Commissioner's Rules
Adopted Repeal of 19 TAC Chapter 101, Assessment, Subchapter CC, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Implementation of Testing Program, §101.3005, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments, and Adopted New 19 TAC §101.3031, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments
Attachments:
I. Statutory Citations (PDF)
II. Text of Adopted Repeal of 19 TAC Chapter 101, Assessment, Subchapter CC, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Implementation of Testing Program, §101.3005, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments (PDF)
III. Text of Adopted New 19 TAC Chapter 101, Assessment, Subchapter CC, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Implementation of Testing Program, §101.3031, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments (including Figure: 19 TAC §101.3031(b)(2)) (PDF)
SUMMARY:
The rule actions presented in this item was filed as adopted with the Texas Register under the commissioner's rulemaking authority. This item adopts the repeal of 19 TAC Chapter 101, Assessment, Subchapter CC, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Implementation of Testing Program, §101.3005, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments, and new 19 TAC §101.3031, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments. The new rule adopts the 2012 Test Security Supplement as part of the Texas Administrative Code. The adopted repeal and new rule also reflect a reorganization of 19 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter CC, due to the implementation of the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) in the 2011-2012 school year.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
Texas Education Code (TEC), §39.0301 and §39.0304.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
March 26, 2012.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND SIGNIFICANT ISSUES:
Through 19 TAC §101.3005, adopted to be effective July 20, 2006, and amended to be effective February 28, 2008, the commissioner exercised rulemaking authority relating to the administration of assessment instruments adopted or developed under the TEC, §39.023, including procedures designed to ensure the security of the assessment instruments. The rule addresses purpose, administrative procedures, training activities, and records retention. As part of the administrative procedures, school districts and charter schools are required to comply with test security and confidentiality requirements delineated annually in test administration materials. Texas Education Agency (TEA) legal counsel has advised that procedures related to test security be adopted as part of the TAC.
Adopted new 19 TAC §101.3031, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments, adopts in rule the official TEA publication 2012 Test Security Supplement as Figure: 19 TAC §101.3031(b)(2). The 2012 Test Security Supplement describes the security procedures and guidelines that school districts and charter schools are required to follow. The adopted new rule retains language from the repealed rule, 19 TAC §101.3005. The adopted repeal and new rule numbering reflects a reorganization of 19 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter CC, due to the implementation of the STAAR program.
Modifications to Figure: 19 TAC §101.3031(b)(2), the 2012 Test Security Supplement, at adoption are listed below.
Language under the titled section, Test Session Time Limits, has been modified to clarify that students should be made aware that materials must be collected at the end of the four-hour period.
As referred to by public comment (see public comments for further discussion), language under the titled section, Training, has been modified to indicate that only annual training must be completed by the deadline(s) specified in the Calendar of Events in the District and Campus Coordinator Manual.
Under the titled section, Procedural Violations:
- language under Eligibility Errors has been modified to indicate that an eligibility error applies to a 9th grade student who is eligible to participate in an end-of-course (EOC) test and was not administered the correct EOC assessment.
- language under Examples of How to Address has been modified to add clarity to the provided examples.
Language under the titled section, Individualized Education Program (IEP) Implementation Issues, has been modified to add clarity to some of the provided examples.
Language under the titled section, Monitoring Errors, has been modified to specify that a district must invalidate a student's answer document if cheating occurred.
Language under the titled section, Reporting Requirements for Procedural Irregularities, has been modified to help clarify the reporting requirements and required district actions in the instance of student cheating. The modified language is related to Recommendation #9 of TEA's 14-point Test Security Plan.
The title of the section Incidents that Do Not Constitute Testing Violations has been changed to Incidents that Do Not Constitute Testing Irregularities. This section was further modified to add clarity for districts concerning events that are not considered irregularities and do not need to be reported on the online incident report form.
Further technical edits were made to Figure: 19 TAC §101.3031(b)(2), the 2012 Test Security Supplement, to reduce redundancies and to clarify language. These edits were non-substantive.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Texas Education Agency has determined that there are no additional costs to persons or entities required to comply with the rule actions. In addition, there is no direct adverse economic impact for small businesses and microbusinesses; therefore, no regulatory flexibility analysis, specified in Texas Government Code, §2006.002, is required.
PUBLIC AND STUDENT BENEFIT:
The rule actions will inform the public of the security procedures for the 2012 test administrations.
PROCEDURAL AND REPORTING IMPLICATIONS:
The adoption establishes in rule the test security procedures for the 2012 Test Security Supplement. Applicable procedures will be adopted each year as annual versions of the test security supplement are published.
LOCALLY MAINTAINED PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS:
The rule actions have no additional effect on the paperwork required and maintained by school districts and charter schools.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
The public comment period on the proposal began January 6, 2012, and ended February 6, 2012. Following is a summary of the public comment received and the corresponding agency response regarding proposed new 19 TAC §101.3031, Required Test Administration Procedures and Training Activities to Ensure Validity, Reliability, and Security of Assessments.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association (TCTA) commented that, in the 2012 Test Security Supplement, the requirement for annual training as well as the encouragement to conduct as many training sessions as possible may cause unnecessary training to become normalized. TCTA recommended striking the annual training requirement.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees with striking the reference to required annual training but agrees that the encouragement of additional training is unnecessary. Though required training may increase during the transition to the STAAR program, TEA is aware of district concerns surrounding test administrator training and fully intends to explore ways to reduce training requirements for districts and campuses after the STAAR program is established. The "Training" section of the 2012 Test Security Supplement adopted as Figure: 19 TAC §101.3031(b)(2) was modified at adoption to reflect only annual training.
ALTERNATIVES:
None.
OTHER COMMENTS AND RELATED ISSUES:
None.
Staff Members Responsible:
Criss Cloudt, Associate Commissioner, Assessment and Accountability
Gloria Zyskowski, Division Director, Student Assessment
For more information, email rules@tea.state.tx.us.