Introduced
by
To establish a Michigan Assessment Governing Board to administer a public school assessment test program in reading, math, language arts, science, social studies, and civics. The bill establishes new school accreditation standards with letter grades based on the state MEAP test scores, change in scores, and individual student performance over three-years. The accreditation standards also include teacher quality based on attendance rate, subject-area expertise, and professional development; and school performance based on student attendance rate, drop-out rate, graduation rate, curriculum, school improvement plan, educational technology, and parental and community involvement. Accreditation would be based on a school's letter grade for each indicator. A school failing accreditation two years in a row would be required to devise an “Ensured Learning Action Plan” with building-level academic standards, performance goals and timetables; revisions to curriculum, instructional practices, or programs; assessments of every student and increased performance information to parents; and greater control by principals over personnel, budget, and programs. If a school failed accreditation for another two years, the state superintendent of public instruction would either appoint an new administrator, help parents get children into an accredited school, align the school with existing research-based improvement models, affiliate it with a college or university, or close the school. In addition, the bill requires annual reading and math tests for all students in grades one to eight, which can be the MEAP test, or a comparable test that allows timely year to year student performance comparisons, with results broken down by race, gender, socio-economic status, disability and language. The bill would not apply to the Detroit School District under it’s state-mandated reform board. See also House Bills 5580 and 5881.
Referred to the Committee on Redistricting and Elections
