093_HB0471

 
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 1        AN ACT relating to education.

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

 4        Section   5.   The  School  Code  is  amended by changing
 5    Section 2-3.64a as follows:

 6        (105 ILCS 5/2-3.64a)
 7        Sec.  2-3.64a.  State  Testing  Review  Committee;  State
 8    Assessment System Review Committee.
 9        (a)  The State Superintendent shall appoint  a  committee
10    of  no  more  than 20 consisting of parents, teachers, school
11    administrators, and concerned citizens to review the Illinois
12    Goals and Assessment Program tests administered by the  State
13    Board  of  Education.  The  Committee shall select one of the
14    parent representatives as its chairman. The  Committee  shall
15    meet  on an ongoing basis to review the content and design of
16    the tests (including whether the requirements  of  subsection
17    a-5  of  Section  2-3.64  have  been met), the time and money
18    expended at the local and state levels  to  prepare  for  and
19    administer  the tests, the collective results of the tests as
20    measured  against  the  stated  purpose  of  testing  student
21    performance, and other issues involving the tests  identified
22    by   the   Committee.   The  Committee  shall  make  periodic
23    recommendations to the State Superintendent and  the  General
24    Assembly  concerning the tests. On the effective date of this
25    amendatory Act  of  the  93rd  General  Assembly,  the  State
26    Testing Review Committee is dissolved.
27        (b)  The  General  Assembly finds and declares all of the
28    following:
29             (1)  In order to ensure that the  Illinois  Learning
30        Standards  are  being  met in Illinois' public schools, a
31        new State assessment system should be explored.
 
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 1             (2)  The new State assessment system must  meet  the
 2        needs of and have significance for Illinois' teachers and
 3        students.
 4             (3)  The  new  State  assessment  system  should  be
 5        meaningful to higher education and employers.
 6             (4)  The  new  State  assessment system must be cost
 7        efficient.
 8             (5)  The new State assessment system must ultimately
 9        result in less overall standardized testing.
10             (6)  Teachers must have a thorough knowledge base of
11        the Illinois Learning Standards and the use of local  and
12        State assessments to improve student learning.
13             (7)  A    series    of    State-sponsored,   locally
14        administered diagnostic assessments need to be  available
15        to school districts as well as their staffs.
16             (8)  The new State assessment must be aligned to the
17        Illinois Learning Standards.
18             (9)  The  new  State  assessment system must be well
19        constructed,  must  be   grade-level   appropriate   with
20        effective testing procedures, and must be able to be used
21        by school districts as well as their staffs.
22             (10)  The  new  State assessment system must be kept
23        in  place  for   at   least   5   years   following   its
24        implementation.
25             (11)  The  State  Assessment System Review Committee
26        must explore the potential  of  annual  State  assessment
27        aligned to the Illinois Learning Standards.
28        (c)    The  State  Assessment  System Review Committee is
29    created, which shall consist of the following members:
30             (1)   One parent,  appointed  by  the  Illinois  PTA
31        Congress of Parents and Teachers.
32             (2)  One person appointed by the Governor.
33             (3)  One  representative  of the business community,
34        appointed by the Illinois Business Education Coalition.
 
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 1             (4)  One representative from a  regional  office  of
 2        education,  appointed  by  the  Illinois  Association  of
 3        Regional Superintendents of Schools.
 4             (5)  One  school  board  member,  appointed  by  the
 5        Illinois Association of School Boards.
 6             (6)  Four    school    administrators,    with   one
 7        administrator  appointed  by   the   Chicago   Board   of
 8        Education,   one  principal  appointed  by  the  Illinois
 9        Principals Association, one  administrator  appointed  by
10        the    Large   Unit   District   Association,   and   one
11        administrator appointed by the  Illinois  Association  of
12        School Administrators.
13             (7)  Four teachers, with 2 appointed by the Illinois
14        Education  Association  and  2  appointed by the Illinois
15        Federation of Teachers.
16             (8)  Two representatives of  higher  education,  one
17        who  is an expert in the field of assessment and one from
18        admissions, appointed by the Chairperson of the Board  of
19        Higher Education.
20             (9)  The State Superintendent of Education or his or
21        her designee.
22        (d)  Members   of  the  State  Assessment  System  Review
23    Committee shall be  initially  appointed  by  July  1,  2003.
24    Members  shall  serve  2-year  terms.   A  chairperson of the
25    Committee shall be selected by  the  appointed  members  from
26    among  its  membership.  The chairperson shall serve a 2-year
27    term.   The  Committee  shall  meet  at  the  call   of   the
28    chairperson,  who  shall  develop the agenda for the meetings
29    with the advice of the members.
30        (e)  The State Assessment System Review  Committee  shall
31    explore a State assessment system consistent with the General
32    Assembly's  findings and declarations under subsection (b) of
33    this Section and the  requirements  of  subsection  (a-5)  of
34    Section 2-3.64 of this Code.  The Committee shall be provided
 
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 1    staff  from  the State Board of Education and outside sources
 2    with  expertise  in  assessment,  and  such  staff  shall  be
 3    directed by the chairperson of the Committee.    Funding  for
 4    the  staffing  shall  be  included  in  the  State  Board  of
 5    Education's  assessment  budget.   The Committee shall report
 6    its recommendations for the State assessment  system  to  the
 7    Governor,  General  Assembly, and State Board of Education on
 8    or before January 1, 2005.  Following its initial report, the
 9    Committee   shall   periodically   meet   to    review    the
10    implementation of the State assessment system and ensure that
11    the  State  assessment  system meets the requirements of this
12    Section.  Following its initial report, the  Committee  shall
13    issue an additional report to the Governor, General Assembly,
14    and  State Board of Education regarding the implementation of
15    the State assessment system on or before January  1  of  each
16    even-numbered year.
17    (Source: P.A. 89-184, eff. 7-19-95; 90-789, eff. 8-14-98.)

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