Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 181 (2021GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Johnson, D.N.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/16/2021

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Spencer J. Cox

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• defines terms and replaces "competency-based education" with "personalized, competency-based learning";
• renames the Competency-Based Education Grants Program to the Personalized Competency-Based Learning Grants Program;
• renames the Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation From Competency-Based Education to Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation From Personalized, Competency-Based Learning; and
• makes technical and conforming changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

PERSONALIZED COMPETENCY-BASED LEARNING
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Dan N. Johnson
Senate Sponsor: 
Chris H. Wilson
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill amends provisions related to personalized, competency-based learning and
related programs.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ defines terms and replaces "competency-based education" with "personalized,
competency-based learning";
▸ renames the Competency-Based Education Grants Program to the Personalized
Competency-Based Learning Grants Program;
▸ renames the Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation From
Competency-Based Education to Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation
From Personalized, Competency-Based Learning; and
▸ makes technical and conforming changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
53E-1-203
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2020, Chapters 365 and 388
53E-4-303
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapters 186 and 202
53F-2-511
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2020, Chapter 408
53F-5-501
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 186
53F-5-502
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2020, Chapter 408
53F-5-507
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 267
53G-7-215
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 293
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
53E-1-203
 is amended to read:
53E-1-203.
State Superintendent's Annual Report.
(1) The state board shall prepare and submit to the governor, the Education Interim
Committee, and the Public Education Appropriations Subcommittee, by January 15 of each
year, an annual written report known as the State Superintendent's Annual Report that includes:
(a) the operations, activities, programs, and services of the state board;
(b) subject to Subsection (4)(b), all reports listed in Subsection (4)(a); and
(c) data on the general condition of the schools with recommendations considered
desirable for specific programs, including:
(i) a complete statement of fund balances;
(ii) a complete statement of revenues by fund and source;
(iii) a complete statement of adjusted expenditures by fund, the status of bonded
indebtedness, the cost of new school plants, and school levies;
(iv) a complete statement of state funds allocated to each school district and charter
school by source, including supplemental appropriations, and a complete statement of
expenditures by each school district and charter school, including supplemental appropriations,
by function and object as outlined in the United States Department of Education publication
"Financial Accounting for Local and State School Systems";
(v) a statement that includes data on:
(A) fall enrollments;
(B) average membership;
(C) high school graduates;
(D) licensed and classified employees, including data reported by school districts on
educator ratings described in Section 
53G-11-511
;
(E) pupil-teacher ratios;
(F) average class sizes;
(G) average salaries;
(H) applicable private school data; and
(I) data from statewide assessments described in Section 
53E-4-301
 for each school
and school district;
(vi) statistical information regarding incidents of delinquent activity in the schools or at
school-related activities; and
(vii) other statistical and financial information about the school system that the state
superintendent considers pertinent.
(2) (a) For the purposes of Subsection (1)(c)(v):
(i) the pupil-teacher ratio for a school shall be calculated by dividing the number of
students enrolled in a school by the number of full-time equivalent teachers assigned to the
school, including regular classroom teachers, school-based specialists, and special education
teachers;
(ii) the pupil-teacher ratio for a school district shall be the median pupil-teacher ratio of
the schools within a school district;
(iii) the pupil-teacher ratio for charter schools aggregated shall be the median
pupil-teacher ratio of charter schools in the state; and
(iv) the pupil-teacher ratio for the state's public schools aggregated shall be the median
pupil-teacher ratio of public schools in the state.
(b) The report shall:
(i) include the pupil-teacher ratio for:
(A) each school district;
(B) the charter schools aggregated; and
(C) the state's public schools aggregated; and
(ii) identify a website where pupil-teacher ratios for each school in the state may be
accessed.
(3) For each operation, activity, program, or service provided by the state board, the
annual report shall include:
(a) a description of the operation, activity, program, or service;
(b) data and metrics:
(i) selected and used by the state board to measure progress, performance,
effectiveness, and scope of the operation, activity, program, or service, including summary
data; and
(ii) that are consistent and comparable for each state operation, activity, program, or
service;
(c) budget data, including the amount and source of funding, expenses, and allocation
of full-time employees for the operation, activity, program, or service;
(d) historical data from previous years for comparison with data reported under
Subsections (3)(b) and (c);
(e) goals, challenges, and achievements related to the operation, activity, program, or
service;
(f) relevant federal and state statutory references and requirements;
(g) contact information of officials knowledgeable and responsible for each operation,
activity, program, or service; and
(h) other information determined by the state board that:
(i) may be needed, useful, or of historical significance; or
(ii) promotes accountability and transparency for each operation, activity, program, or
service with the public and elected officials.
(4) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (4)(b), the annual report shall also include:
(i) the report described in Section 
53E-3-507
 by the state board on career and technical
education needs and program access;
(ii) through October 1, 2022, the report described in Section 
53E-3-515
 by the state
board on the Hospitality and Tourism Management Career and Technical Education Pilot
Program;
(iii) beginning on July 1, 2023, the report described in Section 
53E-3-516
 by the state
board on certain incidents that occur on school grounds;
(iv) the report described in Section 
53E-4-202
 by the state board on the development
and implementation of the core standards for Utah public schools;
(v) the report described in Section 
53E-5-310
 by the state board on school turnaround
and leadership development;
(vi) the report described in Section 
53E-10-308
 by the state board and Utah Board of
Higher Education on student participation in the concurrent enrollment program;
(vii) the report described in Section 
53F-2-503
 by the state board on early literacy;
(viii) the report described in Section 
53F-5-506
 by the state board on information
related to 
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
] 
learning
;
(ix) the report described in Section 
53G-9-802
 by the state board on dropout prevention
and recovery services; and
(x) the report described in Section 
53G-10-204
 by the state board on methods used, and
the results being achieved, to instruct and prepare students to become informed and responsible
citizens.
(b) The Education Interim Committee or the Public Education Appropriations
Subcommittee may request a report described in Subsection (4)(a) to be reported separately
from the State Superintendent's Annual Report.
(5) The annual report shall be designed to provide clear, accurate, and accessible
information to the public, the governor, and the Legislature.
(6) The state board shall:
(a) submit the annual report in accordance with Section 
68-3-14
; and
(b) make the annual report, and previous annual reports, accessible to the public by
placing a link to the reports on the state board's website.
(7) (a) Upon request of the Education Interim Committee or Public Education
Appropriations Subcommittee, the state board shall present the State Superintendent's Annual
Report to either committee.
(b) After submitting the State Superintendent's Annual Report in accordance with this
section, the state board may supplement the report at a later time with updated data,
information, or other materials as necessary or upon request by the governor, the Education
Interim Committee, or the Public Education Appropriations Subcommittee.
Section 2. Section 
53E-4-303
 is amended to read:
53E-4-303.
Utah standards assessments -- Administration -- Review committee.
(1) As used in this section, "computer adaptive assessment" means an assessment that
measures the range of a student's ability by adapting to the student's responses, selecting more
difficult or less difficult questions based on the student's responses.
(2) The state board shall:
(a) adopt a standards assessment that:
(i) measures a student's proficiency in:
(A) mathematics for students in each of grades 3 through 8;
(B) English language arts for students in each of grades 3 through 8;
(C) science for students in each of grades 4 through 8; and
(D) writing for students in at least grades 5 and 8; and
(ii) except for the writing measurement described in Subsection (2)(a)(i)(D), is a
computer adaptive assessment; and
(b) ensure that an assessment described in Subsection (2)(a) is:
(i) a criterion referenced assessment;
(ii) administered online;
(iii) aligned with the core standards for Utah public schools; and
(iv) adaptable to 
personalized,
 competency-based [
education as
] 
learning, as that term
is
 defined in Section 
53F-5-501
.
(3) A school district or charter school shall annually administer the standards
assessment adopted by the state board under Subsection (2) to all students in the subjects and
grade levels described in Subsection (2).
(4) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (4)(b), a student's score on the standards
assessment adopted under Subsection (2) may not be considered in determining:
(i) the student's academic grade for a course; or
(ii) whether the student may advance to the next grade level.
(b) A teacher may use a student's score on the standards assessment adopted under
Subsection (2) to improve the student's academic grade for or demonstrate the student's
competency within a relevant course.
(5) (a) The state board shall establish a committee consisting of 15 parents of Utah
public education students to review all standards assessment questions.
(b) The committee established in Subsection (5)(a) shall include the following parent
members:
(i) five members appointed by the chair of the state board;
(ii) five members appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives or the
speaker's designee; and
(iii) five members appointed by the president of the Senate or the president's designee.
(c) The state board shall provide staff support to the parent committee.
(d) The term of office of each member appointed in Subsection (5)(b) is four years.
(e) The chair of the state board, the speaker of the House of Representatives, and the
president of the Senate shall adjust the length of terms to stagger the terms of committee
members so that approximately half of the committee members are appointed every two years.
(f) No member may receive compensation or benefits for the member's service on the
committee.
Section 3. Section 
53F-2-511
 is amended to read:
53F-2-511.
Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation From Personalized,
Competency-Based Learning.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Cohort" means a group of students, defined by the year in which the group enters
grade 9.
(b) "Eligible LEA" means an LEA that has demonstrated to the state board that the
LEA or, for a school district, a school within the LEA, provides and facilitates 
personalized,
competency-based [
education
] 
learning
 that:
(i) is based on the [
core
] principles described in Section [
53F-5-502
] 
53F-5-501
; and
(ii) meets other criteria established by the state board in rule made in accordance with
Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act.
(c) "Eligible student" means an individual who:
(i) attended an eligible LEA and graduated by completing graduation requirements, as
described in Section 
53E-4-204
, earlier than that individual's cohort completed graduation
requirements because of the individual's participation in the eligible LEA's 
personalized,
competency-based [
education
] 
learning
;
(ii) no longer attends the eligible LEA; and
(iii) is not included in the LEA's average daily membership under this chapter.
(d) "Partial pupil" means if an eligible student attends less than a full year of
membership, the number of days the student was in membership compared to a full
membership year.
(e) "Program" means the Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation From
Personalized,
 Competency-Based [
Education
] 
Learning
 established in this section.
(2) (a) There is established the Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation From
Personalized,
 Competency-Based [
Education
] 
Learning
.
(b) Subject to future budget constraints, the Legislature may annually appropriate
money to the Reimbursement Program for Early Graduation From 
Personalized,
Competency-Based [
Education
] 
Learning
.
(3) An LEA may apply to the state board to receive a reimbursement, as described in
Subsection (5), for an eligible student.
(4) The state board shall approve a reimbursement to an LEA after the LEA
demonstrates:
(a) that the LEA is an eligible LEA; and
(b) that the individual for whom the eligible LEA requests reimbursement is an eligible
student.
(5) (a) For each eligible student, the state board shall only reimburse an eligible LEA:
(i) if the eligible student attended the eligible LEA for less than a full school year
before the eligible student's cohort graduated, up to the value of one weighted pupil unit pro
rated based on the difference between:
(A) the number of days of partial pupil in average daily membership earned by the
eligible LEA while the eligible student was still in attendance; and
(B) a full pupil in average daily membership; and
(ii) the value of one weighted pupil unit for each full school year the eligible student
graduated ahead of the eligible student's cohort.
(b) The state board shall:
(i) use data from the prior year average daily membership to determine the number of
eligible students; and
(ii) reimburse the eligible LEA in the current school year.
(6) The state board shall, in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative
Rulemaking Act, adopt rules to administer the provisions of this section.
Section 4. Section 
53F-5-501
 is amended to read:
Part 5. Personalized, Competency-Based Learning Grants Program
53F-5-501.
Definitions.
As used in this part:
(1) "Blended learning" means a formal education program in which a student learns:
(a) at least in part, through online learning with some element of student control over
time, place, path, and pace;
(b) at least in part, in a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home; and
(c) in a program in which the modalities along each student's learning path within a
course or subject are connected to provide an integrated learning experience.
[
(2) "Competency-Based education" means a system where a student advances to
higher levels of learning when the student demonstrates competency of concepts and skills
regardless of time, place, or pace.
]
[
(3)
] 
(2)
 "Extended learning" means learning opportunities outside of a traditional
school structure, including:
(a) online learning available anywhere, anytime;
(b) career-based experiences, including internships and job shadowing;
(c) community-based projects; and
(d) off-site postsecondary learning.
[
(4)
] 
(3)
 "Grant program" means the 
Personalized,
 Competency-Based [
Education
]
Learning
 Grants Program created in this part.
[
(5)
] 
(4)
 "Institution of higher education" means an institution listed in Section
53B-1-102
.
(5) "Personalized, competency-based learning" means a system of learning in which
the following principles influence the daily actions of the educational community:
(a) students are empowered daily to make important decisions about the students'
learning experiences, how the students will create and apply knowledge, and how students will
demonstrate the students' learning;
(b) assessment is a meaningful, positive, and empowering learning experience for
students that yields timely, relevant, and actionable evidence;
(c) students receive timely, differentiated support based on the students' individual
learning needs;
(d) students progress based on evidence of mastery rather than by hours of attendance;
(e) students learn actively using different pathways and varied pacing;
(f) strategies to ensure equity for all students are embedded in the culture, structure,
and pedagogy of schools and education systems; and
(g) rigorous, common expectations for learning, including knowledge, skills, and
dispositions, are explicit, transparent, measurable, and transferable.
(6) "Review committee" means the committee established under Section 
53F-5-502
.
(7) "STEM" means science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
Section 5. Section 
53F-5-502
 is amended to read:
53F-5-502.
Personalized Competency-Based Learning Grants Program -- State
board duties -- Review committee -- Technical assistance training.
(1) There is created the 
Personalized
 Competency-Based [
Education
] 
Learning
 Grants
Program consisting of the grants created in this part to improve educational outcomes in public
schools [
by advancing student mastery of concepts and skills through the following core
principles:
] 
through personalized, competency-based learning.
[
(a) student advancement upon mastery of a concept or skill;
]
[
(b) competencies that include explicit, measurable, and transferable learning
objectives that empower a student;
]
[
(c) assessment that is meaningful and provides a positive learning experience for a
student;
]
[
(d) timely, differentiated support based on a student's individual learning needs; and
]
[
(e) learning outcomes that emphasize competencies that include application and
creation of knowledge along with the development of important skills and dispositions.
]
(2) The grant program shall incentivize an LEA to establish 
personalized,
competency-based [
education
] 
learning
 within the LEA through the use of:
(a) personalized learning;
(b) blended learning;
(c) extended learning;
(d) educator professional learning in 
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
]
learning
; or
(e) any other method that emphasizes [
the core principles described in Subsection (1)
]
personalized, competency-based learning
.
(3) The state board shall:
(a) in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act,
adopt rules:
(i) for the administration of the grant program and awarding of grants; and
(ii) to define outcome-based measures appropriate to the type of grant for an LEA that
is awarded a grant under this part to use to measure the performance of the LEA's plan or
program;
(b) establish a grant application process;
(c) in accordance with Subsection (4), establish a review committee to make
recommendations to the state board for:
(i) metrics to analyze the quality of a grant application; and
(ii) approval of a grant application; and
(d) with input from the review committee, adopt metrics to analyze the quality of a
grant application.
(4) (a) The review committee shall consist of STEM and blended learning experts,
current and former school administrators, current and former teachers, and at least one former
school district superintendent, in addition to other staff designated by the state board.
(b) The review committee shall:
(i) review a grant application submitted by an LEA;
(ii) make recommendations to the LEA to modify the application, if necessary; and
(iii) make recommendations to the state board regarding the final disposition of an
application.
(5) (a) The state board shall provide technical assistance training to assist an LEA with
a grant application under this part.
(b) An LEA may not apply for a grant under this part unless:
(i) a representative of the LEA attends the technical assistance training before the LEA
submits a grant application; and
(ii) the representative is a superintendent, principal, or a person in a leadership position
within the LEA.
(c) The technical assistance training shall include:
(i) instructions on completing a grant application, including grant application
requirements;
(ii) information on the scoring metrics used to review a grant application; and
(iii) information on 
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
] 
learning
.
(6) The state board may use up to 5% of an appropriation provided to fund this part for
administration of the grant program.
Section 6. Section 
53F-5-507
 is amended to read:
53F-5-507.
Cooperation of institutions of higher education -- Transferring
students not to be penalized.
(1) An institution of higher education:
(a) shall, for purposes of admission, scholarships, and other financial aid consideration,
recognize and accept on equal footing as a traditional high school diploma a high school
diploma awarded to a student who successfully completes an educational program that uses, in
whole or in part, 
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
] 
learning
; and
(b) cooperate with an LEA:
(i) as applicable, to facilitate the advancement of a student who attends a 
personalized,
competency-based [
education
] 
learning
 program; and
(ii) as requested, in the development of an LEA plan or program under this part.
(2) If a student attending an LEA that establishes 
personalized,
 competency-based
[
education
] 
learning
 within the LEA transfers to another school within the LEA or to another
LEA entirely that does not have a 
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
] 
learning
program, the student may not be penalized by being required to repeat course work that the
student has successfully completed, changing the student's grade, or receive any other penalty
related to the student's previous attendance in the 
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
]
learning
 program.
Section 7. Section 
53G-7-215
 is amended to read:
53G-7-215.
Personalized, competency-based learning -- Recommendations --
Coordination.
(1) As used in this section, "
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
] 
learning
"
means the same as that term is defined in Section 
53F-5-501
.
(2) A local school board or a charter school governing board may establish a
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
] 
learning
 program.
(3) A local school board or charter school governing board that establishes a
personalized,
 competency-based [
education
] 
learning
 program shall:
(a) establish assessments to accurately measure competency;
(b) provide the assessments to an enrolled student at no cost to the student;
(c) award credit to a student who demonstrates competency and subject mastery;
(d) submit the competency-based standards to the state board for review; and
(e) publish the competency-based standards on its website or by other electronic means
readily accessible to the public.
(4) A local school board or charter school governing board may:
(a) on a random lottery-based basis, limit enrollment to courses that have been
designated as competency-based courses;
(b) waive or adapt traditional attendance requirements;
(c) adjust class sizes to maximize the value of course instructors or course mentors;
(d) enroll students from any geographic location within the state; and
(e) provide proctored online competency-based assessments.