S1216B1899A07126 AJB:NLG 09/11/20 #90 A07126
AMENDMENTS TO SENATE BILL NO. 1216
Sponsor: REPRESENTATIVE LAWRENCE
Printer's No. 1899
Amend Bill, page 1, line 5, by inserting after "thereto,""
in preliminary provisions, further providing for Keystone Exams
and graduation requirements; and,
Amend Bill, page 1, lines 14 through 16, by striking out all
of said lines and inserting
Section 1. Section 121(b)(1) of the act of March 10, 1949
(P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949, is
amended to read:
Section 121. Keystone Exams and Graduation Requirements.--*
* *
(b) The following shall apply:
(1) Notwithstanding section 2604-B(b)(2)(v), 22 Pa. Code §
4.24 (relating to high school graduation requirements), 4.51
(relating to State assessment system) or 4.51c (relating to
project-based assessment) or any statute or regulation to the
contrary, the use of the Keystone Exams as a State or local
graduation requirement or as a benchmark for the need for
participation in a project-based assessment shall be delayed
until the [2021-2022] 2022-2023 school year.
* * *
Section 2. Section 1202.1(a) of the act is amended by adding
a paragraph to read:
Amend Bill, page 2, line 13, by striking out "2" and
inserting
3
Amend Bill, page 3, by inserting between lines 29 and 30
(5) The following provisions relating to testing shall
apply:
(i) The Secretary of Education may waive the NIMS assessment
and the NOCTI exam on a school-wide basis or for a specific
career and technical education program provided by a school
entity based on the recommendations of directors of career and
technical education programs under 22 Pa. Code Ch. 339 (relating
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to vocational education). The recommendations shall account for
the length of time a career and technical center was open for
in-person student instruction and the subject matter of the
program affected .
(ii) The Secretary of Education shall waive the requirement
to include performance data otherwise required under section
1123(b)(1)(ii) in a professional employe's performance rating
under section 1123.
Amend Bill, page 4, by inserting between lines 7 and 8
(c) The following provisions relating to testing of students
shall apply:
(1) Notwithstanding section 2604-B(b)(2)(v) or 22 Pa. Code §
4.24 (relating to high school graduation requirements), 4.51
(relating to State assessment system) or 4.51c (relating to
project-based assessment), or any statute or regulation to the
contrary, the use of the Keystone Exams as a State or local
graduation requirement or as a benchmark for the need for
participation in a project-based assessment shall be delayed
until the 2022-2023 school year.
(2) The Secretary of Education shall apply to the United
States Department of Education for a waiver of the testing and
accountability requirements of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-10, 20 U.S.C. § 6301 et
seq.), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (Public Law
114-95, 129 stat. 1802), if the United States Department of
Education provides an opportunity to apply for such a waiver for
the 2020-2021 school year .
(3) For the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years and any
subsequent school year in which the Federal Government has
waived the testing and accountability requirements of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by
the Every Student Succeeds Act, any student who completed a
course in an academic content area associated with a Keystone
Exam shall not be required to take the Keystone Exam related to
that course and shall be deemed proficient for purposes of
sections 121 and 2604-B(b)(2)(v) and 22 Pa. Code § 4.24,
provided the student demonstrates successful completion of
locally established, grade-based requirements for the academic
content areas associated with each Keystone Exam.
(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of 22 Pa. Code § 4.4(d)
(3) (relating to general policies), a parent or guardian of a
student enrolled in the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school year in a
grade or course in an academic content area for which an
assessment is typically required may elect to opt-out of the
assessment. The following shall apply:
(i) A parent or guardian who elects to opt-out of an
assessment under this paragraph shall not be required to adhere
the procedures set forth under 22 Pa. Code § 4.4(d)(4).
(ii) Within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this
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paragraph, a school entity shall notify its students and their
parents or guardians that the parents or guardians may opt-out
of an assessment under this paragraph.
(iii) A parent or guardian of a student who elects to opt-
out of an assessment under this paragraph shall notify a school
entity in writing of the decision to opt-out of the assessment.
(iv) A school entity may not impose negative consequences on
a student, including, but not limited to, the denial of a high
school diploma, based solely on the decision of the student's
parent or guardian to opt-out of an assessment under this
paragraph.
(v) A school entity or an employe of the school entity may
not encourage a parent or guardian of a student to opt-out of an
assessment under this paragraph or penalize a student or the
student's parent or guardian for opting-out of an assessment
under this paragraph. Nothing in this subparagraph shall
construed to prohibit a school entity or an employe of the
school entity from communicating with students or their parents
or guardians regarding the option to opt-out of an assessment
under this paragraph.
(vi) For the purposes of this paragraph, the term
"assessment" shall include the Pennsylvania System of School
Assessment test , a Keystone Exam or a test established by
statute, regulation or the State Board of Education in
accordance with section 2603-B or 2604-B, 22 Pa. Code § 4.51 or
the Every Studen t Succeeds Act (Public Law 114-95, 129 Stat.
1802).
Amend Bill, page 4, line 8, by striking out "3" and inserting
4
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See A07126 in
the context
of SB1216