60810
. (a) (1) The Superintendent shall review existing assessments
that assess the English language development of pupils whose primary
language is a language other than English. The assessment for
initial identification and the summative assessment shall include,
but not be limited to, an assessment of achievement of these pupils
in English reading, speaking, and written skills. The Superintendent
shall determine which assessments, if any, meet the requirements of
subdivisions (b) to (f), inclusive. If any existing assessment or
series of assessments meets these criteria, the Superintendent, with
approval of the state board, shall report to the Legislature on its
findings and recommendations.
(2) If no suitable assessment exists, the Superintendent shall
explore the option of a collaborative effort with other states to
develop an assessment or series of assessments and share assessment
development costs. If no suitable assessment exists, the
Superintendent, with the approval of the state board, shall either
release a request for proposals for the development of an assessment
or series of assessments that meets the criteria of subdivisions (b)
to (f), inclusive, or contract to modify an existing assessment or
series of assessments so that it will meet the requirements of
subdivisions (b) to (f), inclusive. The state board shall approve
assessment blueprints, assessment performance descriptors, and
performance-level cut scores based on standard settings.
(3) The Superintendent shall apportion funds appropriated to
enable school districts to meet the requirements of subdivisions (c)
and (d). The state board shall establish the amount of funding to be
apportioned per assessment administered, based on a review of the
cost per assessment for initial identification and summative
assessment purposes.
(4) An adjustment to the amount of funding to be apportioned per
assessment is not valid without the approval of the Director of
Finance. A request for approval of an adjustment to the amount of
funding to be apportioned per assessment shall be submitted in
writing to the Director of Finance and the chairpersons of the fiscal
committees of both houses of the Legislature with accompanying
material justifying the proposed adjustment. The Director of Finance
is authorized to approve only those adjustments related to activities
required by statute. The Director of Finance shall approve or
disapprove the amount within 30 days of receipt of the request and
shall notify the chairpersons of the fiscal committees of both houses
of the Legislature of the decision.
(b) (1) The assessment or series of assessments developed or
acquired pursuant to subdivision (a) shall have sufficient range to
assess pupils in grades 2 to 12, inclusive, in English listening,
speaking, reading, and writing skills. Pupils in kindergarten and
grade 1 shall be assessed in English listening and speaking, and,
once an assessment is developed, early literacy skills. Six months
after the results of three administrations are collected, but no
later than June 30, 2013, the department shall report to the
Legislature on the administration of the kindergarten and grade 1
early literacy assessment results, as well as on the administrative
process, in order to determine whether reauthorization of the early
literacy assessment is appropriate.
(2) In the development and administration of the assessment for
pupils in kindergarten and grade 1, the department shall minimize any
additional assessment time, to the extent possible. To the extent
that it is technically possible, items that are used to assess
listening and speaking shall be used to measure early literacy
skills. The department shall ensure that the assessment and
procedures for its administration are age and developmentally
appropriate. Age and developmentally appropriate procedures for
administration may include, but are not limited to, one-on-one
administration, a small group setting, and orally responding or
circling a response to a question.
(3) The assessment for initial identification developed or
acquired pursuant to subdivision (a) shall have sufficient range to
identify if the pupil is an English learner, as defined by Section
306.
(c) The assessment for initial identification shall meet all of
the following requirements:
(1) Have psychometric properties of reliability and validity
deemed adequate by technical experts.
(2) Be capable of administration to pupils with any primary
language other than English.
(3) Be capable of administration by classroom teachers.
(4) Not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, or gender.
(5) Be aligned with the standards for English language development
adopted by the state board pursuant to Section 60811.3, as it read
on June 30, 2013.
(6) Be age and developmentally appropriate for pupils.
(d) The assessment for initial identification shall be used to
identify pupils who are limited English proficient.
(e) The summative assessment shall meet all of the following
requirements:
(1) Provide sufficient information about pupils at each grade
level to determine levels of proficiency ranging from no English
proficiency to fluent English proficiency with at least two
intermediate levels.
(2) Yield scores that allow comparison of the growth of a pupil
over time, that may be tied to readiness for various instructional
options, and that may be aggregated for use in the evaluation of
program effectiveness.
(3) Have psychometric properties of reliability and validity
deemed adequate by technical experts.
(4) Be capable of administration to pupils with any primary
language other than English.
(5) Be capable of administration by classroom teachers.
(6) Not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, or gender.
(7) Be aligned with the standards for English language development
adopted by the state board pursuant to Section 60811.3, as it read
on June 30, 2013.
(8) Be age and developmentally appropriate for pupils.
(f) The summative assessment shall be used for both of the
following purposes:
(1) To identify the level of English language proficiency of
pupils who are limited English proficient.
(2) To assess the progress of limited-English-proficient pupils in
acquiring the skills of listening, reading, speaking, and writing in
English.
(g) (1) A pupil in any of grades 3 to 12, inclusive, shall not be
required to retake those portions of the assessment that measure
English language skills for which he or she has previously tested as
advanced within each appropriate grade span, as determined by the
department in accordance with paragraph (8) of subdivision (e).
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a pupil in any of grades 10 to
12, inclusive, shall not be required to retake those portions of the
assessment that measure English language skills for which he or she
has previously tested as early advanced or advanced.
(3) This subdivision shall not be implemented unless and until the
department receives written documentation from the United States
Department of Education that implementation is permitted by federal
law.
(h) (1) The Superintendent shall not administer an assessment for
initial identification or a summative assessment pursuant to this
section until both assessments are developed and adopted by the state
board.
(2) The Superintendent shall report to the appropriate policy
committees of the Legislature when the assessments are ready for
their initial administration.