Bill Caption

Fiscal Notes

Bill Analysis

HB 2349 would amend Education Code to replace the criterion for performance acknowledgements on diplomas from specific tests to the criterion of outstanding performance on an established, valid, reliable, and nationally norm-referenced test used by colleges and universities as part of their undergraduate admissions process or on a preliminary college preparation test with the same characteristics used to measure a student's progress toward readiness for college and the workplace. The bill would add as a criterion the student earning a state recognized business or industry certification or license.

The bill would allow Texas Education Agency to defer releasing standardized tests and answers to the extent necessary to develop additional tests. The bill would also clarify that students are to be administered end-of-course tests for each course for which the student is enrolled and the course has an end-of-course test.

HB 2349 would change the code to provide that a student may not enroll in more than three courses at a junior college to a condition under which the service area of another junior college includes the student's high school. The bill would authorize a public school student to enroll in a greater number of courses if each junior college and the school district in which the student is enrolled authorize by agreement the student's enrollment.

The bill would repeal:

• Section 39.023(o; "The commissioner of education and the commissioner of higher education shall study the feasibility of allowing students to satisfy end-of-course requirements under Subsection (c) by successfully completing a dual credit course through an institution of higher education.  Not later than December 1, 2010, the commissioner of education and the commissioner of higher education shall make recommendations to the legislature based on the study conducted under this subsection."
  
• Section 39.0233(c); "The State Board of Education shall establish a level of performance on the questions adopted under this section that indicates a student's college readiness.  A student's performance on the questions adopted under this section must be evaluated separately from the student's performance on the remainder of the assessment instrument.  A student's performance on a question adopted under this section may not be used to determine the student's performance on the assessment instrument for purposes of Section 39.023 or 39.025.  The commissioner shall adopt rules concerning the reporting of a student's performance on the questions adopted under this section."
• Section 39.025(b-2); "If a school district determines that a student, on completion of grade 11, is unlikely to achieve the score requirement under Subsection (a) for one or more end-of-course assessment instruments administered to the student as provided by Subsection (a) for receiving a high school diploma, the district shall require the student to enroll in a corresponding content-area college preparatory course for which an end-of-course assessment instrument has been adopted, if available.  A student who enrolls in a college preparatory course described by this subsection shall be administered an end-of-course assessment instrument for the course, with the end-of-course assessment instrument scored on a scale as determined by the commissioner.  A student may use the student's score on the end-of-course assessment instrument for the college preparatory course towards satisfying the score requirement prescribed by Subsection (a)."
  

Vote Recommendation Notes

This bill would make mostly administrative, clerical, and non-substantive updates to current code with no discernible connection to our liberty principles, therefore we are neutral on HB 2349.