BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 409
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 4, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Julia Brownley, Chair
AB 409 (Alejo) - As Amended: March 14, 2011
SUBJECT : Pupil assessment: dual language immersion programs
SUMMARY : Authorizes the administration of a primary language
assessment to nonlimited-English proficient pupils enrolled in
dual immersion programs. Specifically, this bill :
1)Authorizes the California Department of Education (CDE) to
make a primary language assessment available to school
districts and charter schools to assess their
nonlimited-English-proficient pupils, as defined, who are
enrolled in a dual language immersion program that includes
the primary language of the assessment.
2)Requires a school district or charter school that chooses to
administer a primary language assessment pursuant to this bill
to do so at its own expense.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR)
Program requiring school districts, charter schools, and
county offices of education to administer achievement tests
aligned to California's adopted academic content standards to
all pupils in grades 2 to 11, inclusive, until July 1, 2013.
2)Requires, beginning 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.
3)Provides that "all children in California public schools shall
be taught English by being taught in English," and provides
for parents of pupils to exercise informed consent to request
a waiver of these provisions in which case pupils may be
placed in classes where they are taught English and other
subjects through bilingual education techniques or other
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generally recognized methodologies permitted by law.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : SB 1448 (Alpert), Chapter 233, Statutes of 2004,
required the development of standards-aligned primary language
assessments for English learner pupils. The California
Department of Education (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
for which a primary language test has been designated because no
tests for languages other than Spanish have been submitted by
bidders to the State Board of Education (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 nor to redesignated
fluent-English-proficient (RFEP) pupils enrolled in these
programs, essentially because 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 the Spanish language. This bill authorizes school
districts to use the STS to assess native English speakers
enrolled in dual immersion programs; however it does not
authorize this assessment for RFEP pupils enrolled in dual
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immersion programs. A bill that will also be considered by this
Committee today, AB 250 (Brownley), amongst its various
components includes a provision similar to that proposed by this
bill, except that AB 250 authorizes school districts to use the
STS to assess both native English speakers and RFEP pupils
enrolled in dual immersion programs.
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 are also known as bilingual immersion, dual
language immersion, two-way immersion, or two-way bilingual
programs.
The author states, "Current law requires that Dual Immersion
schools use standardized testing to assess their students'
academic performance. Yet, the schools are prohibited by law
from using the Standards-based Test in Spanish (STS) on the
non-English Learner subset of the student population. Dual
Immersion schools are therefore unable accurately measure the
proficiency of their English Only or Fluent English Proficient
students. This puts these schools at a disadvantage because they
cannot compare the data between English Learners and non-English
Learners. As a result, they lack the information needed to
accurately measure student progress in grade level content
standards and make academic improvements in instruction. "
Related legislation : AB 250 (Brownley) amongst its various
curriculum and assessment provisions authorizes the
administration of a primary language assessment to
nonlimited-English proficient pupils and
redesignated-fluent-English proficient (RFEP) pupils enrolled in
dual immersion programs. AB 250 is pending in this Committee
and is also scheduled to be heard today.
Previous legislation : 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
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
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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
California Association for Bilingual Education
Californians Together Coalition
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Avi�a / ED. / (916) 319-2087