Bill Text: IA HF2413 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Enrolled
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to reading proficiency assessments and intensive summer reading programs administered and provided by school districts. (Formerly HF 2229)
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Enrolled - Dead) 2016-05-04 - Sent to Governor. H.J. 999. [HF2413 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2015-HF2413-Enrolled.html
House File 2413 - Enrolled
HOUSE FILE
BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
(SUCCESSOR TO HF 2229)
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A BILL FOR
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House File 2413
AN ACT
RELATING TO READING PROFICIENCY ASSESSMENTS AND INTENSIVE
SUMMER READING PROGRAMS ADMINISTERED AND PROVIDED BY SCHOOL
DISTRICTS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
Section 1. Section 256.7, subsection 31, paragraph a, Code
2016, is amended to read as follows:
a. By July 1, 2013, adopt Adopt by rule guidelines for
school district implementation of section 279.68, including
but not limited to basic levels of reading proficiency on
approved locally determined or statewide assessments and
identification of tools that school districts may use in
evaluating and reevaluating any student who may not be or who
is determined not to be deficient reading proficiently and is
persistently at risk in reading, including but not limited to
initial assessments and subsequent assessments, alternative
assessments, and portfolio reviews. The state board shall
adopt standards that provide a reasonable expectation that a
student's progress toward reading proficiency under section
279.68 is sufficient to master appropriate grade four level
reading skills prior to the student's promotion to grade four.
Sec. 2. Section 279.68, Code 2016, is amended to read as
follows:
279.68 Student progression == remedial intensive reading
instruction == reporting requirements == promotion.
1. Reading deficiency and proficiency, assessments, parental
notification, and promotion.
a. A school district shall assess all students enrolled
in kindergarten through grade three at the beginning of each
school year for their level of reading or reading readiness on
locally determined or statewide assessments, as provided in
section 256.7, subsection 31. A If a student is not reading
proficiently and is persistently at risk in reading, based
upon the assessments administered in accordance with this
paragraph, the school district shall provide intensive reading
instruction to any the student who exhibits a substantial
deficiency in reading, based upon the assessment or through
teacher observations. The student's reading proficiency shall
be periodically reassessed by locally determined or statewide
assessments including periodic universal screening and annual
standard=based assessments. The student shall continue to be
provided with intensive reading instruction until the student
is reading deficiency is remedied at grade level, as determined
by the student's consistently proficient performance on valid
and reliable measures of reading ability. For purposes of
this section, "persistently at risk" means the student has not
met the grade=level benchmark on two consecutive screening
assessments administered under this paragraph.
b. The parent or guardian of any student in kindergarten
through grade three who exhibits a substantial deficiency in
is persistently at risk in reading, as described in paragraph
"a", shall be notified at least annually in writing and shall be
provided all of the following:
(1) That the child has been identified as having a
substantial deficiency in reading.
(2) (1) A description of the services currently provided to
the child student.
(3) (2) A description of the proposed supplemental
instructional services and supports that the school district
will provide to the child student that are designed to
remediate the identified area of areas in which the student is
persistently at risk in reading deficiency.
(4) (3) Strategies for parents and guardians to use in
helping the child succeed in reading proficiency student read
proficiently, including but not limited to the promotion of
parent=guided home reading.
(4) Regular updates regarding the student's progress
toward reaching or exceeding the targeted level of reading
proficiency.
c. Beginning May 1, 2017, unless the school district is
granted a waiver pursuant to subsection 2, paragraph "e", if the
student's student is persistently at risk in reading deficiency
is not remedied by the end of grade three, as demonstrated by
scoring on a locally determined or statewide assessment as
provided in section 256.7, subsection 31, the school district
shall notify the student's parent or guardian that the parent
or guardian may enroll the student in an intensive summer
reading program offered in accordance with subsection 2,
paragraph "e". If the parent or guardian does not enroll the
student in the intensive summer reading program and the student
is ineligible for the good cause exemption under subsection
5, the student shall be retained in grade three pursuant to
subsection 3. If the student is exempt from participating in
an intensive summer reading program for good cause, pursuant
to subsection 5, or completes the intensive summer reading
program but is not reading proficient proficiently upon
completion of the program, the student may be promoted to grade
four, but the school district shall continue to provide the
student with intensive reading instruction until the student is
proficient in reading proficiently as demonstrated by scoring
on locally determined or statewide assessments administered
under paragraph "a".
2. Successful progression for early readers. If funds
are appropriated by the general assembly for purposes of
implementing this subsection, a school district shall do all
of the following:
a. Provide students who are identified as having a
substantial deficiency persistently at risk in reading under
subsection 1, paragraph "a", with intensive instructional
services and supports, free of charge, to remediate the
identified areas of reading deficiency in which students are
not proficient in reading, including a minimum of ninety
minutes daily of scientific, research=based reading instruction
and other strategies prescribed by the school district which
may include but are not limited to the following:
(1) Small group instruction.
(2) Reduced teacher=student ratios.
(3) More frequent progress monitoring.
(4) Tutoring or mentoring.
(5) Extended school day, week, or year.
(6) Summer reading programs.
b. At regular intervals, apprise the parent or guardian of
academic and other progress being made by the student and give
the parent or guardian other useful information.
c. In addition to required reading enhancement and
acceleration strategies, provide parents of students who are
identified as having a substantial deficiency persistently at
risk in reading under subsection 1, paragraph "a", with a plan
outlined in a parental contract, including participation in
regular parent=guided home reading.
d. Establish a reading enhancement and acceleration
development initiative designed to offer intensive accelerated
reading instruction to each kindergarten through grade three
student who is assessed as exhibiting a substantial deficiency
persistently at risk in reading. The initiative shall comply
with all of the following criteria:
(1) Be provided to all kindergarten through grade
three students who exhibit a substantial deficiency in are
persistently at risk in reading under this section. The
assessment initiative shall measure phonemic awareness,
phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.
(2) Be provided during regular school hours in addition to
the regular reading instruction.
(3) Provide a reading curriculum that meets guidelines
adopted pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 31, and at a
minimum has the following specifications:
(a) Assists students assessed as exhibiting a substantial
deficiency in who are persistently at risk in reading to
develop the skills to read at grade level. Assistance shall
include but not be limited to strategies that formally address
dyslexia, when appropriate. For purposes of this subparagraph
division (a), "dyslexia" means a specific and significant
impairment in the development of reading, including but not
limited to phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary,
and comprehension, that is not solely accounted for by
intellectual disability, sensory disability or impairment, or
lack of appropriate instruction.
(b) Provides skill development in phonemic awareness,
phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.
(c) Includes a scientifically based and reliable
assessment.
(d) Provides initial and ongoing analysis of each student's
reading progress.
(e) Is implemented during regular school hours.
(f) Provides a curriculum in core academic subjects to
assist the student in maintaining or meeting proficiency levels
for the appropriate grade in all academic subjects.
e. Offer each summer, beginning in the summer of 2017,
unless the school district receives a waiver from this
requirement from the department of education for the summer of
2017, an intensive summer literacy reading program for students
assessed as exhibiting a substantial deficiency in who are
persistently at risk in reading. The program shall meet the
criteria and follow the guidelines established pursuant to
section 256.9, subsection 53, paragraph "c", subparagraph (1),
subparagraph division (g).
f. Report to the department of education the specific
intensive reading interventions and supports implemented by the
school district pursuant to this section. The department shall
annually prescribe the components of required or requested
reports.
3. Promotion to grade four. In determining whether to
promote a student in grade three to grade four, a school
district shall place significant weight on any area in which
the student is persistently at risk in reading deficiency
identified pursuant to subsection 1, paragraph "a", that is
not yet remediated. The school district shall also weigh
the student's progress in other subject areas, as well as
the student's overall intellectual, physical, emotional, and
social development. A decision to retain a student in grade
three shall be made only after direct personal consultation
with the student's parent or guardian and after the formulation
of a specific plan of action to remedy increase the student's
reading deficiency skills until the student is reading at grade
level.
4. Ensuring continuous improvement in reading proficiency.
a. To ensure all children are reading proficiently by the
end of third grade, each school district shall address reading
proficiency as part of its comprehensive school improvement
plan, drawing upon information about children students from
assessments and reassessments conducted pursuant to subsection
1 and the prevalence of deficiencies areas in which students
are persistently at risk in reading identified by classroom,
elementary school, and other student characteristics. As part
of its comprehensive school improvement plan, each school
district shall review chronic early elementary absenteeism
for its impact on literacy development. If more than fifteen
percent of an attendance center's students are not proficient
in reading proficiently and are persistently at risk in
reading by the end of third grade, the comprehensive school
improvement plan shall include strategies to reduce that
percentage, including school and community strategies to raise
the percentage of students who are proficient in reading at
grade level.
b. Each school district, subject to an appropriation of
funds by the general assembly, shall provide professional
development services to enhance the skills of elementary
teachers in responding to children's unique reading issues and
needs and to increase the use of evidence=based strategies.
5. Good cause exemption.
a. The school district shall exempt students from the
retention and intensive summer reading program requirements
of subsection 1, paragraph "c", for good cause. Good cause
exemptions shall be limited to the following:
(1) Limited English proficient students who have had
less than two years of instruction in an English as a second
language program.
(2) Students requiring special education whose
individualized education program indicates that participation
in a locally determined or statewide assessment as provided in
section 256.7, subsection 31, is not appropriate, consistent
with the requirements of rules adopted by the state board of
education for the administration of chapter 256B.
(3) Students who demonstrate an acceptable level of
performance on an alternative performance measure approved
pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 31.
(4) Students who demonstrate mastery through a student
portfolio under alternative performance measures approved
pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 31.
(5) Students who have received intensive remediation in
reading for two or more years but who are still demonstrate
a deficiency persistently at risk in reading and who were
previously retained in kindergarten, grade one, grade two,
or grade three. Intensive reading instruction for students
so promoted must include an altered instructional day that
includes specialized diagnostic information and specific
reading strategies for each student. The school district
shall assist attendance centers and teachers to implement
reading strategies that research has shown to be successful in
improving reading among low=performing readers.
b. Requests For students described in paragraph "a",
subparagraphs (3) and (4), a request for a good cause
exemptions exemption from the retention requirement of
subsection 1, paragraph "c", for students described in
paragraph "a", subparagraphs (3) and (4), shall include
documentation from the student's teacher to the school
principal that indicates that the promotion of the student is
appropriate and is based upon the student's academic record.
Such documentation shall include but not be limited to the
individualized education program, if applicable, report card,
or student portfolio.
LINDA UPMEYER
Speaker of the House
PAM JOCHUM
President of the Senate
I hereby certify that this bill originated in the House and
is known as House File 2413, Eighty=sixth General Assembly.
CARMINE BOAL
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved , 2016
TERRY E. BRANSTAD
Governor
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