HB2056 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB101 06954 AXK 51987 b

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB2056

Introduced , by Rep. Lindsay Parkhurst

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

105 ILCS 5/21B-30

Amends the Educator Licensure Article of the School Code. With regard to applicants seeking a Professional Educator License or an Educator License with Stipulations provides that all applicants completing Illinois-approved, teacher education or school service personnel preparation programs shall be required to pass the State Board of Education's recognized test of basic skills (rather than requiring passage of the test prior to starting their student teaching or starting the final semester of their internship). Provides that if an applicant completing a teacher education or school service personal preparation program fails the test of basic skills the first time he or she takes the test, the applicant may complete a full school year of student teaching or of an internship instead of being required to pass the test. Provides that an institution of higher learning may not require an applicant to complete the test of basic skills prior to completing a semester of student teaching or of an internship (rather than prior to the semester before student teaching or prior to the semester before starting the final semester of an internship). Provides that an individual who completes a full school year of student teaching or of an internship is not required to pass the test of basic skills again for subsequent endorsements or other educator licenses. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning education.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section 21B-30 as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/21B-30)

Sec. 21B-30. Educator testing.

(a) This Section applies beginning on July 1, 2012.

(b) The State Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board, shall design and implement a system of examinations, which shall be required prior to the issuance of educator licenses. These examinations and indicators must be based on national and State professional teaching standards, as determined by the State Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board. The State Board of Education may adopt such rules as may be necessary to implement and administer this Section.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in this Article, applicants seeking a Professional Educator License or an Educator License with Stipulations shall be required to pass a test of basic skills before the license is issued, unless the endorsement the individual is seeking does not require passage of the test. All applicants completing Illinois-approved, teacher education or school service personnel preparation programs shall be required to pass the State Board of Education's recognized test of basic skills prior to starting their student teaching or starting the final semester of their internship. However, if such an applicant fails to pass the test of basic skills the first time he or she takes the test, the applicant may complete a full school year of student teaching or of an internship instead of being required to pass the test. An institution of higher learning, as defined in the Higher Education Student Assistance Act, may not require an applicant to complete the State Board's recognized test of basic skills prior to completing a semester of the semester before student teaching or prior to the semester before starting the final semester of an internship. An individual who passes a test of basic skills or completes a full school year of student teaching or of an internship as otherwise permitted under this subsection is not required to pass a test of basic skills does not need to do so again for subsequent endorsements or other educator licenses.

(d) All applicants seeking a State license shall be required to pass a test of content area knowledge for each area of endorsement for which there is an applicable test. There shall be no exception to this requirement. No candidate shall be allowed to student teach or serve as the teacher of record until he or she has passed the applicable content area test.

(e) (Blank).

(f) Except as otherwise provided in this Article, beginning on September 1, 2015, all candidates completing teacher preparation programs in this State and all candidates subject to Section 21B-35 of this Code are required to pass a teacher performance assessment approved by the State Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board.

(g) Tests of basic skills and content area knowledge and the teacher performance assessment shall be the tests that from time to time are designated by the State Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board, and may be tests prepared by an educational testing organization or tests designed by the State Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board. The areas to be covered by a test of basic skills shall include reading, language arts, and mathematics. The test of content area knowledge shall assess content knowledge in a specific subject field. The tests must be designed to be racially neutral to ensure that no person taking the tests is discriminated against on the basis of race, color, national origin, or other factors unrelated to the person's ability to perform as a licensed employee. The score required to pass the tests shall be fixed by the State Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board. The tests shall be administered not fewer than 3 times a year at such time and place as may be designated by the State Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board.

The State Board shall implement a test or tests to assess the speaking, reading, writing, and grammar skills of applicants for an endorsement or a license issued under subdivision (G) of paragraph (2) of Section 21B-20 of this Code in the English language and in the language of the transitional bilingual education program requested by the applicant.

(h) Except as provided in Section 34-6 of this Code, the provisions of this Section shall apply equally in any school district subject to Article 34 of this Code.

(i) The rules developed to implement and enforce the testing requirements under this Section shall include without limitation provisions governing test selection, test validation and determination of a passing score, administration of the tests, frequency of administration, applicant fees, frequency of applicants taking the tests, the years for which a score is valid, and appropriate special accommodations. The State Board of Education shall develop such rules as may be needed to ensure uniformity from year to year in the level of difficulty for each form of an assessment.

(Source: P.A. 99-58, eff. 7-16-15; 99-657, eff. 7-28-16; 99-920, eff. 1-6-17; 100-596, eff. 7-1-18; 100-863, eff. 8-14-18; 100-932, eff. 8-17-18; revised 10-1-18.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.