BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Alan Lowenthal, Chair
2011-2012 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 740
AUTHOR: Hancock
INTRODUCED: February 18, 2011
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: April 27, 2011
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Lynn Lorber
SUBJECT : Standardized Testing and Reporting Program: Grade
2.
SUMMARY
This bill eliminates the requirement that assessments be
administered to pupils in second grade pursuant to the
Standardized Testing and Reporting Program, beginning July
1, 2012.
BACKGROUND
Current law requires each school district, charter school,
and county office of education to administer designated
achievement tests to each pupil in grades 2 through 11 as
part of the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR)
Program. The STAR Program is scheduled to sunset on July
1, 2013. (Education Code � 60640 and 60601)
Recently enacted legislation (SB 1 of the Fifth
Extraordinary Session, Ch. 2, April 12, 2010) states
legislative intent regarding the reauthorization of
California's assessment system, to include alignment with
the common core standards, any common assessment based on
the common core, and conformity to the assessment
requirements of any reauthorized federal law. (EC �
60604.5)
The STAR Program requires pupils to be tested in English
language arts, mathematics, science and history-social
science at specific grade levels. The STAR Program
includes the California Standards Tests (CSTs), the
California Alternate Performance Assessment (CAPA) and the
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California Modified Assessment (CMA) administered to
certain pupils with disabilities, and a national
norm-referenced test in Spanish 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.
STAR test results are available statewide, by county,
school district, schoolsite, and for individual pupils.
Individual pupil results are provided to parents generally
by the middle of September following the administration of
the STAR tests. These tests results provide information
about the performance level the pupils' scores in each
subject, such as advanced, proficient, basic, below basic
and far below basic.
ANALYSIS
This bill , beginning July 1, 2012, eliminates the
requirement that assessments be administered to pupils in
second grade pursuant to the Standardized Testing and
Reporting Program. Specifically, this bill:
Eliminates the requirement to administer STAR tests to
pupils in grade 2, and make conforming changes to
provisions related to:
(1) A plan for
producing valid, reliable, and
comparable individual pupil
scores.
(2) The
development and distribution of
workbooks.
(3) The
development of the California
Standards Tests.
(4) The
requirements that test publishers
must meet.
(5) The
development of a reading list.
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STAFF COMMENTS
1) Purpose of the bill . According to the author,
"Children in second grade are regularly given a
variety of local instructionally supportive
assessments, including diagnostic tests to help
parents, teachers and schools understand the strengths
and weaknesses in the child's learning; including
identification of special needs. Numerous early
childhood organizations express concern about the
validity of standardized tests administered to young
children and recommend that administration of
California Standards Tests in the second grade is
developmentally inappropriate for young children. The
elimination of second grade tests would provide
estimated yearly savings of approximately $2 million."
2) Accountability . While assessments in English language
arts and mathematics in grade 2 are used for purposes
of state accountability (the Academic Performance
Index), federal accountability provisions included in
No Child Left Behind do not require states to use
grade 2 assessment data for accountability purposes.
3) What is gained from second grade testing ? Test
results for individual pupils are provided to
schoolsite personnel and parents of the pupil. These
results include information about the performance
level the pupil scored in each subject area tested.
Opponents are concerned that without second grade
testing, parents and teachers will not have this data
early in a pupil's educational career which is
important for making adjustments to that student's
instruction. Staff notes that the STAR tests are
administered in the Spring and results are generally
returned by mid-September of the following school
year.
4) Fiscal impact . According to the Assembly
Appropriations Committee analysis of prior
legislation, eliminating the STAR test for grade 2
would create a General Fund (Proposition 98) savings
of approximately $2 million.
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5) Legislative history of STAR testing in second grade .
The STAR Program was created in 1997 by SB 376
(Alpert, Ch. 828) and authorized assessments in grades
2-11 until January 1, 2002. SB 233 (Alpert, Ch. 722,
2001) reauthorized the STAR Program until January 1,
2005.
SB 1448 (Alpert, Ch. 233, 2004) reauthorized the STAR
Program until January 1, 2011, with the exception of
second grade testing which was to be phased out over a
three year period (until July 1, 2007). AB 356
(Hancock, 2004), among other things, would have
provided for a diagnostic assessment, rather than
standardized testing, in grade 2 as part of the STAR
program. AB 356 was held on the Senate Floor (no vote
was taken).
AB 1353 (Huff, 2007) would have extended second grade
assessments to January 1, 2011, but was not heard.
Later in 2007, SB 80 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal
Review, Ch. 174) extended second grade testing until
July 1, 2011.
SB 800 (Hancock, 2009) was nearly identical to this bill.
SB 800 failed passage in this Committee on a 4-5 vote
on April 15, 2009. AB 476 (Torlakson, 2009) at one
time would have eliminated STAR testing in the second
grade. At the time of enrollment, AB 476 required the
Superintendent of Public Instruction to contract for
an independent evaluation of the STAR Program. AB 476
was vetoed by the Governor, whose veto message read:
The objectives of this bill are duplicative of
work already being done by a variety of sources.
Not only have there been reviews of California's
standards and assessment system by the United
States Department of Education's peer review
process, the California Department of Education
has a process which has included an independent
alignment study and review of test items by
various content and test development experts.
Finally, this bill circumvents the State Board of
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Education in the selection of the independent
evaluator and approving the evaluation and its
recommendations.
SB 1 of the Fifth Extraordinary Session (Steinberg,
Ch. 2, 2010) extended the STAR Program for grades 2-11
until July 1, 2013.
SUPPORT
California Federation of Teachers
Californians Together
California State PTA
California Teachers Association
OPPOSITION
EdVoice
An individual