HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.C.R. NO.

230

TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2011

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

urging the united states department of education to accept the  Nationally Recognized american college testing (act) Scholastic aptitude examination results for determining if a school is meeting "no child left behind' compliance.

 

 

 


     WHEREAS, ACT is a national college admission and placement exam in English, math, reading, and science that is administered in all fifty states in the United States including 22% of students in schools in the State of Hawaii; and

 

     WHEREAS, ACT is recognized as being a curriculum-based examination rather than an aptitude test that directly relates to the content of what high school students should be taught and provides students, their teachers, and career counselors with a comprehensive profile of a student's work; and

 

     WHEREAS, Hawaii has been awarded competitive Race to the Top Federal Grant funds in the amount of $75 million to address poor performing schools and has committed to a goal of ensuring all Hawaii high school graduates are college and career ready  by school year 2017-2018; and

 

     WHEREAS, as part of the Race to the Top obligations, the State has committed to adopting the Common Core Curriculum in math, English and science being developed by the National Governors Association in conjunction with the National Association of Superintendents of Schools; and

 

     WHEREAS, teachers and counselors who administer the Hawaii State Assessment (HSA) indicate that the costs of administering the tests are high and the test results are not sufficiently timely to provide feedback to teachers to adjust their lesson plans or for students to identify areas where they may need additional study or tutoring; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Hawaii State Assessment (HSA) requires a significant expenditure of student learning time and teaching time to be used for test preparation; and

 

     WHEREAS, ACT is recognized and accepted as a college entrance examination by colleges and universities throughout the United States, the costs of taking the exam are relatively minor, and the results are available promptly for teachers, counselors, and students to use to adjust their instruction, counseling and learning patterns; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-sixth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2011, that a letter be prepared by the Superintendent of Education to the United States Department of Education and the United States Congress asking that states be allowed to accept ACT as a benchmark for determining compliance by school districts for applicable grade levels with the requirements of the federal "No Child Left Behind"; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chair of the State Board of Education, the Hawaii Superintendent of Education, the Governor of the State of Hawaii; the members of the Hawaii Congressional Delegation; the United States Secretary of Education, and the principals of each public high school in the State of Hawaii.

 

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

 

 

Report Title: 

Replace Hawaii State Assessment with ACT Exam.