMMARY : Makes revisions to the state's assessment system by making the standards-aligned primary language assessment available for administration to non-English learners enrolled in dual immersion programs and eliminating various non-federally required assessments, as specified. Specifically, this bill : 1)Authorizes the California Department of Education (CDE) to make the standards- aligned primary language assessment available to school districts to assess non-English learners and redesignated fluent-English proficient (RFEP) pupils enrolled in dual immersion programs that include the primary language of the assessment. 2)Requires a school district that chooses to administer a primary language assessment to do so at its own expense and to enter into an agreement with the state testing contractor for this purpose. 3)Requires the cost for the assessment to be the same for all school districts and prohibits the cost from exceeding the marginal cost of the assessment. 4)Eliminates testing under the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program in grade 9 for English language arts (ELA) and the following end-of-course assessments: Integrated Math 1-3, and Integrated/Coordinated Science 1-4. EXISTING LAW requires: 1)The Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI), with approval of the State Board of Education (SBE), to provide for the development of an assessment instrument, to be called the California Standards Test (CST) that measures the degree to which pupils are achieving the academically rigorous content standards and performance standards, to the extent standards have been adopted by the SBE. AB 1521 Page 2 2)The standards-based achievement tests to include certain subject areas, as specified, and requires, at a minimum, a direct writing assessment once in elementary school and once in middle or junior high school and other items of applied academic skills if deemed valid and reliable, and if resources are made available for their use. 3)A pupil of limited English proficiency, who is enrolled in grades 2 to 11, inclusive, to take a test in his or her primary language if a test is available, and if fewer than 12 months have elapsed after his or her initial enrollment in any public or nonpublic school in the state or if the pupil receives instruction in his or her primary language. FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown COMMENTS : This bill eliminates the non -federally required testing under the STAR Program in grade 9 for English language arts, as well as end-of-course assessments in Integrated Math 1-3 and Integrated/Coordinated Science 1-4. Additionally, this bill makes the standards-aligned primary language assessment available to school districts for administration to their non-English learners enrolled in dual immersion programs. California's state assessment system is comprised of three major testing components: 1) The Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program, including the California Standards Test (CST), the California Modified Assessment (CMA), the California Alternate Performance Assessment (CAPA), the Standards-based Test in Spanish (STS), and the Early Assessment Program (EAP). Below is a summary of the various requirements for pupils under the STAR program: ------------------------------------------------ | Assessment | Grade Level Tested | |--------------------+---------------------------| |English Language | 2-11 | |Arts | | |--------------------+---------------------------| |English Language | 2-11 | |Arts CAPA | | |--------------------+---------------------------| |English Language | 3-11 | AB 1521 Page 3 |Arts CMA | | |--------------------+---------------------------| |Mathematics | 2-8 and EOC* in grades | | | 9-11 | |--------------------+---------------------------| |Mathematics CAPA | 2-11 | |--------------------+---------------------------| |Mathematics CMA | 3-11 | |--------------------+---------------------------| |Science | 5, 8, and EOC* in grades | | | 9-11 | |--------------------+---------------------------| |History-Social | 8-11 | |Science | | |--------------------+---------------------------| |Primary Language |2 -11 | |Assessment | | |(Spanish) | | ------------------------------------------------ *EOC= End-of-course exam 2)The high school exit exam for which the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) is the designated exam. Pupils take the CAHSEE in grade 10 for the first time and can take it up to an additional 2 times in grade 11 and 5 times in grade 12, if the student does not satisfy the requirement for passage. 3)The California English Language Development Test (CELDT), which is administered to pupils whose primary language is not English and are identified as English learners (ELs). The test is administered until ELs are reclassified as fluent English proficient (RFEP). Many elements of the STAR Program are used by California to meet the assessment and accountability requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). NCLB requires each state to administer a standards-aligned achievement test in reading and mathematics to all students in grades 3-8 and grade 10; it also requires science testing in grades 5, 8, and 10. Testing of grade 9 students is not necessary to meet any of these federal requirements. This bill proposes to eliminate testing pupils in English language arts in grade 9 thus the ELA CST, CMA and CAPA would be eliminated, thereby restoring instructional time for pupils. AB 1521 Page 4 The end-of-course integrated assessments in math and science proposed to be eliminated through this bill are not required by federal law nor are they used for federal accountability purposes. Furthermore, the administration of these assessments have experienced a significant 2/3 decrease over the last four years, according to CDE. Below is a chart that shows the number of pupils that took these various end-of-course exams in 2011: ----------------------------------------------- | Assessment | Number of pupils | | | tested in 2011 | |-------------------------+---------------------| |CST Integrated Math 1 |12,018 | |-------------------------+---------------------| |CST Integrated Math 2 |4,506 | |-------------------------+---------------------| |CST Integrated Math 3 |732 | |-------------------------+---------------------| |CST |54,950 | |Integrated/Coordinated | | |Science 1 | | |-------------------------+---------------------| |CST |4,119 | |Integrated/Coordinated | | |Science 2 | | |-------------------------+---------------------| |CST |1,292 | |Integrated/Coordinated | | |Science 3 | | |-------------------------+---------------------| |CST |157 | |Integrated/Coordinated | | |Science 4 | | ----------------------------------------------- Integrated assessments are administered to pupils enrolled in integrated math and/or science courses. These courses incorporate the different disciplines within each subject area. For example, integrated science covers biology, chemistry, physics, and earth science in one course. It should be noted that nothing in this bill would preclude school districts from continuing to offer integrated math and/or science courses. Given the integrated nature of the common core state standards, there is a possibility that integrated assessments will continue to be part of California's assessment system in the future, and AB 1521 Page 5 nothing in this bill prohibits the inclusion of such assessments in a future assessment system. As the state moves to a new set of standards in math and potentially science, there may be opportunities to design high-quality integrated assessments. The author states, "AB 1521 takes a modest step towards streamlining the State's assessment system by eliminating a number of end-of-course exams that are not required by federal law and have in recent years had low student demand. The elimination of various non-essential assessments will streamline the assessment system, generate cost savings, and restore valuable instructional time." Governor Brown has very publicly called for a reduction in the number of assessments that pupils are required to take so as to restore instructional time. In his State of the State address, the Governor stated. "I believe it is time to reduce the number of tests and get the results to teachers, principals and superintendents in weeks, not months." The Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) is currently conducting a review and developing recommendations and a plan for the reauthorization of California's assessment system, as required by AB 250, Chapter 608, Statutes of 2011. The recommendations will guide future work and decisions about California's future assessment system, which will require subsequent legislation. Some could argue that the elimination of any assessment should wait until the SPI issues recommendations on the assessment system. However, others may argue that the elimination of few assessments, as proposed by this bill, does not disrupt the work of the SPI nor does it disrupt the existing assessment and accountability system. Standards-based Tests in Spanish (STS) : SB 1448 (Alpert), Chapter 233, Statutes of 2004, required the development of standards-aligned primary language assessments for English learner pupils. The CDE began the development of the Standards-based Tests in Spanish (STS) in reading/language arts and mathematics in 2006 and started administering the test in 2007 in grades 2-4, inclusive. In 2008 the STS was administered in grades 2-7, inclusive and beginning in 2009, the STS was administered in grades 2-11, inclusive. Additionally, algebra 1 and geometry end-of-course exams are also available in Spanish. According to CDE's Standardized Testing and Reporting Program: Annual Report to the Legislature, Spanish is the only language AB 1521 Page 6 for which a primary language test has been designated because no tests for languages other than Spanish have been submitted by bidders to the SBE for consideration in response to requests for submission. The STS is currently administered to English learners (ELs) who either receive instruction in their primary language or have been enrolled in a school in the United States (U.S.) for less than 12 months and these tests are administered in addition to the English California Standards Test (CST) in reading/language arts and mathematics. The STS results are not used for state or federal accountability purposes. At the option of a school district, the STS can be administered to an EL pupil who has been enrolled in the U.S. for 12 months or more and who is not receiving instruction in his or her primary language. Currently, school districts that operate Spanish/English dual immersion programs are not authorized to administer the STS to native English speakers or to redesignated fluent-English-proficient (RFEP) pupils enrolled in these programs. The reason behind this is that the intent of developing these tests was to provide English learners a means of demonstrating mastery of the standards in their primary language. However an argument can be made that these assessments can be a valuable tool to provide information to teachers relative to how native English speakers enrolled in dual immersion programs are doing in acquiring academic content in the Spanish language. Pupils enrolled in Spanish/English dual immersion programs that start with a 90/10 model in kindergarten and continuing in the program year after year, can find themselves in a situation in which by the time they are required to take the state assessments in grade 2, their dominant academic language is Spanish, yet they have to take the CST in English. This creates a potential scenario in which these pupils may feel disadvantaged if given an assessment in a language other than the language they are predominantly instructed in. Dual language education programs integrate native English speakers and native speakers of the target language to provide instruction presented through two languages. Dual language education programs, also known as bilingual immersion, dual language immersion, two-way immersion, or two-way bilingual programs, have the goal of developing bilingualism and biliteracy in English and another language. AB 1521 Page 7 Allowing English speaking pupils enrolled in dual immersion program to take the primary language assessment does not eliminate the requirement for these pupils to take the CST in English and does not replace it for state accountability purposes, but it rather offers school districts an additional tool to measure progress of these pupils. Arguments in support: The Superintendent of Public Instruction, the sponsor of this bill, writes, "AB 1521 proposes to streamline the state's assessment system by eliminating several high school level assessments that are not federally mandated. California students spend countless hours of their classroom experience taking numerous assessments. Living in a globally competitive market place, California students need to have as much time as possible to receive instruction and thereby learn the skills that will best equip them for college and careers upon completion of high school. The elimination of some of the non-federally required assessments will free up some of the hours that students spend taking assessments and allow for more instruction and hands-on learning. Additionally, the elimination of various non-federally mandated assessments will streamline the assessment system and generate cost savings to the state." Previous legislation : AB 250 (Brownley), Chapter 608, Statutes of 2011, establishes a process for the implementation of the common core academic content standards by developing and adopting curriculum frameworks, instructional materials, and professional development opportunities that are aligned to the common core academic content standards and are appropriate for all pupils. AB 250 also extends the operative date of the Standardized Testing and Reporting program by one year, to July 2014 and requires the SPI to develop recommendations and a plan for the reauthorization of the state's assessment system. AB 409 (Alejo) authorizes the administration of a primary language assessment to nonlimited-English-proficient and redesignated fluent-English-proficient (RFEP) pupils enrolled in dual immersion programs. AB 409 was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee. AB 252 (Coto) of 2007, a substantially similar measure, authorizes the CDE, subject to approval by the SBE and the Department of Finance, to make a primary language assessment available to public schools for use in assessing AB 1521 Page 8 nonlimited-English-proficient pupils enrolled in a dual language immersion program that includes the primary language of the assessment. AB 252 was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger with the following veto message: "English-speaking pupils who have voluntarily enrolled in dual language immersion programs are currently required to take the California Standards Test in English. Therefore, another assessment is not needed to measure their mastery of state-adopted academic content standards in another language. Furthermore, I am concerned that this bill creates significant General Fund cost pressures for the state to develop standards-aligned primary language tests in other languages. Given the state's current fiscal climate it is not prudent for me to enact this measure." REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION : Support State Superintendent of Public Instruction (Sponsor) California Association for Bilingual Education Californians Together Coalition Opposition None on file. Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Aviņa / ED. / (916) 319-2087