Senate File 384 - Introduced SENATE FILE BY McKINLEY Passed Senate, Date Passed House, Date Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays Approved A BILL FOR 1 An Act requiring the board of directors of a school district to 2 adopt a student promotion policy and providing for related 3 matters. 4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 5 TLSB 1659XS 83 6 kh/nh/24 PAG LIN 1 1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 279.68 STUDENT PROMOTION OR 1 2 RETENTION. 1 3 1. Beginning July 1, 2012, a student enrolled by a school 1 4 district in grade three who at the completion of grade three 1 5 is more than one year below grade level in reading as 1 6 determined by reading assessments administered pursuant to 1 7 this section, shall not be promoted to grade four unless it is 1 8 determined that retention at the current grade level would not 1 9 be in the best interest of the child as provided in the 1 10 student promotion policy adopted by the school in accordance 1 11 with this section. 1 12 2. Beginning August 1, 2009, the board of directors of 1 13 each school district shall adopt a student promotion policy 1 14 that facilitates collaboration among teachers, parents, and 1 15 guardians of the students, and the school district to support 1 16 student reading at grade level. The policy shall address the 1 17 assessment of, and the establishment of performance levels 1 18 for, a student identified as limited English proficient and a 1 19 student identified as a child requiring special education. 1 20 The policy shall be developed, and annually updated, with 1 21 input from school administrators, teachers, parents, and 1 22 guardians. Annually, by the first day of school, the school 1 23 district shall notify the parents and guardians of students in 1 24 grades kindergarten through grade three of the district's 1 25 student promotion policy. 1 26 3. a. To identify students at risk of reading failure, 1 27 beginning July 1, 2010, students enrolled in kindergarten 1 28 through grade three in a school district shall be assessed at 1 29 the beginning of each school year and throughout the school 1 30 year as necessary by ongoing assessments of their reading 1 31 skills or early literacy development including but not limited 1 32 to phonological awareness, reading fluency, and alphabetic 1 33 principle. At least annually, within the first three months 1 34 of the school year, the school district shall provide written 1 35 notice to the parent or guardian of the student's Iowa grade 2 1 equivalency. 2 2 b. The department of education shall establish by 2 3 administrative rule a list of approved reading or early 2 4 literacy development assessments, which shall be provided to 2 5 each school district. This list shall include the dynamic 2 6 indicators of basic early literacy skills and the Iowa test of 2 7 basic skills. 2 8 c. (1) The director of the department of education shall 2 9 establish a committee to assist with the development of rules 2 10 required pursuant to paragraph "b", to review and recommend 2 11 reading and early literacy development assessments that 2 12 measure a student's reading skills or early literacy 2 13 development, including assessments that do the following: 2 14 (a) Assess a student's reading skills or early literacy 2 15 development progress throughout the school year. 2 16 (b) Indicate grade level competencies that have been 2 17 attained. 2 18 (2) The committee may review and recommend reading skill 2 19 or early literacy development assessments that been developed 2 20 or utilized by other states to the extent that the tests are 2 21 appropriate for use under this section. 2 22 (3) The assessments recommended by the committee shall be 2 23 thoroughly researched and demonstrated to be reliable and 2 24 valid indicators of reading progress. In developing its 2 25 recommendations, the committee shall review the requirements 2 26 of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 2 27 107-110, and any federal regulations adopted pursuant to the 2 28 federal Act, to align the committee's recommendations with the 2 29 requirements of the federal Act when possible in order to 2 30 minimize any additional burden the committee's recommendations 2 31 may place on a school district. The committee shall provide a 2 32 progress report to the general assembly annually until July 1, 2 33 2013, and biennially thereafter. 2 34 (4) The majority of members appointed to the committee 2 35 shall be supportive of research=based reading instruction 3 1 described in the 2003 edition of the report issued by the 3 2 center for improvement of early reading achievement report 3 3 titled "Put Reading First: The Research Building Blocks for 3 4 Teaching Children to Read". 3 5 4. The board of directors of each school district shall 3 6 establish a committee composed of stakeholders to develop 3 7 reading instruction programs that meet the requirements of 3 8 this section. The reading instruction programs shall include 3 9 but not be limited to: 3 10 a. Curriculum using systematic and explicit phonics 3 11 instruction. 3 12 b. Sufficient additional in=school instructional time for 3 13 the acquisition of phonological awareness, reading fluency, 3 14 and alphabetic principle. 3 15 c. Tutorial instruction. 3 16 d. Periodic reassessments to measure the reading skills or 3 17 early literacy development including but not limited to 3 18 phonological awareness, reading fluency, and alphabetic 3 19 principle, as identified in the student's individualized 3 20 reading instruction program. 3 21 e. Additional in=school instructional time during the 3 22 summer. 3 23 5. Beginning July 1, 2010, if the results of assessments 3 24 administered pursuant to this section indicate intervention is 3 25 necessary, the school district shall provide written notice to 3 26 the parent or guardian of the student's Iowa grade equivalency 3 27 and the options available to the parent or guardian as 3 28 provided in subsection 4. A parent or guardian of a student 3 29 shall be included in the development of an individualized 3 30 program of reading instruction for the student. 3 31 6. Beginning July 1, 2010, if the results of assessments 3 32 administered pursuant to this section indicate the student is 3 33 reading above grade level, the school district shall provide 3 34 written notice to the parent or guardian of the options 3 35 available to the parent or guardian for enrichment activities 4 1 for the child. 4 2 7. Beginning July 1, 2010, for any grade three student 4 3 found reading more than one year or more below grade level as 4 4 determined by reading assessments administered pursuant to 4 5 this section, a new intensive reading instruction plan, which 4 6 shall include specialized tutoring by the school district, 4 7 shall be developed and implemented. The school district is 4 8 encouraged to provide tutorial instruction in a manner that 4 9 would minimize interference with a student's instructional 4 10 time in the classroom. Tutorial instruction may be offered 4 11 before or after regular school hours. 4 12 8. Beginning July 1, 2012, the school board shall decide 4 13 in favor of a student's promotion only if the school board 4 14 concludes, using standards adopted by the school board, that 4 15 if promoted and provided with additional or continued 4 16 interventions, the student is likely to perform at grade 4 17 level. However, a school board shall not deny a promotion to 4 18 a student under the provisions of this section more than once. 4 19 9. A school district shall notify a parent or guardian in 4 20 writing of the ability of the parent or guardian to appeal a 4 21 school's decision to deny promotion of a student to the school 4 22 board. 4 23 10. A decision of the school board to deny promotion is 4 24 subject to appeal under section 290.1. 4 25 11. The director of the department of education shall 4 26 conduct a review of school district student promotion 4 27 policies, including the number of students in need of 4 28 remediation in reading in kindergarten through grade three, 4 29 and the number of students who successfully completed their 4 30 individualized reading instruction program. The director 4 31 shall evaluate the data reported pursuant to this subsection 4 32 and shall submit a report of the findings and recommendations 4 33 resulting from the review to the general assembly by December 4 34 1, 2010, and biennially thereafter. 4 35 12. The state board of education shall submit its 5 1 recommendations for modifications to this section relating to 5 2 student promotion in a report to the general assembly by 5 3 December 1, 2011. 5 4 Sec. 2. IMPLEMENTATION OF ACT. Section 25B.2, subsection 5 5 3, shall not apply to this Act. 5 6 EXPLANATION 5 7 This bill requires the board of directors of a school 5 8 district, beginning August 1, 2009, to adopt a student 5 9 promotion policy that facilitates collaboration among 5 10 teachers, parents, and guardians of the student, and the 5 11 school district, to support student reading at grade level. 5 12 Beginning July 1, 2012, the bill prohibits a school district 5 13 from promoting a student enrolled in grade three to grade four 5 14 if the student is more than one year below grade level in 5 15 reading, unless retention at the current grade level is 5 16 determined not to be in the best interest of the child. A 5 17 student cannot be denied promotion more than once. 5 18 Beginning July 1, 2010, students enrolled in kindergarten 5 19 through grade three in a school district must be assessed from 5 20 the beginning of and throughout the school year using ongoing 5 21 assessments of reading skills or early literacy development 5 22 including phonological awareness, reading fluency, and 5 23 alphabetic principle. The department of education is required 5 24 to establish by rule, and provide each school district with, a 5 25 list of approved reading or early literacy development 5 26 assessments. 5 27 The bill also requires the board of directors of each 5 28 school district to provide interventions to improve a 5 29 student's reading skills, and notify the parents and guardians 5 30 of students of the options under the school district's reading 5 31 instruction program. An intensive reading instruction plan, 5 32 including specialized tutoring, must be developed and 5 33 implemented by a school district for any grade three student 5 34 who is one year or more below grade level. 5 35 After July 1, 2012, if a student is more than one year 6 1 below grade level in reading, the school board can decide in 6 2 favor of the student's promotion only if the school board 6 3 concludes that if promoted and provided with additional or 6 4 continued interventions, the student is likely to perform at 6 5 grade level. 6 6 The bill requires the director of the department of 6 7 education to conduct a review of school district student 6 8 promotion policies and to submit findings and recommendations 6 9 resulting from the review to the general assembly by December 6 10 1, 2010, and biennially thereafter. The bill requires the 6 11 state board of education to submit recommendations for 6 12 modifications relating to student promotion in a report to the 6 13 general assembly by December 1, 2011. 6 14 The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code 6 15 section 25B.3. The bill requires that the state cost of any 6 16 state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school 6 17 district from state school foundation aid received by the 6 18 school district under Code section 257.16. The specification 6 19 is deemed to constitute state compliance with any state 6 20 mandate funding=related requirements of Code section 25B.2. 6 21 The inclusion of this specification is intended to reinstate 6 22 the requirement of political subdivisions to comply with any 6 23 state mandates included in the bill. 6 24 LSB 1659XS 83 6 25 kh/nh/24