BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 2548 Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 2548 (Weber) As Amended August 19, 2016 Majority vote -------------------------------------------------------------------- |ASSEMBLY: |75-1 |(June 1, 2016) |SENATE: |39-0 |(August 24, | | | | | | |2016) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------- Original Committee Reference: ED. SUMMARY: Requires the State Board of Education (SBE) to adopt a statewide accountability system aligned to state and federal accountability requirements. Specifically, this bill: 1)Requires the accountability system to: a) Be a single, integrated system that aligns local, state, and federal accountability requirements; b) Satisfy the requirements of the federal Every Student Succeed Act (ESSA); c) Align California's local control framework with the need to identify, support, and improve California's highest need schools; and d) Rely upon data from key indicators adopted by the SBE AB 2548 Page 2 pursuant to the SBE-adopted evaluation rubrics. 2)Requires the SBE, with regard to developing the statewide accountability system, to rely upon data from key indicators established pursuant to the evaluation rubrics adopted by the SBE. Requires, at a minimum, the key indicators to include all of the following: a) For elementary and middle schools, a measure of: pupil achievement in at least English language arts, mathematics, and science; academic growth; progress toward English proficiency; chronic absenteeism; school climate. b) For high schools, a measure of: pupil achievement in at least English language arts, mathematics, and science; graduation rates; progress toward English proficiency; college and career readiness; chronic absenteeism; and school climate. c) Requires substantial weight and, in aggregate, much greater weight, to be given to the measure of: pupil achievement in English language arts (ELA), math and science; academic growth and progress towards English proficiency. 3)Requires, in identifying appropriate assistance for a school or local educational agency (LEA), the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence (CCEE) and the county superintendents of schools to analyze data aligned with all the state priorities in order to align the level of support, collaboration, and intervention to the needs of the LEA or individual school or schools. 4)Requires the accountability system to ensure the creation of a data and reporting system that provides meaningful and accessible information on school and school district performance that is displayed through an electronic platform. Parents and the public must have the ability to easily access, compare, analyze, and summarize school reports, pupil performance results, and the progress made by schools and school districts in reaching all of the state's priority areas for purposes of local control and accountability plans and the AB 2548 Page 3 local control funding formula. 5)Requires notifications of stakeholder engagement, school support, and improvement activities to be translated in the top five languages as identified by the California Department of Education (CDE). 6)States the intent of the Legislature that, to the extent required by state and federal law, the information on school, school district, and subgroup performance be made available in the top five languages as identified by the California Department of Education. The Senate amendments: 1)Require the accountability system to be a single system that integrates local, state, and federal accountability requirements; 2)Require the measure of progress toward English proficiency to include, but not be limited to, data on the reclassification rates of English learners and long-term English learners, when available; 3)Require the SBE to establish a mechanism to meaningfully differentiate the performance of all public schools based on pupil outcomes for purposes of advice and assistance from the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence and county offices of education; 4)Require notifications of stakeholder engagement, school support, and improvement activities to be translated in the top five languages as identified by the California Department of Education (CDE); and AB 2548 Page 4 5)State the intent of the Legislature that, to the extent required by state and federal law, the information on school, school district, and subgroup performance be made available in the top five languages as identified by the CDE. EXISTING LAW: 1)Establishes the Local Control Funding Formula, requires local educational agencies to adopt and annually update a Local Control and Accountability Plan that includes a description of: a) The annual goals, for all students and each subgroup, to be achieved for each of the state priorities and for any additional local priorities; and b) The specific actions the school district or county office of education will take during each year to achieve the goals, including any specific actions to correct any deficiencies in regard to the state priorities (Education Code Section 42238, et seq., Section 52060 and Section 52066) 2)Requires the SBE to adopt evaluation rubrics to assist: a) A school district, county office of education or charter school in evaluating its strengths, weaknesses, and areas that require improvement; b) A county superintendent of schools in identifying school districts and charter schools in need of technical assistance and the specific priorities upon which the technical assistance should be focused; and c) The Superintendent of Public Instruction in identifying school districts for intervention. 3)Requires the SBE to adopt, as part of the evaluation rubrics, standards for school district and individual school performance and expectations for improvement in regard to each AB 2548 Page 5 of the state priorities. (Education Code Section 52064.5) Existing federal law: 1) Establishes the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which requires states to establish accountability systems that include the following indicators: a) Proficiency in reading and math; graduation rates for high schools; English language proficiency; b) For elementary and middle schools, student growth or another indicator that is valid, reliable, and statewide; and c) At least one other indicator of school quality or success, such as measures of safety, student engagement, or educator engagement. 2) Requires the accountability system to have substantial weights on specified academic indicators. 3) Requires states, at least once every three years, to identify the lowest performing 5% of Title I schools and all high schools with a graduation rate that is below 67% for comprehensive support. (United States Code, Title 20, Section 6301, et seq.) FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee: 1)Unknown General Fund costs, potentially in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, for CDE to comply with the data components of this bill. This bill requires data to be provided to parents and the public that is "meaningful and AB 2548 Page 6 accessible" and displayed through an electronic platform. This bill requires parents and the public to have the ability to easily access, compare, analyze, and summarize school reports, pupil performance results, and the progress made by schools and school districts in reaching all of the state's priority areas. The current school data systems, California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADs) and DataQuest, do not present data in this format. It is not clear if CDE would be able to adapt existing systems or if a new data system would need to be developed. Either way, significant resources would be needed to present data in this manner. 2)Unknown Proposition 98/GF cost pressures, in the millions of dollars, to the extent this expanded accountability system identifies more school districts or school sites in need of state intervention and assistance. 3)The CDE estimates ongoing General Fund costs of $320,000 for two positions to support the development, implementation, and maintenance of a new state/federal aligned accountability system. These positions are needed irrespective of this bill. The CDE has submitted a budget request for this staffing support and the request is still being considered by the Legislature. COMMENTS: According to co-sponsors of this bill, Children Now and Education Trust West, this bill will align the state and federal accountability requirements, avoiding the confusing and sometimes conflicting systems of the past, and bringing together the strengths of both systems to promote high levels of achievement and equity. Specifically, according to the sponsors, the bill proposes to establish common "key indicators" that apply to both districts and schools and also align with the state's values. The bill also sets forth criteria for identifying districts and schools in need of support and improvement and clarifies that the CCEE and county superintendents shall analyze data aligned with all of the state priorities in order to align the level of support, collaboration, and intervention to the needs of the local AB 2548 Page 7 education agency or individual school or schools. The bill also requires the development of a data dashboard, showing student outcomes from multiple measures. Analysis Prepared by: Rick Pratt / ED. / (916) 319-2087 FN: 0004841