86R3210 KJE-D

By: Ashby H.B. No. 1244

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to including a civics test in the graduation requirements for public high school students and to eliminating the United States history end-of-course assessment instrument.

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

SECTION 1. Section 28.025(c), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) A person may receive a diploma if the person is eligible for a diploma under Section 28.0251. In other cases, a student may graduate and receive a diploma only if:

(1) the student successfully completes the curriculum requirements identified by the State Board of Education under Subsection (a) and complies with Sections 39.02304 and [Section] 39.025; or

(2) the student successfully completes an individualized education program developed under Section 29.005.

SECTION 2. Section 39.023(c), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) The agency shall also adopt end-of-course assessment instruments for secondary-level courses in Algebra I, biology, English I, and English II [, and United States history]. The Algebra I end-of-course assessment instrument must be administered with the aid of technology. The English I and English II end-of-course assessment instruments must each assess essential knowledge and skills in both reading and writing in the same assessment instrument and must provide a single score. A school district shall comply with State Board of Education rules regarding administration of the assessment instruments listed in this subsection. If a student is in a special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, the student's admission, review, and dismissal committee shall determine whether any allowable modification is necessary in administering to the student an assessment instrument required under this subsection. The State Board of Education shall administer the assessment instruments. The State Board of Education shall adopt a schedule for the administration of end-of-course assessment instruments that complies with the requirements of Subsection (c-3).

SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 39, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 39.02304 to read as follows:

Sec. 39.02304. CIVICS TEST. (a) The commissioner shall adopt rules requiring a school district to administer a civics test to a student in the foundation high school program under Section 28.025. A student may not receive a high school diploma until the student has performed satisfactorily on the civics test.

(b) The civics test must consist of all of the questions on the civics test administered by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services as part of the naturalization process under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. Section 1101 et seq.). The questions must be presented in a multiple-choice format.

(c) To perform satisfactorily on the civics test, a student must answer at least 70 percent of the questions correctly.

(d) A school district shall administer the civics test to a student when the school counselor or the teacher of the United States history course in which the student is enrolled, if applicable, determines that the student is prepared for the test.

(e) The admission, review, and dismissal committee of a student in a special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, shall determine:

(1) whether any allowable modification is necessary in administering the civics test to the student to appropriately measure the student's achievement; and

(2) if the committee determines that the civics test, even with allowable modifications, would not provide an appropriate measure of the student's achievement, whether the student is required to achieve satisfactory performance on the civics test to receive a high school diploma.

(f) The commissioner shall adopt rules regarding the administration of the civics test. The rules:

(1) must require:

(A) the test to be administered electronically in the presence of a teacher, teacher's aide, proctor, or campus testing coordinator and be scored by that person or by the school district; and

(B) the results of the test to be submitted to the agency not later than the last instructional day of the school year in which the test is administered; and

(2) may not:

(A) restrict the high school grade level at which a student may take the civics test; or

(B) limit the number of attempts a student may make to perform satisfactorily on the test.

(g) A student who is required to perform satisfactorily on a United States history end-of-course assessment instrument under Section 39.025(a) based on the provisions of Section 39.023(c) in effect on January 1, 2019, may elect to satisfy that requirement by performing satisfactorily on the civics test. This subsection expires September 1, 2027.

(h) For purposes of the public school accountability system, a reference in this code to an assessment instrument under Section 39.023(c) includes the civics test. Performance at the level required under Subsection (c) of this section is considered satisfactory performance for purposes of Section 39.0241(a), and the commissioner shall determine the level of performance considered to indicate college readiness for purposes of Section 39.0241(a-1). To the extent of a conflict between this section and any other provision of law, this section controls.

SECTION 4. This Act applies beginning with students who enter the ninth grade during the 2020-2021 school year.

SECTION 5. 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, 2019.