Jan-Feb 2018 Committee on Instruction Item 3
Discussion of Proposed Amendment to 19 TAC Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements,
Subchapter C, Other Provisions, §74.24, Credit by Examination
February 1, 2018
COMMITTEE ON INSTRUCTION: DISCUSSION
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION: NO ACTION
SUMMARY: This item provides the opportunity for the committee to discuss proposed amendment to
19 TAC Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements, Subchapter C, Other Provisions, §74.24, Credit by Examination, to amend the provisions related to test development and validation.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: Texas Education Code (TEC), §7.102(c)(12) and §28.023, as amended by House Bill (HB) 789, 85th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2017.
TEC, §7.102(c)(12), authorizes the State Board of Education (SBOE) to establish guidelines for credit by examination.
TEC, §28.023, as amended by HB 789, 85th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, establishes that districts must develop or select for review exams for acceleration for each primary school grade level and for credit for secondary school academic subjects based on guidelines established by the SBOE.
BOARD RESPONSE: This item is presented for review and comment.
PREVIOUS BOARD ACTION: The SBOE adopted 19 TAC §74.24 effective September 1, 1996. Section 74.24 was last amended effective November 24, 2015.
FUTURE ACTION EXPECTED: First reading and filing authorization of proposed amendment to 19 TAC §74.24, Credit by Examination, will be presented at the April 2018 SBOE meeting.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND SIGNIFICANT ISSUES: Section 74.24 addresses assessment for acceleration in Kindergarten through Grade 5 and assessment for course credit in Grades 6-12. The rule also outlines general provisions for the administration of credit by examination.
Companion bills HB 2694 and Senate Bill (SB) 1365, passed by the 83rd Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2013, amended the TEC, §28.023, and the requirements for credit and acceleration by examination. Changes to the statute increased the number of testing opportunities a school district must provide each school year. The amended statute also required each school district to approve, to the extent available, at least four examinations for acceleration or for credit for each academic subject. Each examination must satisfy guidelines to be established by the SBOE, and the approved examinations must include College Board Advanced Placement (AP) examinations and College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) examinations. The legislation also reduced the minimum score requirement from 90 percent to 80 percent for a student to accelerate or be awarded credit.
HB 789, passed by the 85th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, amended TEC, §28.023, and the requirements for credit and acceleration by examination. Changes to statute apply only to Highland Park Independent School District students. The changes require the local board of trustees to establish the minimum score before the beginning of each school year for exams to be administered during the school year and require that minimum score to apply for at least the entire academic year. The changes limit a minimum score to no greater than the 90th percentile.
Current SBOE rule requires that for a school district to administer a district-developed exam for the award of credit for courses with a required end-of-course exam, the school district must certify that the examination meets the following criteria: the exam covers all assessable Texas essential knowledge and skills; has not been published and is not publicly available; will only be administered in a secure environment under standardized conditions by a school district or institution of higher education; has been externally validated; is equivalent to state-level end-of-course assessment instruments in terms of content coverage, item difficulty, and technical quality; yields comparable results for all sub-groups; and is validated against the applicable end-of-course instrument. The rule also specifies that exams developed by Texas Tech University and The University of Texas at Austin that do not have an end-of-course examination must meet all requirements no later than the 2018-2019 school year. The proposed amendment to 19 TAC §74.24 would eliminate the requirement that exams developed by Texas Tech University and The University of Texas at Austin that do not have an end-of-course examination must meet test development and validation requirements no later than the 2018-2019 school year in order to ensure continued availability of exams to school districts.
FISCAL IMPACT: The Texas Education Agency does not anticipate any additional costs to persons or entities required to comply with the proposed amendment; however, fiscal implications will be assessed after the committee gives the direction regarding the proposed amendment to bring forward for first reading and filing authorization.
GOVERNMENT GROWTH IMPACT: Impact will be assessed after the committee gives direction regarding the proposed amendment to bring forward for first reading and filing authorization.
PUBLIC AND STUDENT BENEFIT: Students would have additional options and test administration opportunities for examinations for acceleration and credit by examination.
PROCEDURAL AND REPORTING IMPLICATIONS: Implications will be assessed after the committee gives direction regarding the proposed amendment to bring forward for first reading and filing authorization.
LOCALLY MAINTAINED PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS: Paperwork requirements will be assessed after the committee gives direction regarding the proposed amendment to bring forward for first reading and filing authorization.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: The public comment period will begin when the proposal, approved for first reading and filing authorization by the SBOE, is published in the Texas Register.
ALTERNATIVES: None.
OTHER COMMENTS AND RELATED ISSUES: Proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements, Subchapter B, Graduation Requirements, are presented for second reading and final adoption as a separate item in this agenda.
Staff Members Responsible:
Monica Martinez, Associate Commissioner
Standards and Support Services
Shelly Ramos, Senior Director
Curriculum Standards and Student Support
Attachments:
I. Statutory Citations (PDF, 22KB)
II. Text of Proposed Amendment to 19 TAC Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements, Subchapter C, Other Provisions, §74.24, Credit by Examination (PDF, 29KB)