Amendment #7 to H4672

Literacy Outcomes by Enrollment Tenure & Mobility

Mr. Vargas of Haverhill moves to amend the bill by adding the following section:

SECTION XXXX. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the department of elementary and secondary education (the department) shall, in partnership with a Massachusetts institution of higher education, public or private, or a nonprofit research organization, or a consortium including any of the foregoing with expertise in education measurement and data privacy, conduct a feasibility study and develop recommendations for incorporating (i) student time-in-district enrollment (enrollment tenure) and (ii) enrollment stability and student mobility into statewide reporting of literacy outcomes.

(a) The department shall identify fair, accurate, and actionable methods for reporting literacy outcomes that account for enrollment tenure and mobility to account for districts serving large numbers of newly enrolled students. The reporting method shall include breakouts that display literacy proficiency and growth for (i) students recently enrolled in the reporting district and (ii) students with established enrollment, as those terms are defined by the department, to inform intervention planning and program evaluation.

(b) The department shall, in partnership with a higher education institution or organization as defined in the previous Section, consult with school districts, educators, families, and relevant stakeholder organizations in carrying out the study.

(c) The study and recommendations shall, (i) review national and state best practices for reporting outcomes for mobile and newly enrolled students; (ii) identify candidate definitions, thresholds, and calculation rules for incorporating enrollment tenure and mobility into proficiency and growth indicators, and may consider options related to time in U.S. schools and interrupted formal education where feasible;(iii) assess data availability and quality using existing student-level longitudinal and assessment data, identify any gaps, and minimize local reporting burden; (iv) analyze interpretability, comparability, equity implications, and potential unintended consequences; (v) include sample public displays and draft technical specifications (including reproducible code or algorithms) sufficient for consistent statewide generation of the recommended disaggregations; and (vi) provide estimated costs, staffing and technology needs, and a proposed timeline, including options for a voluntary pilot.

(d) Any use or sharing of student-level data under this section shall comply with applicable federal and state student privacy laws, including the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, pursuant to written agreements that limit use to the purposes of this section, require de-identification in any public release, and are consistent with the department’s cell-size suppression and disclosure-avoidance standards.

(e) The department shall design sample displays and interpretation guidance that present the breakouts described in subsection (a) side-by-side with districtwide averages and existing subgroup reporting, and shall describe how districts can use the information to: (i) identify and monitor targeted literacy interventions for newly enrolled and mobile students; (ii) evaluate core and supplemental literacy curricula for students with established enrollment; and (iii) plan staffing, scheduling, and resource allocation within multi-tiered systems of support. Specific definitions and thresholds shall be set by the department in consultation with the partner.

(f) Subject to appropriation, the department may implement the recommended approach, in whole or in part, including by conducting voluntary pilots and issuing guidance or regulations to incorporate the new disaggregated data into annual reporting and dashboards.

(g) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require districts to collect new data elements during the study period or to impose an unfunded local mandate. The department shall rely on existing data systems to the maximum extent practicable.

(h) Not later than December 31, 2026, the department shall file a final report containing its findings, recommendations, proposed technical specifications, and a budget and implementation timeline with the clerks of the senate and the house of representatives, the joint committee on education, the house and senate committees on ways and means, and the Governor, and shall post the report on the department’s website.

Additional co-sponsor(s) added to Amendment #7 to H4672

Literacy Outcomes by Enrollment Tenure & Mobility