Amendment ASA1-AB1

LRBs0023/2

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2015 - 2016 LEGISLATURE

ASSEMBLY SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1, TO ASSEMBLY BILL 1

March 10, 2015 - Offered by Representative Thiesfeldt.

AB1-ASA1,2,2 An Act to repeal 118.60 (10) (a) 4., 119.23 (10) (a) 4. and 121.006 (2) (d); to renumber and amend 115.385 (1) (b); to amend 115.385 (1) (a) (intro.), 115.385 (1) (a) 1., 115.385 (1) (a) 3., 115.385 (2), 118.153 (1) (a) 5., 118.30 (1), 118.30 (2) (b) 3., 118.30 (2) (b) 4., 118.30 (2) (b) 5., 118.30 (2) (b) 6., 118.30 (5m), 118.30 (7), 118.33 (6) (a) 1., 118.33 (6) (b) 1., 118.33 (6) (c) 1., 118.33 (6) (cr) 1., 118.40 (2r) (b) 2., 118.40 (2r) (bm), 118.40 (2r) (d) 2., 118.60 (7) (e) and 119.23 (7) (e); to repeal and recreate 118.42; and to create 20.255 (1) (fm), 20.255 (2) (ca), 115.28 (54m), 115.28 (62), 115.293, 115.385 (1) (a) 1m., 115.385 (1) (a) 4., 115.385 (1) (b) 1., 115.385 (1) (b) 2., 115.385 (1) (b) 3., 115.385 (1) (b) 4., 115.385 (1) (b) 5., 115.385 (1) (c), 115.385 (1m), 115.385 (1r), 115.385 (3), 115.385 (4), 115.385 (5), 115.385 (6), 115.385 (7), 115.385 (8), 115.385 (9), 115.385 (10), 118.301, 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. e., 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. f., 118.57 and 120.12 (13) of the statutes; relating to: a school accountability report, providing an exemption from emergency rule procedures, providing an exemption from rule-making procedures, granting rule-making authority, and making appropriations.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This substitute amendment makes a number of changes to the laws governing pupil assessments, pupil academic standards, and school accountability.

Pupil Assessments

Current law requires the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (state superintendent) to approve examinations for measuring pupil attainment of knowledge and concepts. With certain exceptions, current law requires school districts, private schools participating in a parental choice program (participating private schools), and independent charter schools to administer the examination approved by the state superintendent. This substitute amendment prohibits the state superintendent from approving examinations developed by the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium.

This substitute amendment requires an entity or organization with expertise to evaluate alternative examinations (research center) to recommend alternative examinations determined to be acceptable for statistical comparison with the examinations approved by the state superintendent. The substitute amendment requires the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to approve three alternative examinations by rule, and permits a school to administer an alternative examination approved by DPI by rule instead of the examination approved by the state superintendent. The research center must provide DPI with a list of alternative examinations within 90 days after the effective date of the substitute amendment.

Academic Standards

Current law requires each school district, participating private school, and independent charter school to adopt pupil academic standards, and permits the schools to adopt academic standards approved by the state superintendent. The state superintendent has adopted academic standards, in mathematics and in English and language arts, developed by the Common Core State Standards Initiative (common core standards). This substitute amendment prohibits the state superintendent from giving effect to any common core standards currently in effect, and prohibits the state superintendent from adopting or implementing any new common core standards. The bill also prohibits the state superintendent from requiring a school district to adopt or implement any common core standard.

Accountability Reports

Current law requires DPI to annually prepare accountability reports that evaluate the performance and improvement of each school and school district in the state and, beginning in the 2015-16 school year, of each participating private school and independent charter school. DPI must place each school and school district into one of five performance categories based on certain measures, including pupil achievement in reading and mathematics.

This substitute amendment replaces the performance categories with grade levels; each grade level includes a letter grade. The substitute amendment requires DPI to establish the qualifying score for each grade level by rule. The substitute amendment also provides more specificity with respect to the measures used to determine school performance and school district improvement. For example, under the substitute amendment, in determining a school's performance or a school district's improvement, DPI must take into account the percentage of economically disadvantaged pupils enrolled in the school or school district and the length of time a pupil was enrolled in the school or school district. The substitute amendment establishes a sliding scale under which DPI must weigh growth in pupil achievement depending upon the percentage of economically disadvantaged pupils in the membership of the school or school district; the weight accorded to growth in pupil achievement increases as the percentage of economically disadvantaged pupils in the membership increases. The substitute amendment also requires DPI to give greater weight to the assessment scores of pupils who have been enrolled in a school or school district for three or more years.

For purposes of measuring a school district's improvement, the substitute amendment prohibits DPI from using information or scores derived from a virtual charter school that is considered to be located in the school district if at least 50 percent of the pupils are attending the virtual charter school under the open enrollment program.

The substitute amendment permits a participating private school either to submit pupil assessment scores only for pupils attending the school under a parental choice program (PCP) or to submit pupil assessment scores for all pupils attending the participating private school. If the school submits achievement data only for PCP pupils, DPI must identify the grade level of the participating private school as a choice pupil grade. If the school submits scores for all pupils attending the participating private school, DPI must also identify a grade level for the private school and identify the grade as a private school grade. DPI may not require a participating private school to submit achievement data for any school year in which fewer than 20 pupils are attending the participating private school under a PCP. DPI may not publish an accountability report for a participating private school that is exempt from reporting achievement data under the substitute amendment.

interventions for low-performing schools and school districts

Current law provides that if the state superintendent of public instruction determines that a school is in need of improvement for five consecutive school years or that a school district is in need of improvement for four consecutive school years, the state superintendent may direct the school board to, after seeking input from school district staff, do one or more of the following in the school or school district:

1. Implement a new curriculum.

2. Implement a new instructional design, including expanded school hours, additional pupil supports and services, and individual learning plans for pupils.

3. Implement professional development programs focused on improving pupil academic achievement.

4. Make personnel changes.

5. Adopt accountability measures to monitor the school district's finances or to monitor other interventions directed by the state superintendent.

Current law also authorizes the state superintendent to withhold state aid from any school district that fails to comply to the state superintendent's satisfaction with any of the above directives.

This substitute amendment repeals these provisions.

The substitute amendment replaces current law requirements for low-performing schools with the following interventions:

1. Use rigorous and equitable performance evaluation systems for teachers and principals. The evaluation systems must include annual performance evaluations; multiple rating categories and criteria; observation-based performance assessments; and a method of identifying mitigating factors, such as a high rate of pupil mobility, insufficient preparation time, insufficient paraprofessional support, insufficient professional development, and insufficient resources or support, that could affect a teacher's or principal's performance.

2. Adopt a policy establishing criteria for evaluating whether the distribution of teachers and principals within the affected schools relative to the distribution of teachers and principals throughout the school district, based upon their qualifications and effectiveness, is equitable, and take corrective action if necessary.

3. Establish teacher and principal improvement programs that include supplemental mentoring for those with emergency licenses or permits; opportunities to pursue other professional certifications; and, annually, at least 60 hours of professional development that is incorporated into their work.

4. Adopt placement criteria for principals that include performance evaluations and measures of pupil academic achievement.

These interventions must be implemented by the school board or operator of a charter school subject to step one sanctions, described below.

sanctions for low-performing schools

The substitute amendment requires DPI to impose sanctions upon a school that receives a letter grade of "D — Meets Few Expectations" or "F — Fails to Meet Expectations" on the third accountability report of any three consecutive accountability reports, beginning with the accountability report published for the 2016-17 school year. The substitute amendment imposes different sanctions upon public schools and participating private schools, and increases the severity of sanctions imposed upon all schools in two steps.

Step one sanctions — public schools, including independent charter schools

The school board of a school, or operator of a charter school, subject to step one sanctions must comply for three school years with the requirements for low-performing schools, described above. Under the substitute amendment, DPI must make payments to school districts for the purpose of implementing the interventions. In addition, the school board or operator of a charter school other than an independent charter school must authorize the school district administrator to act, unilaterally and on matters related to the operation and administration of the school that is subject to sanctions, contrary to policies and procedures adopted by the school board. The substitute amendment prohibits the school board from retaliating against the school district administrator for any lawful actions undertaken pursuant to this authority.

If a public school subject to step one sanctions receives a grade level of "D — Meets Few Expectations" on the third accountability report after the school becomes subject to step one sanctions, the school must comply with the step one requirements for two additional school years, and must pay for the costs of implementing the interventions.

Step one sanctions — participating private schools

A participating private school with 20 or more pupils attending the school under a PCP and subject to step one sanctions may not accept any additional pupils under a PCP, other than siblings of pupils already attending the school under a PCP, for three consecutive school years.

Step two sanctions — public schools, other than independent charter schools

If a public school, other than an independent charter school, subject to step one sanctions receives a grade level of "F — Fails to Meet Expectations" on the third accountability report after the school becomes subject to step one sanctions, the school board or operator of the charter school must take certain actions from a selection of actions. These actions include reorganizing the school, converting the school to an independent or instrumentality charter school for at least one five-year contract term, and contracting with an education management agency for at least one five-year contract term. The substitute amendment authorizes the chancellors and deans of any university or college in the University of Wisconsin System and the boards of any technical college district to establish and operate an independent charter school for a school subject to step two sanctions.

If the school board or operator of a charter school, other than an independent charter school, fails to take any of the actions on behalf of the school subject to step two sanctions within the 12 months after the school becomes subject to step two sanctions, the state superintendent must freeze the amount of state aid paid to the school district in the next school year at the amount paid in the previous school year. For each subsequent school year in which the school district fails to take any action, the state superintendent must reduce the amount of state aid paid to the school district by 1 percent.

Step two sanctions — independent charter schools

An independent charter school that receives a grade level of "F — Fails to Meet Expectations" at the end of the three-year step one sanctions period must fulfill any contractual obligations with DPI as soon as practicable. DPI must discontinue payments to the independent charter school as soon as practicable.

Step two sanctions — participating private schools

A private school that receives a grade level of "F — Fails to Meet Expectations" at the end of the three-year step one sanctions period must fulfill any contractual obligations with DPI as soon as practicable and may not accept any new pupils under a PCP for four school years. DPI must discontinue payments to the participating private school as soon as practicable.

Exiting sanctions

Under the substitute amendment, the state superintendent may release a school subject to step one sanctions if the school receives a grade level of "C — Meets Expectations" or better on an accountability report published for the school within the three-year step one sanctions period. The state superintendent may release a public school subject to step two sanctions if the school receives a grade level of "C — Meets Expectations" or better on two consecutive accountability reports. The state superintendent may release a public school that has been converted to an instrumentality charter school or an independent charter school, or that has entered into a contract with an education management agency, from exiting sanctions at the end of the five-year contract term.

notices and declarations