BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 1145
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|Author: |Hueso |
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|Version: |April 5, 2016 Hearing |
| |Date: April 13, 2016 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|Lynn Lorber |
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Subject: Language arts: reading: diagnostic tools and plans
SUMMARY
This bill requires public schools with less than 50 percent of
4th grade students demonstrating proficiency on English language
arts standards to ensure that each student's reading proficiency
is measured throughout the school year using a formative reading
diagnostic tool.
BACKGROUND
Existing law:
1) Establishes the State's assessment system as the
California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress
and includes, beginning with the 2013-14 school year, a
consortium summative assessment in English language arts
for grades 3-8 and 11 that measures content standards
adopted by the State Board of Education (SBE). (Education
Code § 60640)
2) Requires, by November 1, 2014, the California Department
of Education (CDE) to identify and make available to school
districts information regarding existing assessments in
language arts and mathematics that are aligned to the
common core academic standards and appropriate for students
in grade 2 for diagnostic use by classroom teachers.
Existing law requires the CDE to ensure that the selected
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diagnostic assessments are valid for purposes of
identifying particular knowledge or skills a student has or
has not acquired in order to inform instruction and make
educational decisions. (EC § 60644)
3) Requires the governing board of each school district to
adopt a local control and accountability plan (LCAP) using
a template adopted by the SBE. Existing law requires each
LCAP, to include, for the school district and each school
within the school district, both of the following:
a) A description of the annual goals, for all
students and each subgroup, to be achieved for each of
the state priorities and for any additional local
priorities identified by the governing board of the
school district.
b) A description of the specific actions the
school district will take during each year to achieve
the goals, including the enumeration of any specific
actions necessary for that year to correct any
deficiencies in regard to the state priorities. (EC §
52060)
ANALYSIS
This bill requires public schools with less than 50 percent of
4th grade students demonstrating proficiency on English language
arts standards to ensure that each student's reading proficiency
is measured throughout the school year using a formative reading
diagnostic tool. Specifically, this bill:
1) Requires, beginning with the 2018-19 school year, public
schools that serve students in grades 1-4 with less than 50
percent of 4th grade students demonstrating proficiency on
English language arts standards to ensure that each
student's reading proficiency is measured throughout the
school year using at least one of the formative reading
diagnostic tools identified pursuant to #10 below.
2) Provides that proficiency on English language arts
standards is to be based upon the statewide assessment
administered the previous school year.
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3) Provides that the purpose of the formative reading
diagnostic tools is to determine if a student has a
developmental reading level for that student's grade level.
4) Requires a reading plan to be created for each student
in grades 1-3 who is not at the appropriate developmental
reading proficiency level for the student's grade, as
defined by the State Board of Education pursuant to #12
below.
5) Requires a reading plan to include all of the following:
a) The student's specific, diagnosed
developmental reading level that needs to be addressed
in order for the student to attain reading
proficiency.
b) The goals and benchmarks for the student's
growth in attaining reading proficiency by the end of
grade 3.
c) The type of additional instructional services
and interventions the student will receive in reading
as determined by the school.
d) The strategies the student's parent is
encouraged to use in assisting their child to achieve
reading proficiency that are designed to supplement
the additional instructional services and
interventions to be provided.
e) Any additional services that are deemed
available and appropriate to accelerate the student's
reading skill development.
1) Requires the plan to be created in collaboration with
the student's parent and teacher if possible, and as soon
as possible after the student's developmental reading level
is identified.
2) Requires a reading plan to be reviewed at least annually
by the school and updated or revised as appropriate to
facilitate the student's progress in demonstrating reading
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proficiency.
3) Requires a reading plan to be implemented until the
student demonstrates reading proficiency.
4) Requires the parent to be provided with a copy of the
reading plan with the following information:
a) The state's goal is for all children in
California to graduate from high school having
attained skill levels that adequately prepare them for
postsecondary studies or for the workforce, and
research demonstrates that achieving reading
competency by grade 3 is a critical milestone in
achieving this goal.
b) If a student enters grade 4 without achieving
reading competency, he or she is significantly more
likely to fall behind in all subject areas beginning
in grade 4 and continuing in later grades. If a
student's reading skill deficiencies are not
remediated, it is likely the student will not have the
skills necessary to complete the coursework required
to graduate from high school.
c) The parent plays a central role in supporting
the student's efforts to achieve reading competency
and is strongly encouraged to work with his or her
child's teacher in implementing the reading plan, and
the reading plan will include strategies the parent is
encouraged to use at home to support the student's
reading success in order to supplement the
intervention instruction the student receives in
school.
1) Requires the State Board of Education (SBE), by December
31, 2017, to identify a list of formative reading
diagnostic tools that can be used to assess the
developmental levels of reading proficiency of students in
grades 1-3, in their ability to read proficiently by the
end of grade 3.
2) Requires the SBE to post, by December 31, 2017, a list
of these diagnostic tools on the California Department of
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Education's website.
3) Requires the SBE, to define, for a student to have an
appropriate "developmental reading level" in grades 1-3,
such that the student is not on track to reading
proficiency by the end of grade 3, as determined by the
formative reading diagnostic tools.
4) States legislative intent to increase the Local Control
Funding Formula base rate of funding for K-3 for the
purposes of this bill.
5) States legislative intent, that schools serving students
in grades 1-3 work with parents and teachers to provide
instructional programming, intervention
instruction, and support necessary to ensure that students
can demonstrate reading proficiency by the completion of
grade 3.
6) States legislative findings and declaration relative to
the importance of reading proficiently by the end of grade
3.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Rationale for the bill. According to the author, "A
student's performance in the 4th grade is a critical
benchmark that provides valuable insights into the ability
of that child to go on to be successful academically and
find gainful employment in the workplace. According to the
California Department of Education (CDE), 60 percent
of all California 4th graders do not meet the standards for
reading as set by the Smarter Balanced test. Things get
worse for low-income and minority students. 69 percent of
all low-income 4th graders are not at grade level for
reading, with 68 percent of all Hispanic 4th graders not
meeting standards and 72 percent of all African American
4th graders. These deficiencies compound over time,
leading to a reading gap in students that can create
lifelong barriers to success. A child who is not reading
at grade level by the 4th grade is four times less likely
to graduate on time, and is more likely to face
incarceration later in life, more prone to poverty in
adulthood, and more likely to have a teenage pregnancy.
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The struggling reader in the 3rd grade of today is the
struggling adult of tomorrow"
2) Increases testing in the era of reduced testing. The
Legislature passed sweeping reforms to the State's
assessment system in 2013, which eliminated several
assessments and eliminated the requirement that state
assessments be administered to students in grade 2. The
Legislature also imposed a requirement that the CDE
identify and make available to school districts,
information regarding existing assessments in language arts
and mathematics that are aligned to the common core
academic standards and appropriate for students in grade 2
for diagnostic use by classroom teachers. The CDE was
required to ensure that the selected diagnostic assessments
are valid for purposes of identifying particular knowledge
or skills a student has or has not acquired in order to
inform instruction and make educational decisions.
Information regarding existing grade 2 diagnostic
assessments in English language arts can be found here:
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/ai/gd2elatbl1.asp
The Legislature recently acted to reduce the number of
required assessments, and diagnostic assessments are
currently available for schools to identify particular
knowledge or skills a student has or has not acquired in
order to inform instruction and make educational decisions.
Should the Legislature reverse its stance by increasing
required assessments?
3) Does not consider English language acquisition. This bill
makes no provision for the consideration of a student's
level of language acquisition. It is very likely that many
students who have not met English language arts standards
are English learners, which is different than being a
native English speaker who is struggling to read. Should
reading diagnostics be administered to, and reading
plans be developed for, students who are learning English?
Could the reading plans be in conflict with instruction and
services provided to English learners?
4) Diagnostic tools currently available. The State's
assessment system includes Smarter Balanced summative
assessments (required for grades 3-8 and 11), interim
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assessments that are designed to inform and promote
teaching and learning, and a digital library consisting of
tools and practices designed to help teachers utilize
formative assessment processes for improved teaching and
learning. The California Department of Education has
identified information regarding existing assessments in
language arts and mathematics that are aligned to the
common core academic standards and appropriate for students
in grade 2 for diagnostic use by classroom teachers.
This bill requires the State Board of Education (SBE) to
identify a list of formative reading diagnostic tools that
can be used to assess the developmental levels of reading
proficiency of students in grades 1-3. Are the existing
diagnostic assessments, interim assessments, digital
library and formative assessment tools insufficient? Is it
necessary to require the identification of additional
diagnostic tools?
5) How many schools would be affected? This bill requires
public schools with less than 50 percent of 4th grade
students demonstrating proficiency on English language arts
standards to ensure that each student's reading proficiency
is measured throughout the school year using a formative
reading diagnostic tool. According to results of the 2015
Smarter Balanced English language arts assessment, 4,058
out of 6,035, or 67.2 percent, of schools would be affected
by this bill. Is it reasonable to impose new assessment
and intervention requirements based upon results of an
assessment that has been administered in California only
since 2014?
6) Developmental reading level. This bill requires the SBE to
define what it means for a student to have an appropriate
"developmental reading level" in grades 1-3, such that the
student is not on track to reading proficiency by the end
of grade 3, as determined by the formative reading
diagnostic tools. The SBE has established cut-scores or
performance levels for certain state-required assessments;
the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium established the
performance standards for the Smarter Balanced assessments
in English language arts and mathematics. While there may
be a single expectation of performance, this bill requires
the SBE to establish performance levels for each identified
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formative reading diagnostic tool. Is this a reasonable
expectation? Would SBE establish developmental reading
levels via regulation, or by vote of the SBE?
7) Reading plans. This bill requires a reading plan to be
created for a student in grades 1-3 who is not at the
appropriate developmental reading level for that student's
grade level, as determined by the SBE. This bill requires
a reading plan to include, among other things, the type of
additional instructional services and interventions the
student will receive in reading as determined by the
school.
This provision appears to require the development of an
individualized education program (IEP)-like document that
describes instruction and services that must be provided by
the local educational agency.
This bill requires the reading plan to be created in
collaboration with the student's parent and teacher, if
possible. It is unclear exactly who is to develop the
reading plans, and why the parent and teacher are to be
involved only if possible.
This bill requires a student's reading plan to be
implemented until the student demonstrates reading
proficiency. Is "reading proficiency" to be demonstrated
via the state assessment in English language arts (the
Smarter Balanced assessment), which is administered on an
annual basis?
This bill makes no consideration for students who may have
an IEP in place. Is there a potential for a reading plan
to conflict with the specifications of a student's IEP?
8) Local control and accountability plans. Existing law
requires the governing board of each school district to
adopt a local control and accountability plan (LCAP), and
include in that plan a description of the annual goals, for
all students and each subgroup, to be achieved for each of
the state priorities, and a description of the specific
actions the school district will take during each year to
achieve the goals, including the enumeration of any
specific actions necessary for that year to correct any
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deficiencies in regard to the state priorities.
The State does not require specific assessments be administered
to students in grades 1-2; however, there is an expectation
that local educational agencies (LEAs) are measuring and
evaluating student performance.
The State Board of Education is required to adopt the evaluation
rubrics by October 1, 2016. It is anticipated that the
evaluation rubrics will allow LEAs to display performance
data at the school level and by subgroup. This should make
it easier for LEAs to identify deficiencies in meeting
their goals as well as more transparent for parents.
It is unclear what is deficient in the existing requirements
regarding LCAPs. Should additional mandates be imposed
before the final stages of the LCAP process has been
developed, let alone implemented?
9) Recommendations for a comprehensive assessment system. The
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) recently
released recommendations that could address the problem
this bill attempts to solve. Specifically, the SPI
recommends that the California Department of Education vet
state-supported resources and tools that support
implementation of a comprehensive assessment system and
provide those resources for local use. The SPI further
recommended that the State provide regional assessment
support to LEAs on the implementation of the comprehensive
assessment tools and resources. These recommendations
provide additional supports and tools to LEAs but stops
short of requiring LEAs to utilize those supports and
tools.
10) Other issues of concern. This bill requires diagnostic
assessments to be administered in schools with less than 50
percent of 4th grade students demonstrating proficiency on
English language arts standards. Performance on the
English language arts Smarter Balanced assessment can be
disaggregated by domains, such as reading. Should
additional reading diagnostics be required based on
performance on all domains within English language arts?
This bill imposes requirements based upon the results of
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assessments administered in grade 4, which results are
known toward the end of grade 4. Is it appropriate to
require the administration of diagnostic assessments to
students in grades 1-3 based on the performance of students
in grade 4? Is it reasonable to assume that students in
grades 1-3 are at risk based on the performance of students
in grade 4?
This bill requires schools to measure the reading proficiency of
each student in grades 1-3 throughout the school year to
determine if a student has an appropriate developmental
reading level for that student's grade level. This appears
to require the measurement of all students' reading
proficiency, throughout the school year, regardless of the
student's performance on the State assessment or on an
initial diagnostic assessment. Should the reading
proficiency be repeatedly measured for students who have
already reached higher performance levels in reading?
This bill uses the term "proficiency," which is no longer used
in relation to performance on the state assessment in
English language arts (the Smarter Balanced assessment).
The State now uses performance levels (Level 1 means the
standard was not met; Level 2 means the standard was nearly
met; Level 3 means the standard was met; Level 4 means the
standard was exceeded).
This bill applies to all public schools with less than 50
percent of 4th grade students demonstrating proficiency on
English language arts standards. It appears, therefore,
that a school may be relieved of the requirements imposed
by this bill only once more than 50 percent of the school's
students achieve Level 3 or Level 4 on the Smarter Balanced
assessment in English language arts.
This bill does not require the identified reading
diagnostic tools to be aligned with the State Board of
Education-adopted common core academic standards.
This bill requires the State Board of Education to identify
a list of formative reading diagnostic tools. It would be
more appropriate for the California Department of Education
to identify a list of formative reading diagnostic tools,
as it has already identified existing assessments in
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language arts and mathematics that are aligned to the
common core academic standards and appropriate for students
in grade 2 for diagnostic use by classroom teachers.
11) Suggested alternative approach. This bill attempts to
address a worthy issue; there is no question that reading
is a critical skill. However, this bill takes an approach
that is contrary to several efforts the State has recently
undertaken and projects that are still under development.
As an alternative to the provisions
currently in this bill, staff recommends amendments to instead
create a grant program to provide funding to local
educational agencies to:
a) Provide professional development on the existing
diagnostic, formative and interim assessment tools
that are available from the State, and how to evaluate
the data from assessment results, adjust instruction,
and create system of continuous improvement.
b) Administer and score the existing diagnostic,
formative and interim assessment tools that are
available from the State, evaluate the data, adjust
instruction and create a system of continuous
improvement.
12) Fiscal impact. This bill creates unfunded mandates,
thereby imposing unknown but likely significant costs.
Further, this bill states legislative intent to increase
the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) base rate of
funding for K-3 for the purposes of this bill.
SUPPORT
Center for Latino Education and Innovation
Reality Changers
San Ysidro Women's Club
StudentsFirst
OPPOSITION
None received.
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-- END --