Legislature(2001 - 2002)
03/07/2001 01:32 PM Senate HES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SB 128-PUBLIC SCHOOL EXIT EXAM TRANSITION PERIOD
SENATOR LEMAN, sponsor of SB 128, said he believes that competency
testing is appropriate. When he voted in favor of the exit exam
requirement, he believed the five years of preparation time was
adequate. He believes the DOEED and others who established
standards for the state did a commendable job. The results from
the first and follow up round for the exam have been less than
spectacular with a few exceptions. He has looked at the school
districts that were the exceptions and learned a few things. He
believes the test should be a standard for passage and the test
results should be placed on the transcript and the diploma. SB 128
buys two years of time. This approach accomplishes several things.
School systems will have more time to align their curricula and
bring what is taught in the schools up to a level that Alaskans
believe is appropriate for high school students to achieve. It
will also give students additional time to learn the material. It
also gives parents additional time to get involved in the learning
of their children. He purposely did not address the issue
surrounding special education because he is not an expert on that
subject and the bill will provide two years to tackle that issue.
SB 128 provides legal defensibility. He spoke with the past
superintendent of the Unalaska School District who is now in
Valdez, Carol Comeau with the Anchorage School District, and Carl
Rose, with the Association of Alaska School Boards (AASB). All
three indicated their willingness to comment on SB 128.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN said she would now take up the draft proposal for
committee legislation [SB 133]. The committee's proposal would do
much of what Senator Ward's, Senator Leman's and the Governor's
bills do. She has tried to find a solution for every student who
might be required to take the exit exam. The committee proposal
contains intent language that encourages school districts to
develop additional endorsements, above and beyond what the bill
requires, to develop a better picture of each student. The bill
requires the exit exam to focus on essential and foundational
skills in the areas of reading, English, and mathematics that the
general community would expect the student to have or to know in
order to function at an introductory level in our society. The
transitional language for the time period between now and 2003 is
similar to that provision in Senator Leman's bill. The committee
proposal also contains language prohibiting the exit exam from
being administered during a day when school is in session, the
purpose being to avoid having half of the school non-functioning
while the exam is being given. She noted she is open to suggestions
on that language.
TAPE 01-17, SIDE B
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN said that the draft bill has a 2004 effective
date. At that time, a student will be required to pass a high
school essential skills examination to receive a high school
diploma, unless the student receives a waiver from DOEED. She
explained that a waiver might be given if a student transferred in
during his or her senior year or to a student who has passed all
classes and done well but for some reason failed the exam. She
noted the draft bill contains re-examination language that she is
unsure about. That language was left open so that DOEED can work
on it. Section 3 contains permissive language for children with
disabilities and conditions for granting diplomas to children who
do not receive a passing score on the exam. Special education
students have a very wide range of abilities and skills therefore
different approaches will be necessary. Some students will never be
required to take an exam. She intends to add oversight language
that says when a school is in the process of providing an
alternative assessment for a student, a report of explanation must
be done. It is not her intention that the bill contain a loophole
so that any student with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP)
will not have to take the test. The fact that a student passed the
exam will be noted on the diploma and the scores will be placed on
the student's transcript. She asked Carol Comeau to testify.
Number 2189
MS. CAROL COMEAU, Anchorage School District, thanked Senators
Leman, Ward and Green for considering the concerns the Anchorage
School District has been bringing forward. The Anchorage School
District is not interested in stepping back from the exam
requirement or from the accountability aspect. However, the
district is still concerned about special education, bilingual and
military transfer students. She is aware the committee has
recognized these issues so she hopes they can be worked through
during the next two years.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN said she thinks the waiver language will give
DOEED room to make provisions for military students in particular
and any other anomalies that occur.
MS. COMEAU asked if DOEED has given its perspective on the
essential skills issue.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN said she cannot speak for the Commissioner, but
she noted Commissioner Holloway is relieved the committee is moving
forward. She then took public testimony.
MR. STEVE CATHERS, Superintendent of the Valdez City School
District, said he was speaking on his own behalf. The legislation
on the exit exam has had a positive effect on schools and students
in the state: it has provided an incentive for students to try
harder and for schools to be focused. At this point, the
accountability system needs to be made part of a statewide school
improvement process, which is in danger of becoming discredited by
unresolved issues of fairness and undesired results. The worst
case scenario will be that the group of students denied diplomas
will correlate closely to the group of students already identified
as handicapped, bilingual or economically disadvantaged. Another
result, which could discredit the process, could be found in
numerous anecdotal cases of students who become successful in the
business world but were previously found inadequate by the State of
Alaska because of the qualifying exam. He supports Senator Leman's
bill (SB 128) in its effort to allow time to resolve these issues
yet maintain accountability. The following other fixes must take
place during the two-year delay.
· The appropriate education for students with special needs
guaranteed by federal law is not yet provided for in any bill.
The Valdez school district will be sued over this issue.
Senator Green's idea of separate and multiple diplomas has
merit and should be explored further.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN clarified that the previous language she discussed
regarding separate diplomas is not in the draft proposal.
MR. CATHERS continued.
· The math portion of the exam needs to be adjusted, as with any
standardized test, to ensure its validity.
· An honest inquiry must take place regarding whether all
students have had equal access to quality education. If a
school is identified as needing improvements, will the
students be punished by withholding their diplomas? This
study should take place using data that just became available
at the education summit.
· A further step is needed to increase graduation requirements
so that passing the minimal standards of the qualifying exam
is not the only measure of student success. Bright students
might be "dumbed" down by this system if they are not
challenged more. He proposes that different kinds of diplomas
be offered, sometimes called Career Pathways diplomas. The
day of the generic pass/fail diploma is passed; the world is
now specialized. An academic diploma could represent college-
readiness and a technical diploma could represent preparedness
for a skilled labor career. Graduation standards for each
should be different but equally rigorous. This change would
prepare students for the world of work and not reject a
portion of our students who are not college bound but are very
much career bound.
· Remediation needs to be supported through increased funding.
Summer school and after school tutoring must become
commonplace around the state.
· Student behaviors and student discipline must continue to be
addressed to prevent failure due to interference and
disruption by other students.
MR. KENNY BRYANT, Operations Business Manager for the Western North
Slope Business Unit for Phillips Alaska, said he was speaking on
his own behalf. He was asked to testify by virtue of his
involvement on the Content Review Committee. He was involved in
reviewing the math portion of the exam. His group looked at each
question and asked whether it required essential knowledge for a
student to graduate from high school. He noted that the business
community would much prefer to have the test scores on the diploma
or transcripts. He does not believe the exit exam is a high risk
exam. He asked whether the endorsements would be based on a
pass/fail system or whether they will contain a score. A score
will be a lot more valuable for a future employer to know.
Number 1732
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN explained that the scores will be on the
transcript.
MS. AMY BOLLENBACH, testifying from Homer, asked if the committee
has extensive studies on states that use exit exams regarding drop
out and suicide rates and other possible effects of the exit exam.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN said she has seen several comparison pieces on
different things states have gone through to conform and improve
their tests. She said she does not know whether the information
Ms. Bollenbach referred to is available but she will ask DOEED.
MS. BOLLENBACH asked that the committee get that information before
taking action on the legislation. She noted an article in the
Peninsula Clarion reported that several students have already
dropped out of high school in the Kenai Peninsula because of the
exit exam. If that is true, it is important to think about where
those students are going. Ms. Bollenbach said she prefers Senator
Ward's bill because it takes into consideration that people want
accountability and information on students. That bill does not
make the diploma contingent upon a certain score but instead would
state whether the student has competencies in reading, writing, and
math. She believes society should be very careful when doing
things that might make children feel like failures.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN asked Ms. Bollenbach if she favors canceling the
exit exam.
MS. BOLLENBACH said she would prefer that it be canceled or to use
Senator Ward's method of listing levels of competency.
Number 1445
MR. DOUG WESSON, President of the Alaska School Psychologists
Association (ASPA), said the ASPA favors delaying the exit exam.
Its areas of concern are:
· In many schools, the curriculum has not been aligned with
current standards;
· Reasonable accommodations are insufficient for students with
identified disabilities;
· The high school qualifying exam alone has questionable
reliability and validity; and
· Alternatives need to be developed for students who may not be
able to pass the exit exam.
The ASPA does not propose a date by which the exam should be
delayed but believes it should not go into effect until the above
concerns are addressed. ASPA believes it would be best to delay or
phase in the exam so that its flaws and difficulties can be
addressed.
ASPA supports standards and accountability. It is important that
teachers have the tools and resources required for students to meet
the standards: smaller class size, upgraded facilities, after
school tutoring and summer school available for all. ASPA supports
the National Association of School Psychologists' position to
ensure that the use of tests is fair and that they accurately
measure achievement. Tests should not be the sole measure to
determine passage for graduation. The test can only provide a
sample of skills and it must be valid in order to be useful. The
profession of school psychology's ethical guidelines warn that test
scores alone should never be used to make a determination on a
student. Additional measures of student achievement should be
considered, such as teacher evaluations. The National Association
of Test Directors has gone on record to delay the implementation of
the exit exam because of substantial performance differences
between male and female students, students from more or less
affluent families, students from urban and rural schools, and
students with differences in racial and ethnic heritage. One aim
of this test is to provide accountability in instruction but
teachers do not control the socio-economic make-up of the
communities nor the transience of the population. Neither do
teachers control the salary levels they receive or the extent of
parental involvement in education. Additionally, this outcome
seems to punish the child rather than improve factors highly
related to academic success.
MR. WESSON said testing is a tool; it should not be a policy.
Testing can sometimes limit a teacher's ability to accommodate
students with diverse learning styles. The use of test scores
alone can misrepresent actual student achievement and increase drop
out rates. Testing should not be used to punish but rather to
diagnose. Not all schools in Alaska have aligned their curricula
with the exit exam and many have just begun needed remedial help -
a reflection of the short period of time between the first test
results indicating the areas in need of improvement. The ASPA
supports the accommodations being made for students with
disabilities in the draft proposal. Students need to be able to
demonstrate mastery of the performance standards and not just the
mastery of taking the test.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN asked Mr. Wesson if he thinks the language she
discussed provides the leeway to do that.
MR. WESSON said he thinks the committee is heading in the right
direction and the ASPA supports that movement. He added that the
US District Court in Portland, Oregon recently heard a case in
which a group of parents filed a lawsuit against the State of
Oregon because their children were denied the use of
accommodations. Under the settlement, students with learning
disabilities would be allowed accommodations. ASPA feels there
needs to be alternatives for students who may not be able to pass
the exit exam. It would like to see alternatives used, such as
portfolios, verification of standards, grades, and attendance to
determine whether a student receives a high school diploma.
Students with disabilities could have their IEP teams provide data
and information to help determine whether the students are eligible
for a diploma. He also noted a policy for students who transfer
into the state needs to be looked at. He cautioned there are huge
consequences for students who do not pass the exit exam and for
those who may miss the exam date because of family or other
emergencies.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN noted that she has asked DOEED to craft language
to address emergency situations. She asked him to address the
legislation before the committee in future testimony.
DR. ED MCLAIN, Kenai Peninsula Borough School District, thanked
Chairwoman Green for her leadership in this area. The Kenai
District strongly favors refocusing on the essential skills aspect
of the test, the provisions for students with special needs, the
provision for transfer students, and the timing of the test. His
district is now identifying the skills and knowledge that a high
school graduate needs to have to participate on a structured level
in society. Those skills are a subset of the skills that are
included in the Kenai District's curriculum. He offered to provide
assistance to the committee in crafting out specific regulations
for the special education student provisions.
MR. CARL ROSE, Alaska Association of School Boards (AASB), said the
AASB has identified areas of concern that the committee has been
trying to deal with. He noted the issue is one of time and
simplicity at this point. Failure to pass legislation this session
will leave school districts up against a wall in 2002. He applauded
the committee for working on the concerns that are of importance.
He stated the qualifying benchmark exams have created positive
changes in education. He would hate to compromise that progress by
not having legislation passed this year.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN announced the committee would meet on Saturday,
March 11, at 10:30 a.m., to review SB 120, SB 128 and the draft
language of the proposed Senate HESS Committee bill [SB 133]. She
noted the committee would like to hear from parents and students at
that meeting.
Number 559
SENATOR WARD asked if he could have some amendments incorporated
into the proposed committee bill.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN said that would be fine.
SENATOR DAVIS informed the committee that she will be passing out
draft legislation at Saturday's meeting for public comment.
SENATOR WILKEN noted that he would not be able to attend Saturday's
meeting and that his staff will be present.
There being no further business to come before the committee,
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN adjourned the meeting at 3:00 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|