A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to allow local boards of education to select a diagnostic reading assessment for the read to achieve program among three ASSESSMENTS approved by the state board of education.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑174.11 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C‑174.11.  Components of the testing program.
(a)	Assessment Instruments for Kindergarten, First, Second, and Third Grades. – The State Board of Education shall develop, adopt, and provide to the local school administrative units developmentally appropriate individualized assessment instruments consistent with the Basic Education Program and Part 1A of Article 8 of this Chapter for the kindergarten, first, second, and third grades. The State Board shall approve three valid, reliable, formative, and diagnostic reading assessment instruments for selection by local school administrative units in accordance with the following:
(1)	Each approved assessment instrument shall provide a minimum of four benchmark assessments, interim formative assessments, and progress monitoring capabilities.
(2)	In determining which instruments to approve for use by local school administrative units, the State Board shall also consider at least the following factors:
a.	The time required to conduct formative and benchmark assessments with the intention of minimizing the impact on instructional time.
b.	The level of integration of assessment results with instructional support for teachers and students.
c.	The timeliness in reporting assessment results to teachers and administrators.
d.	The ability to provide timely assessment results to parents and guardians.
(3)	In no case shall an assessment instrument be approved for use by local school administrative units if the cost of the assessment instrument, including related instructional content, materials, and resources for teachers and students, exceeds the funds appropriated for this purpose divided by the projected enrollment of students in kindergarten, first, second, and third grades.
(a1)	Each local school administrative unit shall select one valid, reliable, formative, and diagnostic reading assessment from the three assessment instruments approved by the State Board under subsection (a) of this section. Local school administrative units shall use the assessment instruments provided to them by the State Board for kindergarten, first, second, and third grade students to assess progress, diagnose difficulties, and inform instruction and remediation needs. Local school administrative units shall not use standardized tests for summative assessment of kindergarten, first, and second grade students except as required as a condition of receiving federal grants.
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SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies beginning with the 2015‑2016 school year.