Section 60850 Of Chapter 9. High School Exit Examination From California Education Code >> Division 4. >> Title 2. >> Part 33. >> Chapter 9.
60850
. (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the
approval of the State Board of Education, shall develop a high school
exit examination in English language arts and mathematics in
accordance with the statewide academically rigorous content standards
adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 60605.
To facilitate the development of the examination, the superintendent
shall review any existing high school subject matter examinations
that are linked to, or can be aligned with, the statewide
academically rigorous content standards for English language arts and
mathematics adopted by the State Board of Education. By October 1,
2000, the State Board of Education shall adopt a high school exit
examination that is aligned with statewide academically rigorous
content standards.
(b) The Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the approval of
the State Board of Education, shall establish a High School Exit
Examination Standards Panel to assist in the design and composition
of the exit examination and to ensure that the examination is aligned
with statewide academically rigorous content standards. Members of
the panel shall include, but are not limited to, teachers,
administrators, school board members, parents, and the general
public. Members of the panel shall serve without compensation for a
term of two years and shall be representative of the state's ethnic
and cultural diversity and gender balance. The superintendent shall
also make the best effort to ensure representation of the state's
diversity relative to urban, suburban, and rural areas. The State
Department of Education shall provide staff to the panel.
(c) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall require that
the examination be field tested before actual implementation to
ensure that the examination is free from bias and that its content is
valid and reliable.
(d) Before the State Board of Education adopts the exit
examination, the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall submit
the examination to the Statewide Pupil Assessment Review Panel
established pursuant to Section 60606. The panel shall review all
items or questions to ensure that the content of the examination
complies with the requirements of Section 60614.
(e) The exit examination prescribed in subdivision (a) shall
conform to the following standards or it shall not be required as a
condition of graduation:
(1) The examination may not be administered to a pupil who did not
receive adequate notice as provided for in paragraph (1) of
subdivision (f) regarding the test.
(2) The examination, regardless of federal financial
participation, shall comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act (42
U.S.C. Sec. 2000d et seq.), its implementing regulations (34 C.F.R.
Part 100), and the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 (20
U.S.C. Sec. 1701).
(3) The examination shall have instructional and curricular
validity.
(4) The examination shall be scored as a criterion referenced
examination.
(f) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(1) "Accommodations" means any variation in the assessment
environment or process that does not fundamentally alter what the
test measures or affect the comparability of scores. "Accommodations"
may include variations in scheduling, setting, aids, equipment, and
presentation format.
(2) "Adequate notice" means that the pupil and his or her parent
or guardian have received written notice, at the commencement of the
pupil's 9th grade, and each year thereafter through the annual
notification process established pursuant to Section 48980, or if a
transfer pupil, at the time the pupil transfers. A pupil who has
taken the exit examination in the 10th grade is deemed to have had
"adequate notice" as defined in this paragraph.
(3) "Curricular validity" means that the examination tests for
content found in the instructional textbooks. For the purposes of
this section, any textbook or other instructional material adopted
pursuant to this code and consistent with the state's adopted
curriculum frameworks shall be deemed to satisfy this definition.
(4) "Instructional validity" means that the examination is
consistent with what is expected to be taught. For the purposes of
this section, instruction that is consistent with the state's adopted
curriculum frameworks for the subjects tested shall be deemed to
satisfy this definition.
(5) "Modification" means any variation in the assessment
environment or process that fundamentally alters what the test
measures or affects the comparability of scores.
(g) The examination shall be offered to individuals with
exceptional needs, as defined in Section 56026, in accordance with
paragraph (17) of subsection (a) of Section 1412 of Title 20 of the
United States Code and Section 794 and following of Title 29 of the
United States Code. Individuals with exceptional needs shall be
administered the examination with appropriate accommodations, where
necessary.
(h) Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit a school district from
requiring pupils to pass additional exit examinations approved by the
governing board of the school district as a condition for
graduation.