By: Shapiro S.B. No. 1643

(In the Senate - Filed March 8, 2007; March 21, 2007, read first time and referred to Committee on Education; April 19, 2007, reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 5, Nays 2; April 19, 2007, sent to printer.)

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1643 By: Shapiro

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to educator preparation programs and to training, continuing education, appraisal, and employment of public school teachers and administrators.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 21.041, Education Code, is amended by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(c) The board shall propose a rule adopting a fee for the issuance and maintenance of an educator certificate that, when combined with any fees imposed under Subsection (d), is adequate to cover the cost of administration of this subchapter.

(d) The board may propose a rule adopting a fee for the approval or renewal of approval of an educator preparation program, or for the addition of a certificate or field of certification to the scope of a program's approval. A fee imposed under this subsection may not exceed the amount necessary, as determined by the board, to provide for the administrative cost of approving, renewing the approval of, and appropriately ensuring the accountability of educator preparation programs under this subchapter.

SECTION 2. Section 21.043, Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 21.043. ACCESS TO INFORMATION [PEIMS DATA]. (a) The agency shall provide the board with access to data obtained under the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS).

(b) Notwithstanding Section 21.355, a document evaluating the performance of a teacher or administrator shall be provided to the agency or board for purposes of this subchapter on request by the agency or board. The agency or board, as appropriate, shall take appropriate measures to maintain confidentiality of the document.

SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Education Code, is amended by amending Section 21.045 and adding Sections 21.0451 and 21.0452 to read as follows:

Sec. 21.045. ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM FOR EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAMS. (a) The board shall propose rules establishing standards to govern the approval and continuing accountability of all educator preparation programs based on information that is disaggregated with respect to sex and ethnicity and that includes:

(1) results of the certification examinations prescribed under Section 21.048(a); [and]

(2) performance based on the appraisal system for beginning teachers adopted by the board;

(3) achievement, including improvement in achievement, of students taught by beginning teachers for the first three years following certification, as determined on the basis of the measure of annual improvement under Section 39.034 and any other factor considered appropriate by the board; and

(4) perseverance of beginning teachers in the profession, as determined on the basis of the number of beginning teachers who maintain status as active contributing members in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas for at least three years after certification in comparison to similar programs.

(b) Each educator preparation program shall submit data elements as required by the board for an annual performance report to ensure access and equity. At a minimum, the annual report must contain the performance data from Subsection (a), other than the data required for purposes of Subsection (a)(3), and the following information, disaggregated by sex and ethnicity:

(1) the number of candidates who apply;

(2) the number of candidates admitted;

(3) the number of candidates retained;

(4) the number of candidates completing the program;

(5) the number of candidates employed in the profession after completing the program; and

(6) the number of candidates retained in the profession.

(c) The board shall propose rules establishing performance standards for the Accountability System for Educator Preparation for accrediting educator preparation programs. At a minimum, performance standards must be based on Subsection (a). The board may propose rules establishing minimum standards for approval or renewal of approval of:

(1) educator preparation programs;

(2) certification fields authorized to be offered by an educator preparation program; or

(3) physical locations at which an educator preparation program operates.

(d) The board shall propose rules establishing standards for the designation of high-performance educator preparation programs as exemplary.

Sec. 21.0451. SANCTIONS UNDER ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM FOR EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAMS. (a) The board shall propose rules for the sanction of educator preparation programs that do not meet accountability standards and shall annually review the accreditation status of each educator preparation program. The rules:

(1) may provide for the agency to take any necessary action, including one or more of the following actions:

(A) requiring the program to obtain technical assistance approved by the agency or board;

(B) requiring the program to obtain professional services under contract with another person;

(C) appointing a monitor to participate in and report to the board on the activities of the program;

(D) appointing a conservator to direct the operations of the program;

(E) if a program is rated as unacceptable under the Accountability System for Educator Preparation, appointing a board of managers to exercise the powers and duties of the governing body of the program with respect to the program; and

(F) if a program has been rated as unacceptable under the Accountability System for Educator Preparation for two consecutive rating periods, revoking the approval of the program and ordering the program to be closed, provided that the board or agency must provide the opportunity for a hearing before the effective date of the closure; and

(2) shall provide for the agency to revoke the approval of the program and order the program to be closed if the program has been rated as unacceptable under the Accountability System for Educator Preparation for three consecutive rating periods, provided that the board or agency must provide the opportunity for a hearing before the effective date of the closure.

(b) Any action authorized or required to be taken against an educator preparation program under Subsection (a) may also be taken with regard to a particular field of certification authorized to be offered by an educator preparation program.

(c) A conservator or board of managers appointed under Subsection (a) may:

(1) direct any action to be taken by the educator preparation program;

(2) disapprove any action taken by the educator preparation program; or

(3) take any action on behalf of the educator preparation program.

(d) A permissive revocation under Subsection (a)(1) or required revocation under Subsection (a)(2) must be effective for a period of at least two years. After two years, the program may seek renewed approval to prepare educators for state certification.

(e) The costs of technical assistance required under Subsection (a)(1)(A) or the costs associated with the appointment of a monitor, conservator, or board of managers under Subsections (a)(1)(C), (D), or (E) shall be paid by the sponsor of the educator preparation program.

Sec. 21.0452. REVIEW OF EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAMS. (a) The board and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board biennially shall conduct a review and assessment of the performance of educator preparation programs and issue reports of the resulting evaluations of the programs. The review and assessment may be conducted in conjunction with an independent entity with experience and expertise in research regarding effective instructional techniques and the preparation of educators.

(b) The commissioner shall adopt rules necessary to implement this section [(d) The executive director of the board shall appoint an oversight team of educators to make recommendations and provide assistance to educator preparation programs that do not meet accreditation standards. If, after one year, an educator preparation program has not fulfilled the recommendations of the oversight team, the executive director shall appoint a person to administer and manage the operations of the program. If the program does not improve after two years, the board shall revoke the approval of the program to prepare educators for state certification].

SECTION 4. Section 21.054, Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) Continuing education for a teacher must include activities for professional development that provide knowledge and skills shown to improve instructional effectiveness and that are linked to:

(1) areas identified in a teacher's appraisal as needing improvement, especially those areas relating to student achievement;

(2) areas identified by a teacher for achievement of specific professional goals for improvement; and

(3) the subject area taught by the teacher, as appropriate to generate improvement in pedagogy or subject area expertise.

SECTION 5. Section 21.351, Education Code, is amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (a-1) and (e) to read as follows:

(a) The commissioner shall adopt a recommended appraisal process and criteria on which to appraise the performance of teachers. The criteria must be based on observable, job-related behavior and address at least the following considerations[, including]:

(1) teachers' implementation of discipline management procedures; [and]

(2) the achievement, including improvement in achievement, [performance] of teachers' students; and

(3) relevant subject area expertise, as demonstrated by teachers' qualifications, including advanced degrees or professional experience in relevant subject areas and continuing education or professional development.

(a-1) The recommended appraisal process must provide that:

(1) a majority of a teacher's appraisal consists of the consideration of the achievement of the teacher's students under Subsection (a)(2), using:

(A) criteria based on objective and quantifiable measures of the achievement of the teacher's students, including the measure of annual improvement in student achievement under Section 39.034, standardized assessment instruments under Section 39.023, and locally adopted measures, including benchmarking systems, portfolio assessments, and nationally norm-referenced assessments; and

(B) criteria based on overall achievement, including improvement in achievement of students at the campus to which the teacher is assigned, peer evaluations, and other observable measures of student achievement, when appropriate; and

(2) at least 25 percent of a teacher's appraisal be based on objective and quantifiable measures of the achievement of the teacher's students, provided that:

(A) this subdivision does not apply to the appraisal of a teacher who provides instruction in a subject area for which objective and quantifiable measures of student achievement do not exist; and

(B) each measure used for purposes of this subdivision must relate to the student's achievement in the subject area taught by the teacher.

(e) Under the recommended appraisal process, a teacher employed under a probationary contract must be appraised more frequently than a teacher employed under a term contract or continuing contract.

SECTION 6. Effective September 1, 2010, Subsection (a), Section 21.352, Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) In appraising teachers, each school district shall use:

(1) the appraisal process and performance criteria developed by the commissioner; or

(2) an appraisal process and performance criteria:

(A) developed by the district- and campus-level committees established under Section 11.251;

(B) containing at least the items described by Sections 21.351(a)(1), [and] (2), and (3); [and]

(C) adopted by the board of trustees; and

(D) approved by the commissioner as meeting applicable standards established by the commissioner.

SECTION 7. Subchapter H, Chapter 21, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 21.3531 to read as follows:

Sec. 21.3531. TEACHER PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT PLAN; CONSEQUENCES OF UNSATISFACTORY OR DEFICIENT APPRAISAL. (a) If a teacher receives an overall unsatisfactory appraisal or an appraisal that identifies important instructional deficiencies related to student achievement and continues employment with the district, the teacher's supervisor, in consultation with the appraiser and the teacher, shall develop a performance improvement plan for the teacher that includes at least the following information:

(1) all areas in which the teacher is in need of assistance and improvement;

(2) requirements for the teacher regarding professional improvement activities that provide knowledge and skills shown to improve instructional effectiveness, and the evidence that will be used to determine whether the teacher successfully completes the required activities;

(3) requirements for changes in the teacher's instructional effectiveness, and the evidence that will be used to determine whether the teacher's performance changes in the manner required; and

(4) a specific timeline for completion of the performance improvement plan.

(b) If a teacher receives an overall unsatisfactory appraisal for three consecutive years, a school district shall discharge the teacher or decline to renew the teacher's contract, as applicable, in the manner provided by this chapter.

SECTION 8. Section 21.354, Education Code, is amended by amending Subsection (e) and adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:

(e) The appraisal of a principal or assistant principal shall include consideration of:

(1) the performance of a principal's or assistant principal's campus on the indicators established under Section 39.051 and the campus's objectives established under Section 11.253, including performance gains of the campus and the maintenance of those gains;

(2) the achievement, including improvement in achievement, of students at the principal's or assistant principal's campus;

(3) the effectiveness of the principal or assistant principal in improving or maintaining a safe and orderly work and learning environment;

(4) the effectiveness of the principal or assistant principal in improving involvement of parents and teachers in the educational process, in comparison to similar schools; and

(5) the instructional leadership and support provided to staff on the principal's or assistant principal's campus.

(f) The recommended appraisal process must provide that:

(1) a majority of an appraisal of a principal or assistant principal consists of the consideration of student achievement under Subsection (e)(2), using:

(A) criteria based on objective and quantifiable measures of student achievement, including the measure of annual improvement in student achievement under Section 39.034, standardized assessment instruments under Section 39.023, and locally adopted measures, including benchmarking systems, portfolio assessments, and nationally norm-referenced assessments; and

(B) criteria based on staff and parent evaluations and other observable measures of student achievement, when appropriate; and

(2) at least 25 percent of an appraisal of a principal or assistant principal be based on objective and quantifiable measures of the achievement of students at the principal's or assistant principal's campus.

SECTION 9. (a) The commissioner of education shall:

(1) adopt revised recommended appraisal processes in compliance with Sections 21.351 and 21.354, Education Code, as amended by this Act, not later than September 1, 2008;

(2) develop training for school districts regarding use of the revised recommended appraisal processes not later than September 1, 2009;

(3) provide the training developed under Subdivision (2) of this subsection to appropriate school district personnel not later than September 1, 2010; and

(4) complete implementation of the revised recommended appraisal processes not later than September 1, 2010.

(b) In revising the recommended appraisal processes in compliance with Sections 21.351 and 21.354, Education Code, as amended by this Act, the commissioner of education shall seek the participation and assistance of appropriate stakeholders in the appraisal process, including:

(1) teachers, principals, and assistant principals;

(2) central administrators, such as superintendents and representatives of school district human resources departments;

(3) representatives of institutions of higher education that are responsible for preparing educators for certification; and

(4) any other persons considered appropriate by the commissioner.

SECTION 10. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2007, except as otherwise provided by this Act.

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