A new law governing public education for Texas contains a number of provisions that may be of interest to community college educators. HB 3, a massive bill recently passed by 2009 Regular Session of the Legislature, contains 180 pages of stipulations, mostly directed at public school "accountability." Here's the text of the bill.
Of particular note are provisions related to "college readiness." For instance, the bill makes readiness part of the accountability system by requiring schools to increase the number of students who are prepared—as defined by various assessments. There is also a new standard for end-of-course exams regarding English III and Algebra II, two key disciplines of concern for many community college faculty. The intent of the legislation is to insure that students who enroll in freshman English and mathematics for college credit have been adequately prepared and evaluated. Many observers have complained in the past that the TAKS and TEKS regimen was geared toward high school graduation, but did not contain enough rigor for college-level work.
As usual, details will be worked out over the next two years as the statute is implemented by the Texas Education Agency and the Coordinating Board. These details will be crucial in determining whether the new law is effective.
A nice summary of the bill's provisions can be found in the Conference Committee report, available here, courtesy of the Texas Classroom Teachers Association, a professional association of K-12 educators in the public schools.
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