Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §6202, first ¶, as amended by PL 2005, c. 446, §3, is further amended to read:

The commissioner shall establish a statewide assessment program to measure and evaluate on a continuing basis the academic achievements of students at grades 4, 8 and 11 in the content areas of the system of learning results established in section 6209 specified by the commissioner. The commissioner may elect to provide for the use of alternative measures of student achievement in grade 11, except that any alternative measure must be submitted to the Legislature for its approval prior to being used. This assessment applies to students in the public elementary and secondary schools and in all private schools approved for tuition whose school enrollments include at least 60% publicly-funded students, as determined by the previous school year's October and April average enrollment. The assessment program must be adapted to meet the needs of exceptional students as defined in section 7001, subsection 2 or other students as defined under rules by the commissioner.

SUMMARY

Current law requires the Commissioner of Education to establish a statewide assessment program to measure and evaluate achievement of learning results. The current assessment program used for students in grades 4, 8 and 11 is the Maine Educational Assessment. The commissioner is permitted to establish an alternative assessment for students in grade 11.

This bill requires the commissioner to submit any alternative assessment program to the Legislature for its approval.