BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 484
PageA
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 484 (Bonilla)
As Amended May 24, 2013
2/3 vote. Urgency
EDUCATION 6-0 APPROPRIATIONS 12-3
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|Ayes:|Buchanan, Campos, Chávez, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, |
| |Nazarian, Ammiano, | |Bradford, |
| |Williams | |Ian Calderon, Campos, |
| | | |Eggman, Gomez, Hall, |
| | | |Ammiano, Pan, Quirk, |
| | | |Weber |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | |Nays:|Donnelly, Linder, Wagner |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Extends authorization for the state's K-12 assessment
system from July 1, 2014, to January 1, 2024, and renames it the
California Measurement of Academic Performance and Progress for the
21st Century (CalMAPP21) and suspends non-core subject area
California Standards Assessments (CSTs) administered under the
Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program, beginning in the
2013-14 school year, until new assessments addressing the Common
Core State Standards (CCSS) are developed and implemented.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Defines CalMAPP21 as the comprehensive assessment system using a
variety of assessment approaches and item types in both the
federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) required and
non-required ESEA subject areas.
2)Requires only the following STAR assessments to be administered
beginning in the 2013-14 school year: a) core subject area CSTs
in grades 3-11 necessary to satisfy the federal No Child Left
Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB - current version of the ESEA), and b)
assessments augmented as part of the Early Assessment Program
(EAP) in grade l1 until new CCSS assessments are developed and
implemented. The California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) is not
addressed in this bill.
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3)Requires all local educational agencies (LEAs) and charter
schools, beginning in the 2014-15 school year, to administer
consortium assessments in English Language Arts (ELA) and
mathematics in grades 3-8 and grade 11 and use these assessments
to replace STAR assessments to satisfy federal ESEA requirements.
4)Exempts pupils in grades 9 and 10 from taking the achievement
tests specified in existing law, as these assessments are not
necessary to meet the federal accountability requirements.
5)Eliminates the administration of grade 2 assessments, but requires
the California Department of Education (CDE), contingent on
funding for this purpose and by December 1, 2014, to identify
existing grade 2 assessments in ELA and mathematics available for
diagnostic use by LEAs and charter schools.
6)Exempts, using existing federal flexibility, recently arrived
English Language (EL) pupils from taking the consortium ELA
assessment.
7)Permits the governing board of a school district to administer the
existing primary language assessment as specified, until a
subsequent primary language assessment aligned to the CCSS in
English language arts is adopted.
8)Eliminates existing apportionment funding for the administration
of the following: a) other achievement tests in grades other than
those required under CalMAPP21, b) alternative assessment for
individuals with exceptional needs, and c) the primary language
assessments.
9)Authorizes the CDE, beginning with the 2013-14 school year, to
make available to districts and charter schools suspended STAR
test forms and specifies that those who choose to administer
suspended assessments to do so at their own expense, as specified.
10)Authorizes CDE to enter into contracts to implement CalMAPP21 and
requires the State Board of Education (SBE), as it deems
necessary, to revise state assessment regulations for the purpose
of implementing the new assessment system.
11)Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI), with SBE
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approval, to provide for the development of an alternative
assessment for individuals with special needs and the degree by
which pupils are achieving the academically rigorous content
standards.
12)Requires the SPI to make recommendations to the SBE regarding
science tests required under NCLB within six months of the
adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). This
bill also specifies that this recommendation shall include a plan
for test development that begins no later than July 1, 2014, as
well as the costs estimates for development and implementation of
these assessments.
13)Requires the SPI to consult with stakeholders and subject matter
experts in determining how to assess non-required ESEA subject
areas, including, but not limited to, science, mathematics,
history-social science, technology, and visual and performing
arts. This involves developing a plan by January 15, 2015, as
specified.
14)Relating to summative assessments for ELA in primary languages
other than English, this bill requires all of the following:
a) Requires the SPI, by November 2014, to consult with
stakeholders (including EL experts) to determine if a
stand-alone ELA and mathematics primary language assessment is
needed to supplement the consortium assessment. This bill
specifies that the intent of the Legislature is that an
assessment developed pursuant to this provision be included in
the state's accountability system.
b) Requires the SPI to report and make recommendations to the
SBE no later than November 30, 2014, regarding the
implementation timeline and costs for a stand-alone ELA
summative assessment in primary languages other than English.
c) Requires the SPI to develop and administer a primary
language assessment no later than the 2016-17 school year.
1)Requires CDE to administer an LEA survey to determine how school
districts are progressing toward implementation of a
technology-enabled assessment system and update the results
biannually. Further requires the SPI to make recommendations to
the Legislature, on or before January 31, 2014, to identify LEA
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needs in order to implement the system.
2)Requires CDE to contract for a multi-year independent evaluation
of the assessments, with evaluation reports every three years.
3)Requires the SPI to submit an annual report to the SBE containing
an analysis of the results of the summative assessments
administered under the CalMAPP21 and simultaneously make this
report available on the Internet.
4)Requires the SPI to periodically report to the SBE on the
implementation of the CalMAPP21.
5)Requires the SPI to make recommendations to the SBE regarding the
development of a transitional Academic Performance Index (API) for
use as California transitions from the STAR Program to the
CalMAPP21.
6)Identifies this as an urgency statute with an effective date of
July 1, 2013.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Education Committee, the
fiscal effects of this bill are as follows:
1)CalMAPP21 Costs<1> :
a) 2013-14 Fiscal Year (FY) : Total General Fund/Proposition 98
STAR contract and apportionment savings of approximately $15.1
million to only administer the required ESEA assessments. Of
this savings, approximately $11.3 million is contract savings
and $3.8 million is apportionment savings. The state provides
LEAs and charter schools with an apportionment reimbursement of
$2.52 per pupil for administering these assessments.
b) 2014-15 FY and beyond : While the actual costs of
administering the Summative Multi-State Assessment Resources
for Teachers and Educational Researchers (SMARTER) Balanced
Consortium assessments are not finalized, initial estimates
indicate annual total costs would be approximately $97.1
-----------------------------
<1>These costs are General Fund/Proposition 98 only and do not
include federal funds. The state does receive federal NCLB Title VI
funds to offset state assessments costs for the STAR program, the
CAHSEE, and the California English Language Development Test.
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million General Fund/Proposition 98 at full implementation,
which is approximately $31.1 million General Fund/Proposition
98 more than currently being allocated annually for the STAR
program at full implementation. This assumes grades 3-11 are
assessed ($66.4 million) and grade 9, 11, and 12 receive an
"add-on" assessment ($30.7 million). The consortium
assessments are vastly different than the current STAR
assessments. For example, these assessments are designed to be
online and computer adaptive as opposed to the paper - and -
pencil STAR assessments currently administered to pupils.
Likewise, there will be optional initial and formative
assessments as part of this system. These assessments will be
given throughout the year to help teachers and administrators
receive interim data on how pupils are progressing on academic
content throughout the year.
2)Other Costs :
a) General Fund administrative costs to CDE, likely between
$500,000 and $1 million, to convene stakeholder groups to
discuss the development of an alternative assessment for
individuals with exceptional needs, a science assessment
aligned to the NGSS, and standards-aligned primary language
assessment for EL pupils, as specified.
b) General Fund/Proposition 98 cost pressure, at least in the
tens of millions, to CDE to develop non-required ESEA
assessments (e.g., history-social science, science tests at the
high school level, primary language assessments, and high
school math assessments) and the assessments referenced above
for individuals with exceptional needs and EL pupils.
c) General Fund/Proposition 98 costs likely between $500,000
and $1 million, to CDE to contract for a multi-year,
independent evaluation of CalMAPP21, as specified.
COMMENTS :
Background : California's state assessment program is comprised of
three major testing components, the STAR Program, the English
language development test (the California English Language
Development Test, (CELDT), is the adopted test), and a high school
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exit examination (the California High School Exit Examination,
CAHSEE, is currently the designated test). The program also
includes a number of smaller, more specialized assessments.
The STAR Program, initially authorized in 1997, requires testing of
students in English language arts, mathematics, science, and
history/social science at specified grade levels. Today, the STAR
Program includes the CSTs, the California Alternate Performance
Assessment (CAPA) administered to students with significant
cognitive disabilities, the California Modified Assessment (CMA)
administered to students whose disabilities preclude them from
achieving grade-level proficiency on an assessment of the California
content standards with or without testing accommodations, and a
Standards-based Test in Spanish (STS) that is administered to
Spanish speaking English learners who have been in school in the
U.S. less than 12 months or who are receiving instruction in
Spanish. Results for STAR tests are reported for the individual
pupil, but no accountability attaches to these individual results;
the state and federal accountability systems are primarily based on
the aggregated STAR test scores from all pupils in a school or
school district.
Consortium Assessments : This bill defines consortium assessments as
those assessments developed by a multistate collaborative organized
to develop a comprehensive system of assessments or formative tools.
For California, this means the SMARTER Balanced Consortium (SBAC).
SBAC is a national consortium of 25 states that have been working
collaboratively to develop a student assessment system aligned with
the CCSS. On June 9, 2011, California joined SBAC as a governing
state, which allows California to participate in decision-making.
The SBAC is developing an assessment system that will be complete in
time for administration during the 2014-15 school year. It will
measure ELA and mathematics in grades 3 through 8 and grade 11
across the full range of the CCSS. It is important to note that
California's schools may struggle to transition to an online
computer adaptive system. In response, the SBAC has ensured it will
make available a paper-and-pencil administration option for the
summative assessment available to states for three years following
the launch of the assessment system (through 2016-17). This bill
also contemplates participation in a similar consortium that may
develop around the assessment of the NGSS which are scheduled to be
considered by the SBE in the Fall of 2013.
Suspension of STAR Program : This bill suspends, effective July 1,
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2013, the administration of assessments required as a part of the
STAR Program except for those assessments in the core subject
necessary to satisfy the Adequate Yearly Progress requirements of
ESEA. ESEA requires assessments in ELA and mathematics to all
students in grades 3 to 8, inclusive and grade 10 and science
assessments in grades 5, 8, and 10. In the 2014-15 school year with
the requirement to use the consortium assessments for ELA and
mathematics, this will require the STAR Program only for science
testing in grade 5, 8, and 10. It is important to note that there
may be unintended consequences of suspending the STAR Program. For
example, there are already numerous complaints of a narrowed
curriculum; would this narrowing be intensified by assessments that
include only ELA, mathematics, and science? In the Assembly
Education Committee the author committed to a holistic approach to
this assessment system that is consistent with the stated purpose of
this system, including the use of assessments as one performance
measure of many, without using assessments to drive instruction.
Requirement to Develop Assessments for All Academic Content Standard
Areas :
This bill calls for the development of assessments in content areas
that are currently not included in the statewide assessment program
including assessments that measure the degree to which pupils are
achieving the academic content standards in visual and performing
arts, foreign languages, physical education, and history/social
science. The bill does not specify the grade levels or frequency of
the assessments to be developed, but does suggests a drastic
expansion of the existing assessment system. In the Assembly
Education Committee the author committed to developing a timetable
by which the SPI must develop each of the identified assessments.
Related legislation :
SB 247 (Liu), eliminates the requirement that assessments be
administered to pupils in grade 2 pursuant to the STAR Program,
beginning July 1, 2014, requires the CDE to make available to school
districts existing diagnostic assessments that are appropriate for
grade 2, and extends the STAR Program by two years to July 1, 2016.
SB 490 (Jackson), encourages CSUs participating in the EAP to
sequence their pre-collegiate level courses and transfer-level
courses in English and mathematics to CCSS.
Previous legislation :
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AB 1458 (Steinberg), Chapter 577, Statutes of 2012, makes changes to
the API, and in part specifies achievement test results shall
constitute no more than 60% of the value of the API for secondary
schools.
AB 1485 (Firebaugh), Chapter 773, Statutes of 2003, in relevant part
requires the CDE to use specified federal funds to develop academic
assessments, as specified, in the primary languages of limited
English proficient pupils.
SB 376 (Alpert), Chapter 828, Statutes of 1997, created the STAR
Program and authorized assessments in grades 2-11 until January 1,
2002.
Analysis Prepared by : Jill Rice / ED. / (916) 319-2087
FN:
0000987