By Howard H.B. No. 575
75R2165 CAS-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to certain requirements relating to public school reading
1-3 and mathematics instruction and textbooks and to the minimum number
1-4 of days of service for certain public school educators.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Section 21.044, Education Code, is amended to
1-7 read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 21.044. EDUCATOR PREPARATION. (a) The board shall
1-9 propose rules establishing the training requirements a person must
1-10 accomplish to obtain a certificate, enter an internship, or enter
1-11 an induction-year program. The board shall specify the minimum
1-12 academic qualifications required for a certificate.
1-13 (b) The rules adopted by the board under Subsection (a) must
1-14 require that for a person to obtain a certificate under which the
1-15 person may teach at an elementary grade level, the person must
1-16 complete training in reading instruction, including training in:
1-17 (1) phonemic awareness;
1-18 (2) systematic, explicit phonics;
1-19 (3) sound-symbol relationship;
1-20 (4) decoding words;
1-21 (5) word-attack skills;
1-22 (6) spelling;
1-23 (7) vocabulary development;
1-24 (8) grammar, punctuation, and capitalization skills;
2-1 (9) the diagnosis of reading deficiencies;
2-2 (10) strategies for early intervention in reading
2-3 deficiencies;
2-4 (11) the scientific research on the manner in which
2-5 children learn to read;
2-6 (12) the scientific research on the manner in which
2-7 proficient readers read;
2-8 (13) the structure of the English language;
2-9 (14) the relationships among reading, writing, and
2-10 spelling;
2-11 (15) planning and delivering appropriate reading
2-12 instruction based on assessment and evaluation; and
2-13 (16) independent student reading of high quality books
2-14 and the relationship of that reading to improved reading
2-15 performance.
2-16 SECTION 2. Section 21.048(a), Education Code, is amended to
2-17 read as follows:
2-18 (a) The board shall propose rules prescribing comprehensive
2-19 examinations for each class of certificate issued by the board.
2-20 The rules must provide that the examination for a certificate
2-21 under which a person may teach at an elementary grade level must
2-22 assess mastery of reading instruction for which training is
2-23 required under Section 21.044.
2-24 SECTION 3. Section 21.401(b), Education Code, is amended to
2-25 read as follows:
2-26 (b) An educator employed under a 10-month contract must
2-27 provide a minimum number of days of service as determined by the
3-1 following formula:
3-3 where:
3-4 "MDS" is the minimum number of days of service;
3-5 "R1" is equal to FSP/ADA as determined under Section 21.402
3-6 for the fiscal year; and
3-7 "R2" is equal to FSP/ADA as determined under Section 21.402
3-8 for the 1994-1995 school year.
3-9 SECTION 4. Section 21.451(a), Education Code, is amended to
3-10 read as follows:
3-11 (a) The staff development provided by a school district must
3-12 be conducted in accordance with minimum standards developed by the
3-13 commissioner for program planning, preparation, and improvement.
3-14 The staff development:
3-15 (1) must include technology training and training in
3-16 conflict resolution and discipline strategies; [and]
3-17 (2) must include, for teachers who teach kindergarten,
3-18 grade one, two, or three, or special education, at least five days
3-19 of training in reading instruction, including training in:
3-20 (A) phonemic awareness;
3-21 (B) systematic, explicit phonics;
3-22 (C) sound-symbol relationship;
3-23 (D) decoding words;
3-24 (E) word-attack skills;
3-25 (F) spelling;
3-26 (G) vocabulary development;
3-27 (H) grammar, punctuation, and capitalization
4-1 skills;
4-2 (I) the diagnosis of reading deficiencies;
4-3 (J) strategies for early intervention in reading
4-4 deficiencies;
4-5 (K) the scientific research on the manner in
4-6 which children learn to read;
4-7 (L) the scientific research on the manner in
4-8 which proficient readers read;
4-9 (M) the structure of the English language;
4-10 (N) the relationships among reading, writing,
4-11 and spelling;
4-12 (O) planning and delivering appropriate reading
4-13 instruction based on assessment and evaluation; and
4-14 (P) independent student reading of high quality
4-15 books and the relationship of that reading to improved reading
4-16 performance; and
4-17 (3) may include instruction as to what is permissible
4-18 under law, including opinions of the United States Supreme Court,
4-19 in regard to prayers in public school.
4-20 SECTION 5. Section 28.002(c), Education Code, is amended to
4-21 read as follows:
4-22 (c) The State Board of Education, with the direct
4-23 participation of educators, parents, business and industry
4-24 representatives, and employers shall by rule identify the essential
4-25 knowledge and skills of each subject of the foundation curriculum
4-26 that all students should be able to demonstrate and that will be
4-27 used in evaluating textbooks under Chapter 31 and addressed on the
5-1 assessment instruments required under Subchapter B, Chapter 39.
5-2 Reading must be included among the essential knowledge and skills
5-3 of English language arts for grades one through eight. The reading
5-4 curriculum, based on scientific research, must be grade specific
5-5 and increase in depth and complexity from one school year to the
5-6 next, focus on core knowledge, and include phonemic awareness and
5-7 systematic, explicit phonics and spelling knowledge and skills.
5-8 The essential knowledge and skills for mathematics for grades one
5-9 through eight, based on scientific research, must be grade specific
5-10 and increase in depth and complexity from one school year to the
5-11 next, focus on core knowledge, and include basic computational
5-12 knowledge and skills. As a condition of accreditation, the board
5-13 shall require each district to provide instruction in the essential
5-14 knowledge and skills at appropriate grade levels.
5-15 SECTION 6. Section 31.023(a), Education Code, is amended to
5-16 read as follows:
5-17 (a) For each subject and grade level, the State Board of
5-18 Education shall adopt two lists of textbooks. The conforming list
5-19 includes each textbook submitted for the subject and grade level
5-20 that meets applicable physical specifications adopted by the State
5-21 Board of Education, [and] contains material covering each element
5-22 of the essential knowledge and skills of the subject and grade
5-23 level as determined by the State Board of Education under Section
5-24 28.002 presented in an educationally effective manner as proven by
5-25 scientific research, and is adopted under Section 31.024. To be
5-26 placed on the conforming list, a reading textbook for grade one or
5-27 above through grade eight must address phonemic awareness and must
6-1 contain systematic, explicit phonics and spelling instruction that
6-2 increases in depth and complexity from one school year to the next
6-3 and a mathematics textbook for grade one or above through grade
6-4 eight must contain instruction in basic computational skills that
6-5 increases in depth and complexity from one school year to the next.
6-6 The nonconforming list includes each textbook submitted for the
6-7 subject and grade level that:
6-8 (1) meets applicable physical specifications adopted
6-9 by the State Board of Education;
6-10 (2) contains material covering at least half, but not
6-11 all, of the elements of the essential knowledge and skills of the
6-12 subject and grade level presented in an educationally effective
6-13 manner as proven by scientific research; [and]
6-14 (3) is adopted under Section 31.024; and
6-15 (4) contains systematic, explicit phonics and spelling
6-16 instruction that increases in depth and complexity from one school
6-17 year to the next, in the case of a reading textbook for grade one
6-18 or above through grade eight.
6-19 SECTION 7. Subchapter B, Chapter 31, Education Code, is
6-20 amended by adding Section 31.030 to read as follows:
6-21 Sec. 31.030. TEACHER EDITIONS OF READING TEXTBOOKS. Each
6-22 teacher edition of a reading textbook must address:
6-23 (1) the structure of the English language;
6-24 (2) the relationships among reading, writing, and
6-25 spelling;
6-26 (3) planning and delivering appropriate reading
6-27 instruction based on assessment and evaluation; and
7-1 (4) independent student reading of high quality books
7-2 and the relationship of that reading to improved reading
7-3 performance.
7-4 SECTION 8. Sections 39.023(a) and (f), Education Code, are
7-5 amended to read as follows:
7-6 (a) The agency shall adopt appropriate criterion-referenced
7-7 assessment instruments designed to assess competencies in
7-8 pre-reading, reading, writing, mathematics, social studies, and
7-9 science. All nonexempt students shall be assessed in:
7-10 (1) pre-reading, including phoneme awareness, letter
7-11 sound knowledge, and letter knowledge, in kindergarten;
7-12 (2) reading and mathematics, annually in grades three
7-13 through eight;
7-14 (3) [(2)] writing, in grades four and eight; and
7-15 (4) [(3)] social studies and science, at an
7-16 appropriate grade level determined by the State Board of Education.
7-17 (f) The State Board of Education may adopt one appropriate,
7-18 nationally recognized, norm-referenced assessment instrument in
7-19 reading and mathematics to be administered to a selected sample of
7-20 students in the spring. The board shall adopt one appropriate,
7-21 nationally recognized, norm-referenced assessment instrument in
7-22 basic reading and reading comprehension to be administered to all
7-23 nonexempt students in grade three. Each [If adopted, a]
7-24 norm-referenced assessment instrument must be a secured test. The
7-25 state may pay the costs of purchasing and scoring the optional
7-26 norm-referenced [adopted] assessment instrument and of distributing
7-27 the results of that [the adopted] instrument to the school
8-1 districts. The state shall pay the costs of purchasing and scoring
8-2 the third-grade reading assessment instrument and of distributing
8-3 the results of that instrument to the school districts. A district
8-4 [that administers the norm-referenced test adopted under this
8-5 section] shall report the results of each norm-referenced
8-6 assessment instrument administered by the district under this
8-7 subsection to the agency in a manner prescribed by the
8-8 commissioner.
8-9 SECTION 9. Notwithstanding the textbook review and adoption
8-10 requirements under Section 31.022, Education Code, or the textbook
8-11 review and adoption cycle the State Board of Education adopts under
8-12 that section, the board shall review and adopt reading textbooks
8-13 for grades one through eight that satisfy requirements under
8-14 Section 31.023, Education Code, as amended by this Act, and
8-15 accompanying teacher edition reading textbooks that satisfy
8-16 requirements under Section 31.030, Education Code, as added by this
8-17 Act, as soon as practicable.
8-18 SECTION 10. Sections 1-8 of this Act apply beginning with
8-19 the 1997-1998 school year.
8-20 SECTION 11. The importance of this legislation and the
8-21 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
8-22 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
8-23 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
8-24 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
8-25 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
8-26 passage, and it is so enacted.