Proposed Amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Mathematics, Subchapter B, Middle School, and Subchapter C, High School
(Second Reading and Final Adoption)
January 23, 2009
COMMITTEE OF THE FULL BOARD: ACTION
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION: ACTION
SUMMARY: The Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for mathematics were revised and amended to be effective August 1, 2006. House Bill 1, passed by the 79th Texas Legislature, Third Called Session, 2006, requires the development of college readiness standards and the incorporation of approved college readiness standards into the essential knowledge and skills. This item presents for second reading and final adoption proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Mathematics, Subchapter B, Middle School, and Subchapter C, High School, that would incorporate approved college readiness standards into the mathematics TEKS. No additional changes are recommended since approved for first reading.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: Texas Education Code (TEC), §§7.102(c)(4), 28.002, 28.008, and 28.025.
EFFECTIVE DATE: The proposed effective date of the proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111, Subchapters B and C, is 20 days after filing as adopted with the Texas Register. Under TEC, §7.102(f), the State Board of Education (SBOE) must approve the rule action at second reading and final adoption by a vote of two-thirds of its members to specify an effective date earlier than the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year. The earlier effective date will allow districts to begin preparing for implementation in the 2009-2010 school year and will provide for appropriate alignment with the new end-of-course exam development schedule.
PREVIOUS BOARD ACTION: The SBOE adopted the TEKS for mathematics to be effective September 1, 1998. The mathematics TEKS were amended to be effective August 1, 2006. A discussion item regarding the proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111 was presented to the Committee of the Full Board during the May and special September 2008 meetings. Proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Mathematics, Subchapter B, Middle School, and Subchapter C, High School, were approved for first reading and filing authorization at the November 2008 meeting.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND SIGNIFICANT ISSUES: House Bill 1, passed by the 79th Texas Legislature, Third Called Session, 2006, requires the development of college readiness standards and the incorporation of approved college readiness standards and expectations into the essential knowledge and skills. College readiness standards in English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies were adopted by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board on January 24, 2008. During the May 2008 meeting, the SBOE directed Texas Education Agency (TEA) staff to convene a committee to make recommendations for incorporating approved college readiness standards into the mathematics TEKS. The committee met on August 28-29, 2008, to work on recommendations for amendments to the TEKS for middle school and high school mathematics. Committee recommendations were presented during the discussion at the special September 29, 2008, SBOE meeting, and no further changes were recommended subsequent to that meeting.
The proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111, Subchapters B and C, are shown in Attachment II of this item.
FISCAL IMPACT: There will be normal business costs associated with this process for the TEA, including staff travel, meeting accommodations, and production and dissemination of documents. In addition, a need for the development and implementation of professional development to help teachers and administrators understand the amended mathematics TEKS is anticipated. It is not possible to determine the exact fiscal implication until input is received from districts regarding potential needs. It is also possible that additional instructional materials or supplements to instructional materials might be needed.
There are anticipated fiscal implications for school districts to implement the amended TEKS, which may include the need for professional development and revisions to district-developed databases, curriculum, and scope and sequence documents. Since curriculum and instruction decisions are made at the local district level, it is difficult to estimate the fiscal impact on any given district.
The TEA has determined that there is no direct adverse economic impact for small businesses or microbusinesses; therefore, no regulatory flexibility analysis, specified in Texas Government Code, §2006.002, is required.
PUBLIC AND STUDENT BENEFIT: Benefits of the proposed revisions to the TEKS include better alignment to college readiness expectations.
PROCEDURAL AND REPORTING IMPLICATIONS: None.
LOCALLY MAINTAINED PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS: None.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: Following the November 2008 SBOE meeting, notice of proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111 was filed with the Texas Register, initiating the official public comment period. No public comments have been received at the time this item was prepared. A summary of any public comments received prior to the January meeting, and corresponding agency responses, will be provided to the SBOE at the January 2009 meeting.
ALTERNATIVES: None.
OTHER COMMENTS AND RELATED ISSUES: None.
COMMISSIONER’S RECOMMENDATION: I recommend that the State Board of Education:
By an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members of the board, approve for second reading and final adoption the proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Mathematics, Subchapter B, Middle School, and Subchapter C, High School, with an effective date of 20 days after filing as adopted with the Texas Register.
Respectfully submitted,
Robert Scott
Commissioner of Education
Staff Members Responsible:
Anita Givens, Acting Associate Commissioner
Standards and Programs
Norma Torres-Martinez, Unit Director, Foundation Curriculum
Curriculum Division
Attachments:
I. Statutory Citations
II. Proposed Amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 111, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Mathematics, Subchapter B, Middle School, and Subchapter C, High School