CHAPTER 5. INDIANA STATEWIDE TESTING FOR EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS
IC 20-32-5
Chapter 5. Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress
IC 20-32-5-1
Purposes of ISTEP
Sec. 1. The purposes of the ISTEP program developed under this
chapter are as follows:
(1) To assess the strengths and weaknesses of school
performance.
(2) To assess the effects of state and local educational
programs.
(3) To compare achievement of Indiana students to achievement
of students on a national basis.
(4) To provide a source of information for state and local
decision makers with regard to educational matters, including
the following:
(A) The overall academic progress of students.
(B) The need for new or revised educational programs.
(C) The need to terminate existing educational programs.
(D) Student readiness for postsecondary school experiences.
(E) Overall curriculum development and revision activities.
(F) Identifying students who may need remediation under
IC 20-32-8.
(G) Diagnosing individual student needs.
(H) Teacher education and staff development activities.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16. Amended by P.L.246-2005,
SEC.176.
IC 20-32-5-2
Subject areas
Sec. 2. ISTEP program testing shall be administered in the
following subject areas:
(1) English/language arts.
(2) Mathematics.
(3) Science, in grade levels determined by the state board.
(4) Social studies, in grade levels determined by the state board.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-3
Content of tests
Sec. 3. To carry out the purposes described in section 1 of this
chapter, each English/language arts and mathematics test developed
for use under the ISTEP program test must include the following:
(1) A method of testing basic skills appropriate for the
designated grade level, including multiple choice questions.
(2) A method of testing applied skills appropriate for the
designated grade level, including short answer or essay
questions and the solving of arithmetic or mathematical
problems.
(3) A method of testing and grading that will allow comparison
with national and international academic standards.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-4
Duties of board, state superintendent, and department
Sec. 4. (a) The state board shall:
(1) authorize the development and implementation of the ISTEP
program; and
(2) determine the date on which the statewide testing is
administered in each school corporation.
(b) The state superintendent is responsible for the overall
development, implementation, and monitoring of the ISTEP program.
(c) The department shall prepare detailed design specifications for
the ISTEP program that must do the following:
(1) Take into account the academic standards adopted under
IC 20-31-3.
(2) Include testing of students' higher level cognitive thinking
in each subject area tested.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-5
General language arts essay questions; scoring rubric; anchor
paper
Sec. 5. The department shall make general language arts essay
scoring rubrics available to the public at least four (4) months before
the administration of a test. An essay question, a scoring rubric, or an
anchor paper used in the ISTEP program must comply with the
following:
(1) For an essay question, have a prompt that is taken from:
(A) a textbook on the state textbook adoption list included in
IC 20-20-5; or
(B) a source other than a source listed in clause (A) that is
approved by the ISTEP program citizens' review committee
established under IC 20-32-6.
(2) Not seek or compile information about a student's:
(A) personal attitudes;
(B) political views;
(C) religious beliefs;
(D) family relationships; or
(E) other matters listed in IC 20-30-5-17(b).
The ISTEP program citizens' review committee shall determine
whether an essay question or a scoring rubric complies with this
subdivision.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-6
Scoring of student responses
Sec. 6. The scoring of student responses under an ISTEP program
test:
(1) must measure student achievement relative to the academic
standards established by the state board;
(2) must adhere to scoring rubrics and anchor papers; and
(3) may not reflect the scorer's judgment of the values expressed
by a student in the student's responses.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-7
Reports of scores in mathematics and English/language arts
Sec. 7. This subsection applies to reports of scores in mathematics
and English/language arts. Reports must:
(1) provide scores indicating student performance relative to
each of the academic standards:
(A) established by the state board; and
(B) assessed by the test;
(2) be related to passing scores established by the state board;
and
(3) contain the information listed in subdivisions (1) and (2) for
the following levels:
(A) Individual student.
(B) Classroom.
(C) School.
(D) School corporation.
(E) Indiana.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-8
Reports; guide for interpreting scores
Sec. 8. Reports of student scores must be:
(1) returned to the school corporation that administered the test;
and
(2) accompanied by a guide for interpreting scores.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-9
Test scores; inspection; rescoring
Sec. 9. (a) After reports of student scores are returned to a school
corporation, the school corporation shall promptly do the following:
(1) Give each student and the student's parent the student's
ISTEP program test scores.
(2) Make available for inspection to each student and the
student's parent the following:
(A) A copy of the essay questions and prompts used in
assessing the student.
(B) A copy of the student's scored essays.
(C) A copy of the anchor papers and scoring rubrics used to
score the student's essays.
A student's parent may request a rescoring of a student's responses to
a test, including a student's essay.
(b) A student's ISTEP program scores may not be disclosed to the
public.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-10
Parent/teacher conferences
Sec. 10. After a school receives score reports, the school shall
schedule a parent/teacher conference with the following:
(1) A parent of a student who requests a parent/teacher
conference on the scores of the student.
(2) The parent of each student who does not receive a passing
score on the test. The conference must include a discussion of:
(A) the student's test scores, including subscores on
academic standards; and
(B) the proposed remediation plan for the student.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-11
School corporation compilation of results
Sec. 11. Each school corporation shall compile the total results of
the ISTEP program tests in a manner that will permit evaluation of
learning progress within the school corporation. The school
corporation shall make the compilation of test results available for
public inspection and shall provide that compilation to the parent of
each student tested under the ISTEP program.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-12
Annual school corporation performance report
Sec. 12. The department shall develop a format for the publication
by school corporations in an annual performance report required by
statute of appropriate academic information required by the
department, including ISTEP program test scores, in a manner that
a reasonable person can easily read and understand.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-13
School results
Sec. 13. The school corporation shall provide the ISTEP program
test results on a school by school basis to the department upon
request.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-14
Student results; consent
Sec. 14. Upon request by the commission for higher education, the
department shall provide ISTEP program test results to the
commission for those students for whom the commission under 20
U.S.C. 1232g has obtained consent.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-15
Testing schedule
Sec. 15. (a) The state superintendent shall develop an ISTEP
program testing schedule in which:
(1) each student in grades 3, 6, 8, and 10 must be tested; and
(2) each student in grade 10 must take a graduation
examination.
(b) The state board shall adopt rules to establish when a student
is considered to be in grade 10 for purposes of initially taking the
graduation examination.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-16
Children with disabilities
Sec. 16. (a) A student who is a child with a disability (as defined
in IC 20-35-1-2) shall be tested under this chapter with appropriate
accommodations in testing materials and procedures unless the
individuals who develop the child's individualized education program
determine that testing or a part of the testing under this chapter is not
appropriate for the student and that an alternate assessment will be
used to test the student's achievement.
(b) Any decision concerning a student who is a child with a
disability (as defined in IC 20-35-1-2) regarding the student's:
(1) participation in testing under this chapter;
(2) receiving accommodations in testing materials and
procedures;
(3) participation in remediation under IC 20-32-8; or
(4) retention at the same grade level for consecutive school
years;
shall be made in accordance with the student's individualized
education program in compliance with the ISTEP program manual
and federal law.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-17
Nonpublic schools
Sec. 17. (a) If a nonpublic school seeks accreditation as
authorized under IC 20-19-2-8(a)(5), the governing body of the
nonpublic school is entitled to acquire at no charge from the
department:
(1) the ISTEP program test; and
(2) the scoring reports used by the department.
(b) The nonpublic school seeking accreditation must:
(1) administer the ISTEP program test to its students at the
same time that school corporations administer the test; and
(2) make available to the department the results of the ISTEP
program testing.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-18
Innovative testing methods; pilot program
Sec. 18. (a) The department shall establish a pilot program to
examine innovative testing methods.
(b) The department shall select a representative sample of school
corporations determined through an application procedure to
participate in the pilot program under this section.
(c) The types of methods authorized under this program include
the following:
(1) Recently developed techniques for measuring higher order
thinking skills.
(2) Performance testing of academic standards that are difficult
to measure by a written test format.
(3) Expanded subject area assessment using student writing
samples.
(d) The funds necessary to implement a pilot program under this
section shall be expended from the research and development
program under IC 20-20-11.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-19
Use of state funds
Sec. 19. If state funds appropriated for remediation are available
under IC 20-32-8 at the end of a state fiscal year, the funds:
(1) do not revert to the state general fund; and
(2) must be transferred to the 4R's technology program for use
under IC 20-20-13-9.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-20
Repealed
(Repealed by P.L.179-2006, SEC.1.)
IC 20-32-5-21
National or international assessments
Sec. 21. (a) The state board may require schools to participate in
national or international assessments.
(b) The state board may establish an assessment to be
administered at the conclusion of each Core 40 course in
English/language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science.
However, participation in a Core 40 assessment established under
this subsection must be voluntary on the part of a school corporation.
(c) The state board may establish a diagnostic reading assessment
for use in grades 1 and 2 to promote grade level reading competency
by grade 3. However, participation in a reading assessment
established under this subsection must be voluntary on the part of a
school corporation.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.
IC 20-32-5-22
Rules
Sec. 22. The state board shall adopt rules under IC 4-22-2 to
implement this chapter.
As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.16.