AB 1 — Relating to: changes to the educational assessment program and the school and school district accountability report. (FE)

-Date 2026of LEGISLATUREenactment: LRB-1664/2 FFK:cjs&skw ASSEMBLY BILL 1 January 31, 2025 - Introduced by Representatives ITTKE, NOVAK, O'CONNOR , K REIBICH, USLER , GUNDRUM , DUCHOW , PENTERMAN , M URPHY, SORTWELL , B ORN, M AXEY, B EHNKE , MELOTIK , MURSAU , PIWOWARCZYK , NEDWESKI , G USTAFSON, DONOVAN , GREEN , DITTRICH, DALLMAN , BRIL, B.

JACOBSONAssembly ,Bill R1 ODRIGUEZ,Date SPIROS,of ALLEN,publication*: KNODL , KAUFERT and M OSES, cosponsored by Senators JAGLER , QUINN, FEYEN, WANGGAARD , OMCZYK , NASS, BRADLEY , W IMBERGER , KAPENGA , MARKLEIN, JAMES , JACQUE, TESTIN and C ABRAL - G UEVARA.

ReferredWISCONSIN ACT A N A CT to Committeerenumber onand Education.amend 115.385 (1) (b);

A N A CT to renumber and amend 115.385 (1) (b);

AnalysisThe bypeople theof Legislative Reference Bureau Under current law, the Departmentstate of PublicWisconsin, Instructionrepresented isin requiredsen- toqualitative annuallydefinition publishthat athe schooldepartment andused schoolfor districtthe accountabilityre- report,ate commonly known as school and schoolassembly, districtdo reportenact cards,as forfollows: the previous school year.

Toport measurepublished schoolunder performancethis andsection school district improvement for purposes of the report cards, particularly measures related to pupil achievement in reading and math, DPI uses data derived from pupil performance on assessments administered in the previous2019-20 school year,year. including assessments commonly referred to as the Wisconsin Student Assessment System, which includes the Wisconsin Forward Exam, PreACT, the ACT with Writing, and Dynamic Learning Maps.

Under the bill, beginning with report cards published for the school year in which the bill becomes law, for the index system to identify school and school district performance and improvement, also known as the accountability rating categories, DPI must use the same cut scores, score ranges, and corresponding qualitative descriptions that DPI used for report cards published in the 2019-20 - 2026 Legislature - 2 - LRB-1664/2 FFK:cjs&skw ASSEMBLY BILL 1 S ECTION 1 school year.

In addition, beginning with the WSAS administered in the school year in which the bill becomes law, DPI must do the following:

1.

For the Wisconsin Forward exam in English Language Arts and Mathematics, align cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories to the cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories set by the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

2.

For the PreACT and ACT with Writing in English, Reading, and Mathematics, use the same cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories that DPI used for the same assessments administered in the 2021-22 school year.

The bill specifically requires DPI to use the terms “below basic,” “basic,” “proficient,” and “advanced” for pupil performance categories on these assessments.

For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

115.385 (1) (b) of the statutes is renumberedrenum- bered 115.385 (1) (b) 1m., and 115.385 (1) (b) 1m.

(intro.),(in- asSECTION renumbered,4. is amended to read:

115.385118.30 (1)(1j) (b)of 1m.the statutes is created to tro.), as renumbered, is amended to read:

read:

118.30 (1j) For examinations administered under 115.385 (1) (b) 1m.

2m., this section or 20 USC 6311 (b) (2) in the school year an index system to identify a school’sschool[s level of performanceperfor- beginning on the July 1 immediately preceding the ef- mance and a school district’sdistrict[s level of improvement and to annually assign to each school and school district one offective thedate followingof performancethis categories:subsection ....

SECTION[LRB 2.inserts date], and of the following performance categories:

in each school year thereafter, the department shall do SECTION 2.

of the statutes is createdall toof read:the following:

115.385(a) (1)For (b)examinations 2m.in English language arts and created to read:

Formathematics theadministered schoolto andpupils schoolin districtgrades accountability3 reportsto published8, foruse the115.385 school(1) year(b) beginning2m. on the July 1 immediately preceding the effective date of this subdivision ....

[LRBFor insertsthe date],school and school dis- trict accountability reports published for eachthe school year thereafter,cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance cate- beginning on the departmentJuly shall1 useimmediately preceding the sameef- cutgories scoresthat andare aligned to the samecut scores, score rangesranges, forfective thedate performanceof categoriesthis undersubdivision subd.....

[LRB inserts date], and pupil performance categories set by the National and for each school year thereafter, the department shall Assessment of Educational Progress for the same sub- ject and the same grade.

use the same cut scores and the same score ranges for the performance categories under subd.

that the departmentde- (b) For examinations in English, reading, and math- partment used for the report published under this sectionsec- ematics administered to pupils in grades 9 to 11, use the tion in the 2019-20 school year.

same cut scores, the same score ranges, and the same SECTION 3.

115.385 (1) (c) of the statutes is pupil performance categories that the department used amended to read:

-to 2026evaluate Legislaturethe -same 3examinations -administered LRB-1664/2in FFK:cjs&skwthe ASSEMBLY BILL 1 SECTION 3 115.385 (1) (c) A qualitative definition for For each 2021-22 school year, including the following terminol- of the 5 performance categories in par.

(b) 1m., the same qualitativeogy definition that the department used for the reportpupil publishedperformance undercategories: this section in the 2019-20 school year.

S* ECTIONSection 4.991.11, ISCONSINSTATUTES:

118.30Effective (1j)date of theacts. statutes is created to read:

118.30XEvery (1j)act Forand examinationsevery administeredportion underof thisan sectionact orenacted 20by USCthe 6311legislature (b)over (2)the ingov- theernor's schoolpartial yearveto beginningwhich ondoes not expressly prescribe the Julytime 1when immediatelyit precedingtakes effect shall take effect on the effectiveday after its date of thispublication.Y subsectionWisconsin ....Act - 2 - 2025 Assembly Bill 1 1.

[LRB inserts date], and in each school year thereafter, the department shall do all of the following:

(a) For examinations in English language arts and mathematics administered to pupils in grades 3 to 8, use cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories that are aligned to the cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories set by the National Assessment of Educational Progress for the same subject and the same grade.

(b) For examinations in English, reading, and mathematics administered to pupils in grades 9 to 11, use the same cut scores, the same score ranges, and the same pupil performance categories that the department used to evaluate the same examinations administered in the 2021-22 school year, including the following terminology for the pupil performance categories: