By Garcia                                       H.B. No. 2051

      75R6629 CAS-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the use of state-administered assessment instruments

 1-3     for public school students of limited English proficiency.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 39.027, Education Code, is amended by

 1-6     amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read as

 1-7     follows:

 1-8           (c)  Not later than September 1, 1998 [December 1, 1996], the

 1-9     commissioner shall develop [and propose to the legislature] an

1-10     assessment system that shall be used for evaluating the progress of

1-11     students exempted under Subsection (a)(2) who are instructed in

1-12     English because of a shortage of teachers with teaching

1-13     certificates appropriate for bilingual education instruction.  Not

1-14     later than the 1998-1999 school year, the performance [of those

1-15     students] under an assessment system of students to whom Subsection

1-16     (a) applies must be included in the academic excellence indicator

1-17     system  under Section 39.051, the campus report card under Section

1-18     39.052, and the performance report under Section 39.053.  This

1-19     subsection expires September 1, 1999.

1-20           (d)  A student of limited English proficiency who has

1-21     immigrated from a foreign country, is enrolling for the first time

1-22     in a public school in this state, and  is instructed in English

1-23     for one or more school years because of a shortage of teachers

1-24     with teaching certificates appropriate for bilingual education

 2-1     instruction must be assessed for at least three school years using

 2-2     an assessment instrument developed by the commissioner specifically

 2-3     for evaluating the progress of a student of limited English

 2-4     proficiency who is  instructed in English.  Assessment under this

 2-5     subsection must be completed before the student may be assessed

 2-6     using an assessment instrument adopted under Section 39.023.  In

 2-7     this subsection, "student of limited English proficiency" has the

 2-8     meaning assigned by Section 29.052.

 2-9           SECTION 2.  Section 39.027(d), Education Code, as added by

2-10     this Act, applies beginning with the 1998-1999 school year.

2-11           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-12     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-13     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-14     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-15     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

2-16     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

2-17     passage, and it is so enacted.