Education Code § 39.023

Sec. 39.023. ADOPTION AND ADMINISTRATION OF INSTRUMENTS. (a) In creating and implementing the instructionally supportive assessment program under Section 39.022, the agency shall adopt or develop appropriate beginning-of-year, middle-of-year, and end-of-year assessment instruments designed to assess essential knowledge and skills in reading language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science. Except as provided by Subsection (a-2), all students, other than students assessed under Subsection (b) or (l) or exempted under Section 39.027, shall be assessed in: (1) mathematics, annually in grades three through eight; (2) reading language arts, annually in grades three through eight; (3) social studies, in grade eight; (4) science, in grades five and eight; and (5) any other subject and grade required by federal law. (a-1) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (a-2) Except as required by federal law, a student is not required to be assessed in a subject otherwise assessed at the student's grade level under Subsection (a) if the student: (1) is enrolled in a course in the subject intended for students above the student's grade level and will be administered an assessment instrument adopted or developed under Subsection (a) that aligns with the curriculum for the course in which the student is enrolled; or (2) is enrolled in a course in the subject for which the student will receive high school academic credit and will be administered an end-of-course assessment instrument adopted under Subsection (c) for the course. (a-3) The agency may not adopt or develop an assessment instrument under this section based on common core state standards as defined by Section 28.002(b-1). This subsection does not prohibit the use of college advanced placement tests or international baccalaureate examinations as those terms are defined by Section 28.051. (a-4) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (a-5)-(a-10) Expired. (a-11) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (a-12) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (a-13) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (a-14) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (a-15) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (a-16) An assessment instrument under this section may not be administered to a kindergarten student except for the purpose of determining whether the student is entitled to the benefit of the Foundation School Program as provided under this code. (b) The agency shall develop or adopt appropriate criterion-referenced alternative assessment instruments to be administered to each student in a special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, who has been identified as having a significant cognitive disability and for whom an end-of-year assessment instrument adopted or developed under Subsection (a) or an end-of-course assessment instrument adopted or developed under Subsection (c), even with allowable accommodations, would not provide an appropriate measure of student achievement, as determined by agency guidelines and the student's admission, review, and dismissal committee. The agency may not adopt a performance standard that indicates that a student's performance on the alternate assessment does not meet standards if the lowest level of the assessment accurately represents the student's developmental level as determined by the student's admission, review, and dismissal committee. A student determined to be eligible to be administered an alternative assessment instrument under this subsection is exempt from the administration of a beginning-of-year or middle-of-year assessment instrument adopted or developed under Subsection (a) or (c). (b-1) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (c) The agency shall also adopt or develop end-of-course assessment instruments for secondary-level courses in Algebra I, biology, English I, and United States history and provide for the availability of optional beginning-of-year and middle-of-year assessment instruments for those courses. The Algebra I end-of-course assessment instrument must be administered with the aid of technology, but may include one or more parts that prohibit the use of technology. The English I end-of-course assessment instrument must assess essential knowledge and skills in both reading and writing and must provide a single score. (c-1) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (c-2) The agency may adopt end-of-course assessment instruments for courses not listed in Subsection (c). A student's performance on an end-of-course assessment instrument adopted under this subsection is not subject to the performance requirements established under Subsection (c) or Section 39.025. (c-3) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (c-4) To the extent practicable and subject to Section 39.024, the agency shall ensure that each end-of-course assessment instrument adopted under Subsection (c) is: (1) developed in a manner that measures a student's performance under the college readiness standards established under Section 28.008; and (2) validated by national postsecondary education experts for college readiness content and performance standards. (c-5) A student's performance on an end-of-course assessment instrument required under Subsection (c) must be included in the student's academic achievement record. (c-6) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (c-7) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (c-8) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (c-9) The United States history end-of-course assessment instrument adopted under Subsection (c) must include 10 questions randomly selected by the agency from the civics test administered by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services as part of the naturalization process under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. Section 1101 et seq.). The agency shall: (1) ensure that the questions included in the assessment instrument align with the essential knowledge and skills adopted for the United States history course for which the instrument is administered; and (2) annually issue a report: (A) providing the questions included in the assessment instrument under this subsection and the answers to those questions; and (B) detailing student performance on the questions included in the assessment instrument under this subsection, both statewide and disaggregated by school district and campus. (c-10) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (d) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (e) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (e-1) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (f) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (g) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (h) The agency shall notify school districts and campuses of the results of assessment instruments administered under this section in accordance with the timeline provided by Section 39.02301. The school district shall: (1) disclose to each district teacher the results of assessment instruments administered to students taught by the teacher in the subject for the school year in which the assessment instrument is administered; and (2) provide to the parent of a student enrolled in the district: (A) the results of each assessment instrument administered under this section to the student; and (B) instructions for accessing any online portal maintained by the agency that provides results of assessment instruments administered to the student. (i) The provisions of this section and Section 39.02301 are subject to modification by rules adopted under Section 39.001. Each assessment instrument adopted or developed under those rules must be reliable and valid and must meet any applicable federal requirements for measurement of student progress. (j) Repealed by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1312, Sec. 18, eff. September 1, 2007. (l) The agency shall adopt rules for the administration of the assessment instruments adopted under Subsection (a) in Spanish to emergent bilingual students in grades three through five, as defined by Section 29.052, whose primary language is Spanish, and who are not otherwise exempt from the administration of an assessment instrument under Section 39.027(a)(1) or (2). Each emergent bilingual student whose primary language is Spanish, other than a student to whom Subsection (b) applies, may be assessed using assessment instruments in Spanish under this subsection for up to three years or assessment instruments in English under Subsection (a). The language proficiency assessment committee established under Section 29.063 shall determine which students are administered assessment instruments in Spanish under this subsection. (m) The commissioner by rule shall develop procedures under which the language proficiency assessment committee established under Section 29.063 shall determine which students are exempt from the administration of the assessment instruments under Section 39.027(a)(1) or (2). The rules adopted under this subsection shall ensure that the language proficiency assessment committee provides that the exempted students are administered the assessment instruments under Subsections (a) and (c) at the earliest practical date. (n) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (o) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (p) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025. (q) The agency shall approve a list of alternative norm-referenced assessment instruments that meet the requirements of this subchapter and that a school district or open-enrollment charter school may administer in place of a beginning-of-year or middle-of-year assessment instrument adopted or developed under this section. The agency shall: (1) ensure the list approved under this subsection includes multiple alternative assessment instruments; and (2) adopt a process by which a school district or open-enrollment charter school may submit to the agency an assessment instrument to be included on the list approved under this subsection. (q-1) The agency may approve for inclusion on the list under Subsection (q) any assessment instrument that has shared data sufficient to establish an accurate calculation to measure student through-year instructional growth and improvement for purposes of Section 39.053(c-5). (q-2) For the 2027-2028 or 2028-2029 school year, the agency may provide provisional approval for use as an alternative beginning-of-year or middle-of-year assessment instrument under Subsection (q) an alternative norm-referenced assessment instrument that does not meet the requirements of this subchapter if the administrator of the assessment instrument provides to the agency an acceptable plan for bringing the assessment instrument into compliance with the requirements of this subchapter. This subsection expires September 1, 2029. Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 260, Sec. 1, eff. May 30, 1995. Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 767, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 397, Sec. 3, 8, eff. Sept. 1, 1999; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 8, Sec. 1, eff. April 11, 2001; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 834, Sec. 9, eff. Sept. 1, 2001; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 201, Sec. 25, eff. Sept. 1, 2003; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 430, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1, 2003; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 433, Sec. 1, eff. June 20, 2003; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1212, Sec. 11, eff. June 20, 2003; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1275, Sec. 2(20), eff. Sept. 1, 2003. Amended by: Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1312 (S.B. 1031), Sec. 8, eff. September 1, 2007. Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1312 (S.B. 1031), Sec. 18, eff. September 1, 2007. Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 895 (H.B. 3), Sec. 50, eff. June 19, 2009. Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 307 (H.B. 2135), Sec. 3, eff. June 17, 2011. Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 211 (H.B. 5), Sec. 31(a), eff. June 10, 2013. Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 590 (S.B. 906), Sec. 1, eff. June 14, 2013. Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 861 (H.B. 462), Sec. 2, eff. June 14, 2013. Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1267 (H.B. 866), Sec. 1. Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1267 (H.B. 866), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2017. Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 934 (H.B. 2349), Sec. 2, eff. June 18, 2015. Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 934 (H.B. 2349), Sec. 5(1), eff. June 18, 2015. Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1006 (H.B. 743), Sec. 1, eff. June 19, 2015. Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1094 (H.B. 2804), Sec. 13, eff. June 19, 2015. Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1282 (H.B. 1244), Sec. 1, eff. June 14, 2019. Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1315 (H.B. 3906), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2021. Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1315 (H.B. 3906), Sec. 3, eff. June 14, 2019. Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 915 (H.B. 3607), Sec. 21.001(10), eff. September 1, 2021. Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 973 (S.B. 2066), Sec. 18, eff. September 1, 2021. Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1003 (H.B. 3261), Sec. 4, eff. June 18, 2021. Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 940 (S.B. 1647), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2023. Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.004, eff. December 4, 2025. Acts 2025, 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., Ch. 6 (H.B. 8), Sec. 1.012(1), eff. December 4, 2025.