1099
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO SCHOOL PERFORMANCE



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  Findings and purpose.  The legislature finds
 
 2 that the only states which have experienced significant increases
 
 3 in student achievement are those that hold their schools
 
 4 accountable for performance.  Contrary to the critics, Hawaii's
 
 5 public schools are not the worst in the nation.  However, they
 
 6 are not the best either and the legislature takes no comfort in
 
 7 the fact that Hawaii's schools are average.  Hawaii's schools
 
 8 need to improve over their past performance.  Over the next
 
 9 several years, public schools need to develop ways to measure and
 
10 improve student and teacher performance.  Hawaii can start by
 
11 joining the federal government in getting schools to be more
 
12 accountable.  To increase parental involvement, schools must urge
 
13 parents to get involved in setting these goals for their
 
14 children.
 
15      The purpose of this Act is require each school to set its
 
16 own performance indicators, including, at a minimum, student test
 
17 scores, school attendance, student drop-out rates and parental
 
18 involvement, and to set its own achievement goals, known as
 
19 benchmarks, to improve performance over its own previous levels.
 

 
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 1 Every school is required to submit a self-evaluation of progress
 
 2 in achieving its goals to the superintendent.  Any school not
 
 3 meeting its goals will be evaluated by the superintendent and
 
 4 changes in resources and personnel, if appropriate, will be
 
 5 recommended.
 
 6      SECTION 2.  Chapter 302A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 7 amended by adding to new sections to be appropriately designated
 
 8 and to read as follows:
 
 9      "§302A-  School  performance  benchmarks;  mandated.  Every
 
10 school shall develop school performance standards in accordance
 
11 with statewide educational performance standards; including, at
 
12 at minimum, student test scores, school attendance, student drop-
 
13 out rates, and parental involvement; every school shall develop
 
14 an annual self-evaluation process to compare progress on each
 
15 standard with its own previous levels of performance; the annual
 
16 goal for progress on each standard shall be known as a school
 
17 performance benchmark and shall be adjusted upward for each new
 
18 school year.
 
19      §302A-   School  Report  Cards; established.    Every school
 
20 shall submit a report card on its self-evaluation to the
 
21 superintendent on or before June 30 of each year; the
 
22 superintendent shall submit a report containing the school report
 
23 cards to the board, the governor and the legislature by August 15
 

 
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 1 of each year; any school not meeting its progress benchmarks will
 
 2 be evaluated by the superintendent and changes in resources and
 
 3 personnel implement, if appropriate; and each school shall send
 
 4 the report card, along with the benchmarks for the new school
 
 5 year, home with each student on the first day of school, or the
 
 6 first day of the next period of instruction for schools with non-
 
 7 traditional school calendars.
 
 8      SECTION 3.  New statutory material is underscored.
 
 9      SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
 
10 
 
11                              INTRODUCED BY:______________________
 

 
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