SENATE BILL 457

52nd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2015

INTRODUCED BY

Joseph Cervantes

AN ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS; REQUIRING THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TO AUDIT RESOURCES USED FOR STUDENT ASSESSMENTS IN THE 2015-2016 SCHOOL YEAR; DECLARING AN EMERGENCY.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. A new section of the Assessment and Accountability Act is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] STUDENT ASSESSMENT AUDITS.--

          A. The department shall conduct an audit of all resources used in the 2015-2016 school year on all distinct national, state and school district student assessments.

          B. The department audit shall include:

                (1) the total number of student assessments administered in each school district across the state;

                (2) the total cost of student assessments on the state, school district, public school, grade and per-student levels; provided that the cost data shall be disaggregated to show the amount spent on:

                     (a) individuals, vendors and other persons contracted by the state and school district for student assessments, including purchase and licensing costs, test booklets, scoring sheets and scoring costs;

                     (b) logistical preparation and administration costs, including distributing, collecting and storing assessment materials;

                     (c) assessment preparation materials;

                     (d) data coaches;

                     (e) data analysis or dashboard systems, information technology purchase or information technology upgrade;

                     (f) professional development focused primarily on student assessment data;

                     (g) training costs for test administrators and proctors; and

                     (h) any other costs related to student assessments;

                (3) per-student cost data collected, which shall include additional assessments for student subgroups and be disaggregated to show spending for all assessments for:

                     (a) English language learners;

                     (b) students receiving intervention or remediation services;

                     (c) students with disabilities;

                     (d) students by ethnicity; and 

                     (e) economically disadvantaged students;

                (4) the total amount of time spent by students taking all national, state and district assessments, including time for administrative tasks such as distributing and collecting answering sheets and giving directions, and the total amount of time spent preparing students to take the assessments. Time data collected shall be disaggregated to show:

                     (a) time spent in each grade level in every school district on national, state and district assessments; and

                     (b) time spent on the following student groups: 1) English language learners; 2) students receiving intervention or remediation services; 3) students with disabilities; 4) general education students; 5) students by ethnicity; and 6) economically disadvantaged students;

                (5) a statewide survey of teachers on the utility of student assessments and the time devoted to test preparation for each assessment; provided that the survey shall provide teacher respondents anonymity and shall be administered during teacher meetings or professional development days or at other times that would not interfere with the teachers' regular classroom and direct instructional duties; and provided further that the survey include:

                     (a) how student assessments have shaped their public school's curriculum;

                     (b) how much time a teacher spends on assessment-taking strategies, simulating the assessment environment, aligning the assessments and aligning content to assessments;

                     (c) whether the assessments lead to an imbalance of instruction time for different student subgroups; and

                     (d) any other relevant questions on how student assessments impact the learning environment of the school; and

                (6) recommendations on how to make student assessments cost effective, time efficient, more supportive of teaching and learning, better aligned with the curriculum being taught in the classroom and more focused on student and teacher growth.

          C. The audit, and data screened to preserve student and teacher privacy, shall be a public record."

     SECTION 2. EMERGENCY.--It is necessary for the public peace, health and safety that this act take effect immediately.

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