HBA-MPM C.S.H.B. 2591 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 2591 By: Rangel Higher Education 3/30/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In 1987, the Texas Legislature approved legislation directing the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board) to implement a diagnostic test instrument to measure whether high school students who enter a public institution of higher education were capable of doing collegelevel work. The board, in consultation with various faculty and educational leaders throughout the state, developed the Texas Academic Skills Program test (TASP), which is used to determine whether a student needs to take developmental courses in addition to regular courses. Several changes were made to the test during the 75th Legislative Session. As a result of these changes, some students have been unable to pursue education beyond high school because they were required to take the remedial courses after failing a portion of the TASP test. C.S.H.B. 2591 allows the board to prescribe an alternative assessment test, rather than the TASP Test, for students enrolled in a degree program. Certificate holders, students over 35, and students in active military duty would be exempt from this testing procedure. Furthermore, this bill requires students who fail a portion of the test to be referred to a developmental education program in the areas they failed, although if these students should achieve an overall grade point average of 2.25 in the core curriculum, they are allowed to enroll in upper division courses. This bill also addresses the issue of accountability of developmental education programs. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in SECTION 1 (Section 51.306, Education Code) of this bill. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 51.306, Education Code, as follows: Sec. 51.306. NEW TITLE: ASSESSMENT AND PLACEMENT. (a) Defines "core curriculum" with the meaning assigned by Section 61.822 (Core Curriculum), Education Code. Makes nonsubstantive changes. (b) Requires each institution of higher education to adopt a plan for the assessment and placement of undergraduate students entering the institution. Provides that this plan must be filed with and approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board). Requires the board to approve the plan if it determines that the plan provides for accountability and promotes improvement in and the effective delivery of developmental education programs. Provides that the plan must include certain information. (c) Provides that a plan for the assessment and placement of students may not prohibit a student from enrolling in coursework within the core curriculum if the student has completed at least one semester in a program in any area for which the student was referred to developmental education by the institution under Subsection (h). Authorizes the institution to provide guidance or advice to the student on enrolling in coursework within the core curriculum. (d) Redesignated from existing Subsection (b). Deletes the requirement that a student who is permitted to enroll without taking the test prescribed by the board must take the Texas Academic Skills Program test (TASP) no later than the end of the first semester of enrollment. Makes conforming changes. (e) Redesignated from existing Subsection (c). Requires the board to prescribe more than one test instrument. Deletes text authorizing the board to prescribe an alternative test instrument for an institution to use to test a student and requiring these alternative instruments to be correlated with TASP. Authorizes, rather than requires, the board to consider the recommendations of faculty from various institutions of higher education in prescribing alternative test instruments. Makes conforming changes. (f) Redesignated from existing Subsection (d). Makes no change. (g) Redesignated from existing Subsection (e). Makes a conforming change. (h) Redesignated from existing Subsection (f). Requires an institution of higher education to refer a student to developmental education programs, rather than developmental education courses or other developmental programs, in the event that test results indicate that this education is necessary in any area tested. Prohibits these programs from being awarded, rather than considered as, credit toward completion of degree requirements. Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. (i) Authorizes, rather than prohibits, a student to enroll in any upper division course completion of which would give the student 60 or more semester credit hours (hours) or the equivalent, only if, rather than until, the student has satisfied the requirements of the institutional plan for assessment and placement adopted under Subsection (b), or the student has completed the core curriculum with a grade-point average of 2.25 or more on a 4.0 scale or its equivalent, rather than earned a grade of "B" or better in a freshman level credit course in the subject matter of the assessed deficit. Deletes the requirement that the board establish a list of freshman-level credit courses for each skill area of the test instrument. Deletes the requirement that the board establish other assessment procedures to be used by institutions to allow a student to enroll in upper division courses in cases where the student's test results do no meet minimum standards. Makes conforming changes. (j) Redesignated from existing Subsection (h). Requires the state to fund approved developmental education programs, rather than nondegree credit developmental courses. Deletes the requirement that the board develop formulas to augment institutional funding of other developmental academic programs and develop a performance funding formula by which institutions may receive additional funding for each student who successfully completes the developmental courses. Further deletes the requirement that the additional funding required under such a formula be met by state appropriations. Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. (k) Redesignated from existing Subsection (i). Makes no change. (l) Redesignated from existing Subsection (j). Requires the unit costs of each test to be borne by the student, either by direct payment or by a fee imposed by the institution. (m) Redesignated from existing Subsection (k). Makes conforming changes. (n) Redesignated from existing Subsection (l). Prohibits the level set by the board from exceeding a level equivalent to a 95 percent probability of passing any of the test instruments adopted by the board under Subsection (e), and provides that this exemption will be in effect for five, rather than three, years from a date a student takes the assessment and achieves the set score level. Makes conforming changes. (o) Redesignated from existing Subsection (m). Makes a conforming change. (p) Redesignated from existing Subsection (n). Makes no change. (q) Redesignated from existing Subsection (o). Makes no change. (r) Redesignated from existing Subsection (p). Makes a conforming change. (s) Redesignated from existing Subsection (q). Provides that an exemption from the requirements of this section terminates if a student enrolls in a degree program at an institution of higher education, rather than a certificate or degree program. Makes a conforming change. (t) Redesignated from existing Subsection (r). Makes this section inapplicable to: _a student enrolled in a certificate program at a public junior or community college or public technical institute, rather than a community or technical college of one year or less; _a student seeking a degree or certificate if the student will be 35 years of age or older on the first class day of a term or semester; or _a student who is a member of the United States Armed Forces on active duty. (u) Redesignated from existing Subsection (s). Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. (v) Redesignated from existing Subsection (u). Makes a conforming change. (w) Redesignated from existing Subsection (v). Makes no change. (x) Redesignated from existing Subsection (w). Requires each eligible high school student to pay for the cost of taking a test unless funds are appropriated for that purpose, or the cost is paid by the governing board of an institution of higher education or the student's school district. Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. (y) Requires the board to adopt rules to ensure the program quality and effectiveness of developmental education programs offered by an institution of higher education under this section. Specifies that the rules must provide for accountability and promote improvement in programs. Requires the board, in adopting these rules, to consult with an advisory committee composed of representatives of institutions of higher education that offer programs. Provides that the majority of the members of this committee must be faculty members of institutions of higher education. Deletes existing Subsection (t), which authorizes an institution to exempt a non-degree seeking or non-certificate seeking student who will be 55 years of age or older on the first day of class of a term or semester from the testing requirements imposed by this section as a condition for enrollment during that term or semester. SECTION 2. Amends Subchapter C, Chapter 132, Education Code, as follows: Sec. 132.0631. ACADEMIC SKILLS REQUIREMENTS FOR DEGREE PROGRAMS. Prohibits the board from adopting criteria for student academic skills or academic skills testing as a prerequisite to approval of degree programs offered by proprietary schools that are more stringent than the criteria adopted by the board for a degree program at the same level offered by an institution of higher education, as defined in Section 61.003 (Definitions), Education Code. SECTION 3. (a) Authorizes a public junior college or public technical institute to award a certificate to a person who has not completed the requirements of Section 51.306, Education Code, as amended by this Act, under certain conditions. Authorizes the college or institute to inform persons who are or were enrolled in a certificate program at the institution of the provisions of this section. SECTION 4. Requires the board to adopt rules to implement the assessment and placement requirements of Section 51.306, Education Code, as amended by this Act, no later than September 1, 1999. Makes this Act effective beginning with the 1999 fall semester. SECTION 4.Emergency clause. Effective date: upon passage. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE C.S.H.B. 2591 modifies the original as follows: SECTION 1. Changes proposed Section 51.306(b), Education Code, to provide that each plan is required to be filed with and approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board). Requires the board to approve the plan if it determines that the plan provides for accountability and promotes improvement in and the effective delivery of developmental education programs. Includes additional information which is required to be included in the plan with respect to a performance measure to measure the effectiveness of a student's completed developmental education program. Changes proposed Section 51.306(c) to specify that a plan adopted under Subsection (b) may not prohibit a student from enrolling in core curriculum coursework if the student has completed at least one semester in a developmental education program in any area or which the student was referred to developmental education by the institution under Subsection (h). Changes proposed Section 51.306(i) to delete existing text requiring the board to establish other assessment procedures to be used by institutions to allow a student to enroll in upper division courses in cases where the student's test results do not meet minimum standards. Also makes a nonsubstantive change. Changes proposed Section 51.306(t)(6), which, in the original, made this section inapplicable to "a student who is not seeking a degree." Restores the original text of this subdivision to include "a student who is a citizen of a country other than the United States and is not seeking a degree" to a list of persons to whom this section does not apply. Additionally, makes this section inapplicable to a student seeking a degree or certificate who is 35 years old, rather than 30 years old, on the first class day of a term or semester. SECTION 2. Deletes proposed text in the original bill, which added a new Section 51.3062 to the Education Code to provide specific measures for formula funding for developmental education programs. Changes the original to amend Subchapter C, Chapter 112, Education Code, by adding Section 132.0631, as follows: Section 132.0632. ACADEMIC SKILLS REQUIREMENTS FOR DEGREE PROGRAMS. Prohibits the board from adopting criteria for student academic skills or academic skills testing as a prerequisite to approval of degree programs offered by proprietary schools that are more stringent than the criteria adopted by the board for a degree program at the same level offered by an institution of higher education, as defined in Section 61.003 (Definitions), Education Code. SECTION 3. Redesignates proposed text (procedural text; effective date) to SECTION 4. Instead, this newly proposed section in the substitute authorizes a public junior college or public technical institute to award a certificate to a person who has not completed the requirements of Section 51.306, Education Code, as amended by this Act, under certain conditions. Authorizes the college or institute to inform persons who are or were enrolled in a certificate program at the institution of the provisions of this section. SECTION 4. Redesignated from proposed SECTION 3. SECTION 5. Redesignated from proposed SECTION 4.