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The Florida Senate

2009 Florida Statutes

SECTION 31
Florida's K-20 education performance accountability system; legislative intent; mission, goals, and systemwide measures; data quality improvements.
Section 1008.31, Florida Statutes 2009

1008.31  Florida's K-20 education performance accountability system; legislative intent; mission, goals, and systemwide measures; data quality improvements.--

(1)  LEGISLATIVE INTENT.--It is the intent of the Legislature that:

(a)  The performance accountability system implemented to assess the effectiveness of Florida's seamless K-20 education delivery system provide answers to the following questions in relation to its mission and goals:

1.  What is the public receiving in return for funds it invests in education?

2.  How effectively is Florida's K-20 education system educating its students?

3.  How effectively are the major delivery sectors promoting student achievement?

4.  How are individual schools and postsecondary education institutions performing their responsibility to educate their students as measured by how students are performing and how much they are learning?

(b)  The K-20 education performance accountability system be established as a single, unified accountability system with multiple components, including, but not limited to, measures of adequate yearly progress, individual student learning gains in public schools, school grades, and return on investment.

(c)  The K-20 education performance accountability system comply with the requirements of the "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001," Pub. L. No. 107-110, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

(d)  The State Board of Education and the Board of Governors of the State University System recommend to the Legislature systemwide performance standards; the Legislature establish systemwide performance measures and standards; and the systemwide measures and standards provide Floridians with information on what the public is receiving in return for the funds it invests in education and how well the K-20 system educates its students.

(e)1.  The State Board of Education establish performance measures and set performance standards for individual public schools and community colleges, with measures and standards based primarily on student achievement.

2.  The Board of Governors of the State University System establish performance measures and set performance standards for individual state universities, including actual completion rates.

(2)  MISSION, GOALS, AND SYSTEMWIDE MEASURES.--

(a)  The mission of Florida's K-20 education system shall be to increase the proficiency of all students within one seamless, efficient system, by allowing them the opportunity to expand their knowledge and skills through learning opportunities and research valued by students, parents, and communities.

(b)  The process for establishing state and sector-specific standards and measures must be:

1.  Focused on student success.

2.  Addressable through policy and program changes.

3.  Efficient and of high quality.

4.  Measurable over time.

5.  Simple to explain and display to the public.

6.  Aligned with other measures and other sectors to support a coordinated K-20 education system.

(c)  The Department of Education shall maintain an accountability system that measures student progress toward the following goals:

1.  Highest student achievement, as indicated by evidence of student learning gains at all levels.

2.  Seamless articulation and maximum access, as measured by evidence of progression, readiness, and access by targeted groups of students identified by the Commissioner of Education.

3.  Skilled workforce and economic development, as measured by evidence of employment and earnings.

4.  Quality efficient services, as measured by evidence of return on investment.

5.  Other goals as identified by law or rule.

(3)  K-20 EDUCATION DATA QUALITY IMPROVEMENTS.--To provide data required to implement education performance accountability measures in state and federal law, the Commissioner of Education shall initiate and maintain strategies to improve data quality and timeliness. All data collected from state universities shall, as determined by the commissioner, be integrated into the K-20 data warehouse. The commissioner shall have unlimited access to such data solely for the purposes of conducting studies, reporting annual and longitudinal student outcomes, and improving college readiness and articulation. All public educational institutions shall provide data to the K-20 data warehouse in a format specified by the commissioner.

(a)  School districts and public postsecondary educational institutions shall maintain information systems that will provide the State Board of Education, the Board of Governors of the State University System, and the Legislature with information and reports necessary to address the specifications of the accountability system. The level of comprehensiveness and quality shall be no less than that which was available as of June 30, 2001.

(b)  The Commissioner of Education shall determine the standards for the required data, monitor data quality, and measure improvements. The commissioner shall report annually to the State Board of Education, the Board of Governors of the State University System, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives data quality indicators and ratings for all school districts and public postsecondary educational institutions.

(c)  Before establishing any new reporting or data collection requirements, the Commissioner of Education shall utilize existing data being collected to reduce duplication and minimize paperwork.

(4)  RULES.--The State Board of Education shall adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement the provisions of this section relating to the K-20 data warehouse.

History.--s. 375, ch. 2002-387; s. 1, ch. 2003-80; s. 13, ch. 2005-56; s. 44, ch. 2006-74; s. 20, ch. 2008-235.