BILL ANALYSIS Ķ
AB 1705
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 18, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Julia Brownley, Chair
AB 1705 (Silva) - As Introduced: February 15, 2012
SUBJECT : Pupil assessment: high school exit examination:
eligible pupils with disabilities
SUMMARY : Delays implementation of the high school exit exam
(HSEE) alternatives for eligible pupils with disabilities until
July 1, 2015. Specifically, this bill :
1)Deletes the date of October 1, 2010 as the date by when the
State Board of Education (SBE) is required to adopt
regulations for implementing alternative means for eligible
pupils with disabilities to demonstrate that they have
achieved the same level of academic achievement in the content
standards required for passage of the HSEE.
2)Delays from January 1, 2011 to July 1, 2015 the date by when
eligible pupils with disabilities shall be allowed to
participate in HSEE alternatives.
3)Revises the definition of "eligible pupil with a disability"
to define a pupil who meets specified criteria and has an
expected graduation date of July 1, 2015, instead of January
1, 2011, and has satisfied all other state and local
graduation requirements by July 1, 2015, instead of January 1,
2011.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires pupils, beginning with the Class of 2004, to
successfully pass the HSEE as a condition of receiving a
diploma of graduation. As a result of action taken by SBE,
this requirement took effect beginning with the Class of 2006.
(Education Code Section (EC) 60851)
2)Allows parents to request and school districts to grant a
waiver of the requirement to successfully pass the HSEE for a
pupil with a disability who has taken the HSEE with
modifications and has received the equivalent of a passing
score on one or both subject matters of the exam, if certain
conditions are met. (EC 60851)
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3)Allows a pupil with disabilities to continue to receive
special education and related services until age 22 if he or
she had an individualized education program (IEP) prior to age
18 and has not yet completed his or her prescribed course of
study or has not met proficiency standards or has not
graduated from high school with a diploma. (EC 56026)
4)Requires by October 1, 2010, the SBE, taking into
consideration specified findings and recommendations, to adopt
regulations for alternative means by which eligible pupils
with disabilities, as defined, may demonstrate that they have
achieved the same level of academic achievement in the content
standards required for passage of the HSSE. (EC 60852.1)
5)Defines an eligible pupil with a disability as a pupil who
has, among other things, an anticipated graduation date and is
scheduled to receive a high school diploma on or after January
1, 2011, and the school district or state special school
certifies that the pupil has satisfied or will satisfy all
other state and local requirements for the receipt of a high
school diploma on or after January 1, 2011. (EC 60852.2)
6)Authorizes an eligible pupil with a disability, commencing
January 1, 2011, to participate in the alternative means of
demonstrating the level of academic achievement in the content
standards required for passage of the HSEE in the manner
prescribed by the regulations adopted by the SBE. (EC
60852.2)
7)Exempts, commencing with the 2009-10 school year, eligible
pupils with disabilities from the requirement to satisfy the
HSEE as a condition of high school graduation; and specifies
that this exemption shall last until the SBE makes a
determination that the alternative means are not feasible or
that the alternative means are implemented. (EC 60852.3)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : All California pupils are required to pass a high
school exit exam, in addition to meeting all other state and
local requirements, in order to receive a high school diploma.
A temporary exemption for eligible pupils with disabilities was
enacted in 2009 and is currently in place until the SBE makes a
determination that alternative means are not feasible or are
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implemented. Pupils with disabilities encounter particular
difficulties in meeting the high school exit exam requirement
for high school graduation, and according to the California High
School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) 2011 Evaluation Report, "While there
has been some improvement for students in special education,
less than one quarter of these students met the CAHSEE
requirement in grade ten." Additionally, results for the Class
of 2010 show that only 53% of pupils receiving special education
services in the Class of 2010 met the HSEE requirement by the
end of their senior year.
Alternative means to HSEE : AB 2040 (Nuņez), Chapter 666,
Statutes of 2008, required the convening of a panel to make
recommendations regarding alternative means to satisfy the HSEE
graduation requirement for eligible pupils with disabilities.
Current law specifies that eligible pupils with disabilities
shall be allowed to participate in alternative means commencing
January 1, 2011 and allows the SBE, by regulation, to extend
this date by up to two years, if it determines an extension is
necessary for appropriate implementation. The SBE determined
that alternative means are feasible and adopted regulations
establishing July 1, 2012 as the implementation date for the
alternative means, however the California Department of
Education (CDE) does not feel this implementation date is
feasible given that very few districts had an opportunity to
participate in the alternative means pilot and CDE feels not
enough information was produced to truly evaluate the
alternative means option, and to get a more comprehensive pilot
underway would be costly.
This bill extends the implementation date of the alternative
means to July 1, 2015.
New standards and future assessments : Since the passage of AB
2040 in 2008, other developments dealing with standards and
assessments have developed. In 2010, California adopted the
common core state standards, replacing the set of standards in
English language arts and mathematics that the HSEE currently
assesses, hence any alternative means that are developed and
implemented now could soon be irrelevant as they would not be
based on the new standards. A next step will be to align
California's assessment system to the new common core state
standards, and to that end, California has joined a national
assessment consortium, the SMARTER Balanced Assessment
Consortium to prepare a common set of assessments based on the
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common core standards.
Furthermore, in anticipation of the upcoming reauthorization of
the state's assessment system, AB 250 (Brownley), Chapter 608,
Statutes of 2011, requires the Superintendent of Public
Instruction (SPI) to develop recommendations based on various
elements, including a plan to transition to a new statewide
pupil assessment. The plan and the recommendations may address
and include recommendations about the HSEE. According to the
sponsor of this bill, the SPI, "To implement alternative means
aligned to the content standards currently assessed by the
CAHSEE could be costly and would likely be for a relatively
small number of students potentially for a short period of
time." There is a level of uncertainly about what California's
future assessment system will look like and thus it may be
prudent to provide more time to appropriately coordinate and
align all assessment efforts particularly in consideration of
the new common core state standards.
The author notes that the date change as proposed by this bill
is necessary because, "While the state has determined that it is
feasible to create alternative means for eligible students to
satisfy the CAHSEE requirement, it would be unlikely to complete
its studies and fully implement it by the dates set forth in AB
2040 and it would be inefficient to do so while also
implementing a different set of standards in the coming years
that have been recently adopted."
Pupils with disabilities exempted from HSEE : AB 2 4X (Evans),
Chapter 2, Statutes of 2009, Fourth Extraordinary Session,
exempts eligible pupils with disabilities from the HSEE
requirement until the SBE makes a determination that alternative
means are not feasible or that the alternative means are
implemented. Pupils with disabilities are still required, in
grade ten only, to take the HSEE to meet state and federal
requirements. The SBE adopted regulations establishing July 1,
2012 as the implementation date for the alternative means which
means that the HSEE exemption for pupils with disabilities
expires on June 30, 2012. While the SBE has the authority to
extend that date to January 1, 2013, this still leaves pupils
with disabilities with expected graduation dates after January
1, 2013, without an option for an exemption and without the
ability to demonstrate competency through alternative means.
Because the statute ties the HSEE exemption to the operative
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date of the alternative means, delaying implementation of the
alternative means also has the effect of extending the exemption
from meeting the HSEE requirement for eligible pupils with
disabilities to July 1, 2015. Pupils eligible for this
exemption are still required to meet all other state and local
graduation requirements to obtain a high school diploma. The
IEP of the eligible pupil has to indicate that the pupil is
scheduled to receive a high school diploma and that the pupil
has satisfied or will satisfy all graduation requirements.
Because an IEP has to be signed and agreed to by the pupil's
parent or education rights holder, there is a role for parents,
guardians or education rights holders in this process.
Local waiver process : Under existing law, in addition to the
aforementioned exemption, there is also a local waiver process
in place for pupils with disabilities whose IEP or Section 504
Plan specifies the need for accommodations or modifications when
taking assessments, including the HSEE. Students who use an
accommodation, defined by CDE as a change in the testing
environment or process that does not alter what is intended to
be tested, and earn a score of 350 or higher on either part of
the exam have passed that part of the exit exam. Nevertheless,
students who use a modification on one or both parts of the exam
and have earned the equivalent of a passing score, have not
passed that part of the exam, because their scores are
invalidated as a result of having used a modification.
Modifications, according to CDE, alter what is intended to be
tested, therefore the score report is marked "not valid" for the
part of the exam for which a modification was used. These
students are eligible to request a waiver of the requirement to
pass that part of the exam and thus receive a diploma, provided
they have met all other graduation requirements. The process
for this waiver starts with a parents or guardian of a pupil
with disabilities asking the school principal to submit a
request to the local school board for this waiver on behalf of
the pupil. The school board may waive the HSEE requirement for
the pupil if the principal of the school certifies that the
specified requirements have been met. Arguments have been made
that the existing local waiver process is cumbersome and still
requires pupils with disabilities to receive a passing score in
order to be eligible for a local waiver.
Special education pupil exit data : CDE's data on special
education pupil exit data shows that the overall rate of pupils
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with disabilities aged 17, 18 and 19 years old leaving high
school with a regular diploma has increased over the past three
years, from 62% in 2009, to 77% in 2010, and 81% in 2011.
The percentage of pupils with disabilities receiving diplomas
without waivers or exemptions has also increased from 56% in
2009 to 60% in 2010 and 2011. The dropout rates of pupils with
disabilities have decreased over the past three years. 16% of
pupils with disabilities dropped out in 2009, 14% in 2010, and
12% in 2011.
The number of pupils with disabilities receiving a diploma using
an exemption has increased in direct proportion to the decrease
in the number of pupils with disabilities receiving a
certificate of completion. The exemption did not exist in 2009
and that year, 21% of pupils with disabilities received
certificates of completion. In 2010, 11% of pupils with
disabilities received a high school diploma using an exemption
and 8% received certificates of completion. In 2011, 15% of
pupils with disabilities received a high school diploma using an
exemption and 7% received certificates of completion.
The percentage of pupils with disabilities graduating with a
diploma using a waiver has remained constant at 6% over the past
three years.
Other alternatives under consideration : Existing law
authorizes the SBE to grant waivers that are necessary or
beneficial to the content and implementation of a pupil's IEP.
Based on this authority, at the March 7-8, 2012 meeting of the
SBE, the CDE recommended the SBE to develop a streamlined waiver
policy to waive the HSEE graduation requirement to provide
relief to pupils with disabilities who have taken the HSEE
without passing one or both portions, but have demonstrated
competency by achieving a scale score on the Standardized
Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program's California Standards Test
(CST) or California Modified Assessment (CMA) in
English-language arts (ELA) and/or Algebra I that would
approximate a passing score on the ELA and/or mathematics
portions of the HSEE. A streamlined waiver policy would allow
waiver requests that meet the policy to be heard by the SBE on
its waiver consent calendar. According to information on the
March 2012 SBE agenda, the CDE would be working with the
Advisory Commission on Special Education on a proposed waiver
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policy to present at the next SBE meeting for approval.
Suggested amendment : This bill delays implementation to July 1,
2015, but retains the ability for the SBE to extend this date by
two years through regulation. The future of the HSEE is
uncertain, but in the event that the HSEE remains in place after
revisions to the state's assessment system are made, it is
unclear as to why it is necessary to allow the SBE to extend the
implementation date even further. If HSEE stays in place, some
would argue that the alternative means for pupils with
disabilities should be available at the same time as a new HSEE
is operative and the alignment to the new standards should be
taking place concurrently as with any other assessments.
According to CDE, there may not be a need for an additional
extension after 2015, but given the uncertainties regarding the
HSEE at the present time, the CDE would like to retain the
ability to extend the timeline, in the event they need
additional time to align the alternatives to the common core
standards. Staff recommends , limiting the authority of the SBE
to extend the implementation date to a maximum of one year after
July 1, 2015.
Arguments in support : The State Superintendent of Public
Instruction, the sponsor of this bill, states, "AB 1705 will
allow the California Department of Education and the State Board
of Education to fairly and efficiently implement the AB 2040
requirements in conjunction with the Common Core State
Standards, allowing the dates and timelines to be brought in
line with each other."
The California School Boards Association writes, "AB 1705 will
move the date for implementation of the CAHSEE alternative means
test into alignment with the adoption and implementation of new
statewide assessment instruments. This will give the Department
and the Board time to complete their work and integrate it with
the 'common core state standards' on or near the same dates."
The California Advisory Commission on Special Education (ACSE)
writes, "The ACSE believes that maintaining the current
exemption until such time as the State's new assessment system
is in place appropriately addresses current needs, and
implementing an alternative means of demonstrating academic
achievement in conjunction with the new assessment system are in
the best interest of student with disabilities."
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Arguments in opposition : Learning Disabilities Association of
California has an "oppose unless amended" position on this bill
and writes, "We are seeing substantial 'pushout' of students
with disabilities -involuntary graduations over students' and
parents' well-founded objections. Students who are eager to
keep learning are losing their right to services because, when
they graduate with a regular diploma, eligibility for special
education ends. Students with less severe disabilities are at
greatest risk for such pushout."
The California Association for Parent Child Advocacy writes
"CAHSEE exemption provisions which were intended to protect
students with disabilities from tests that did not actually
measure their subject matter competency have been transformed in
practice into overreaching policies of issuing 'diplomas' to
students who do not have, and in some cases have no capacity to
acquire, the skills California has designated as essential for
high school graduation." Additionally, the letter suggests
amendments to a section of the Education Code not amended by
this bill. The amendments would make the exemption allowable to
eligible pupils with disabilities for whom the educational
rights holder has requested an exemption or for whom a hearing
officer has determined that the pupil has requisite skills to
pass HSEE and meets graduation requirements.
Previous legislation : AB 2 4X (Evans), Chapter 2, Statutes of
2009, Fourth Extraordinary Session, exempts eligible pupils with
disabilities from the HSEE requirement until the SBE makes a
determination that alternative means are not feasible or that
the alternative means are implemented.
AB 2040 (Nuņez), Chapter 666, Statutes of 2008, requires the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to recommend, and the
State Board of Education to select, members of a panel that will
convene to make recommendations regarding alternative means for
eligible pupils with disabilities to demonstrate that they have
achieved the same level of academic achievement in the content
standards in English language arts or mathematics, or both,
required for passage of the high school exit exam (HSEE).
Provides that commencing January 1, 2011, an eligible pupil with
a disability who has fulfilled all of the requirements for a
high school diploma except passage of the HSEE may demonstrate
through alternative means that they have achieved the same level
of academic achievement required for passage of the HSEE.
Authorizes the SBE to extend the implementation date by up to
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two years if it determines that an extension is necessary for
the appropriate implementation of the regulations adopted
pursuant to this bill.
SB 123 (Romero) of 2007 provides eligible pupils with
disabilities who have fulfilled all of the requirements for a
high school diploma except passage of the high school exit exam
the opportunity to receive a diploma by demonstrating through a
standardized evidence-based assessment that they have acquired
the same knowledge and skills necessary to pass the high school
exit exam. SB 123 was vetoed with the following message:
While I appreciate the author's continued efforts to
provide pupils with disabilities with other
opportunities to demonstrate that they meet the same
content standards of the California High School Exit
Exam (CAHSEE), this bill is premature. The State
Board of Education (SBE) and the California Department
of Education (CDE) is nearing a final settlement
agreement with plaintiffs in the case of Chapman, et
al. v. the California Department of Education, et al.
This bill will not only interfere with current legal
negotiations, but it also circumvents the SBE's
authority.
In May 2007, the Superintendent of Public Instruction
recommended, and the SBE concurred, that the CAHSEE
continue as a graduation requirement for special
education students. This bill would hinder that
effort.
SB 517 (Romero), Chapter 3, Statutes of 2006, exempts pupils
with disabilities, until December 31, 2006, from the requirement
of passing the high school exit exam as a condition of receiving
a high school diploma, if they meet certain criteria.
SB 267 (Romero), Chapter 629, Statutes of 2006, extends, until
December 31, 2007, provisions exempting pupils with disabilities
from the requirement of passing the high school exit exam as a
condition of receiving a high school diploma, if they meet
certain criteria and requires the SPI to recommend to the
Legislature a course of action to adopt regarding pupils with
disabilities who have met all other state and local graduation
requirements, but who are unable to satisfy the CAHSEE
requirement or obtain a local waiver under current law.
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SB 964 (Burton), Chapter 803, Statutes of 2003, called for an
independent consultant, advised by an appointed advisory panel,
to prepare a report that assessed options and provided
recommendations for alternatives to the high school exit exam
for students with disabilities.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
State Superintendent of Public Instruction (Sponsor)
Association of California School Administrators
California Advisory Commission on Special Education
California County Boards of Education
California School Boards Association
California Teachers Association
School for Integrated Academics and Technologies
Opposition
Learning Disabilities Association of California (Unless amended)
California Association for Parent Child Advocacy (Unless
amended)
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Aviņa / ED. / (916) 319-2087