A05237
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE RESOLUTION
No.
248
Session of
2017
INTRODUCED BY EICHELBERGER AND DINNIMAN, DECEMBER 7, 2017
REFERRED TO EDUCATION, DECEMBER 7, 2017
A RESOLUTION
Opposing the use of the Keystone Exams for the purpose of
Federal accountability without alternatives under the
Commonwealth's Every Student Succeeds plan, opposing their
use as a sole requirement for graduation and calling on the
United States Department of Education and the Department of
Education of the Commonwealth to authorize alternatives in
Pennsylvania's Every Student Succeeds plan. alternative
requirements for graduation.
WHEREAS, In December 2006, the Governor's Commission on
College and Career Success issued a report detailing
recommendations designed to "move Pennsylvania towards
increasing the educational achievement of all of its students to
meet the challenges of the 21st century economy" and proposed
that all students be required to demonstrate proficiency in
State standards via end of course tests; and
WHEREAS, At the time of the commission's report, all students
were required to take the 11th grade Pennsylvania System of
School Assessment (PSSA) exam, the scores of which were used to
evaluate schools under the requirements of No Child Left Behind,
not to evaluate individual students for purposes of graduation,
unless authorized by a school district; and
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WHEREAS, In 2012, the Keystone Exams were implemented as both
a component of Pennsylvania's system of assessment for Federal
accountability and as a high school graduation requirement, with
the exams being end-of-course assessments designed to ultimately
assess proficiency in numerous subjects: algebra I, algebra II,
geometry, literature, English composition, biology, chemistry,
United States history, world history and civics and government;
and
WHEREAS, By 2015, the time, resources and energy required for
implementation of supplemental instruction and the administering
and scoring of project-based assessment alternatives and exams
proved to be a substantial and growing burden on students,
schools and educators; and
WHEREAS, In February 2016, the Governor signed Act 1 of 2016
into law, which law delayed the Keystone Exam/PBA graduation
requirement for a period of two years to give policymakers an
opportunity to thoughtfully consider options for students to
demonstrate readiness for postsecondary success in addition to
Keystone Exams; and
WHEREAS, Act 1 of 2016 also required the Department of
Education of the Commonwealth to investigate alternative options
for a State-level graduation requirement and to provide
recommendations to the General Assembly of the Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, Act 55 of 2017 further delayed the requirement that
Keystone Exams be used as a graduation requirement or as a
benchmark for the need to participate in a project-based
assessment until the 2019-2020 school year, as the
recommendations of the Act 1 of 2016 report have yet to be
implemented; and
WHEREAS, It has been widely recognized that multiple valid
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measures exist for students to demonstrate the knowledge and
skills necessary to be college and career ready, yet alternative
measures have not been incorporated into the State plan and
graduate from high school; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
oppose the continued use of the Keystone Exams as a single high-
stakes graduation requirement and urge the Department of
Education of the Commonwealth to develop recommend alternative
assessments for Federal accountability purposes which also
demonstrate career or college readiness as soon as possible for
timely inclusion in Pennsylvania's Every Student Succeeds plan;
and be it further and adhere to the following parameters which
parallel Federal requirements in the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Every Student Succeeds
Act (ESSA):
(1) The assessments are designed to provide
accommodations to students that are currently allowable in
Pennsylvania on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment
and Keystone Exams.
(2) The assessments are developed to meet the principles
of universal design.
(3) The assessments demonstrate that they either meet
the Pennsylvania Career Education and Work Standards or are
valid and reliable measures of the Pennsylvania Core Academic
Standards in Algebra I, biology and English Literature at
levels comparable to those currently assessed by the Keystone
Exams;
and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be sent to the
United States Department of Education and the Department of
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Education of the Commonwealth.
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