This bill renames the "Tennessee Literacy Initiative Act of 1999" as the "Tennessee Literacy Success Act" and makes various changes to present education law concerning literacy education.
This bill defines "foundational literacy skills" to mean phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. This bill requires each LEA and public charter school to provide foundational literacy skills instruction to students in kindergarten through grade three. Foundational literacy skills instruction must be the LEA's primary form of instructional programming in English language arts.
READING SCREENERS
This bill requires each LEA and public charter school to provide reading interventions and supports designed to improve a student's foundational literacy skills to each student identified as having a significant reading deficiency. For students in kindergarten through grade three, "significant reading deficiency" means that a student's score on a uniform tool that screens and monitors a student's progress in foundational literacy skills (a "universal reading screener") is within the range of scores determined by the department of education (the "department") to demonstrate a lack of proficiency in foundational literacy skills.
This bill requires each LEA and public charter school to annually administer a universal reading screener to each student in kindergarten through grade three during each of the three administration windows established by the department. This bill requires the department to provide a Tennessee universal reading screener at no cost to LEAs and public charter schools. The Tennessee universal reading screener must be grade appropriate and may be used to comply with other student screening requirements, such as dyslexia screening.
This bill authorizes each LEA or public charter school to choose to administer the Tennessee universal reading screener or a universal reading screener approved by the state board of education (the "state board"). The department will determine reading proficiency level scores for all screeners, whether the Tennessee universal reading screener or another universal reading screener that is approved by the state board.
This bill authorizes, but does not require, LEAs and public charter schools to administer a universal reading screener to pre-kindergarten students.
This bill prohibits the use of universal reading screeners' results to assign accountability determinations for an LEA or school.
This bill requires each LEA and public charter school to submit the results of each universal reading screener administered to students to the department.
For any student in kindergarten through grade three who is determined to have a significant reading deficiency, based on the results of the universal reading screener most recently administered to the student, this bill requires the LEA or public charter school to notify the student's parent in writing. The notification must include a description of interventions and supports that are available to the parent and the student.
STUDENTS IN GRADES FOUR AND FIVE
For students in grades four or five, a "significant reading deficiency" is indicated by a score below proficient in English language arts on the TCAP test most recently administered to the student.
HOME LITERACY REPORTS
This bill requires each LEA or public charter school to provide at least one report to a student's parent describing the student's progress in foundational literacy skills (a "home literacy report"):
(1) After each administration of a universal reading screener to a student in grades kindergarten through three identified as having a significant reading deficiency; and
(2) Each school year for a student in grade four or five identified as having a significant reading deficiency.
FOUNDATIONAL LITERACY SKILLS PLANS
This bill requires each LEA and public charter school to develop, and submit to the department for approval, a proposal that details how the LEA or school plans to provide foundational literacy skills instruction to students and reading interventions and supports (a "foundational literacy skills plan"). The full text of this bill specifies six components that each foundational literacy skills plan must include. Generally, this bill requires all LEAs and public charter schools to submit an initial foundational literacy skills plan by June 1, 2021, and a revised plan each three years thereafter. The frequency with which submission of revised plans must be submitted may be lessened for LEAs and schools that demonstrate particular literacy attainment levels for fourth grade English language arts of "above expectations" or "significantly above expectations." The frequency with which submission of revised plans must be submitted may be increased for LEAs and schools that demonstrate particular literacy attainment levels for fourth grade English language arts of "below expectations" or "significantly below expectations."
This bill requires LEAs and public charter schools to post their foundational literacy skills plans on their websites.
This bill requires the state board, in consultation with the department, to promulgate rules to establish additional guidelines and requirements for foundational literacy skills plans. Any emergency rules promulgated pursuant to this bill must be submitted to the chair of the government operations committees of the senate and house of representatives at least 24 hours prior to filing the rules with the secretary of state.
This bill requires the comptroller of the treasury to review the foundational literacy skills plans submitted to the department for approval to ensure the plans comply with the requirements of this bill and the state board's rules. The comptroller must submit a report detailing the findings of the review to the chairs of the education committees of the senate and house of representatives no later than November 1, 2021, and by each November 1 thereafter.
This bill prohibits LEAs and public charter schools from using instructional materials created to align with common core academic standards in implementing the requirements of this bill concerning foundational literacy skills plans.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
This bill requires the department to develop at least one professional development course on foundational literacy skills instruction that is available, at no cost, to teachers in kindergarten through grade five that may be used by teachers to earn professional development points. By August 1, 2023, teachers in kindergarten through grade five will be required to complete at least one professional development course on foundational literacy skills instruction approved by the department. This bill requires LEAs and public charter schools to approve professional development points for at least one department-approved literacy-based training completed by a teacher.
By August 1, 2022, this bill requires the department to develop a foundational literacy skills instruction course and accompanying instructional materials that may be used by high school students participating in a teaching-as-a-profession career pathway developed or facilitated by the department.
TEXTBOOKS
Present law requires the state textbook and instructional commission to prepare a list of standard editions of textbooks and instructional materials that cover a complete program of study for approval by the state board for use in the public schools of the state. Present law generally prohibits public school teachers and principals from using textbooks and instructional materials upon any subject to the exclusion of the textbooks and instructional materials listed by the commission. Present law authorizes LEAs to apply to the state board for a waiver to permit the use of unapproved books or instructional materials based on the unique or unusual needs of the school system.
This bill specifies that each LEA and public charter school must adopt and use English language arts textbooks and instructional materials from the list approved for adoption by the state board, unless a waiver is granted to the LEA or school.
LEAs and public charter schools using English language arts textbooks or instructional materials from the list approved for adoption by the state board in 2019, or that received a waiver, will not immediately be required to adopt or purchase additional English language arts textbooks or instructional materials to comply with this bill. However, this bill requires that all English language arts textbooks and instructional materials be aligned to Tennessee's academic standards no later than January 1, 2023. This bill requires the comptroller of the treasury to review the English language arts textbooks and instructional materials adopted for use by each LEA and public charter school to ensure compliance with this bill and submit a report to the education committees of the senate and house of representatives no later than May 1, 2023.
ADDITIONAL REPORTS
This bill requires the department to provide a report to the chairs of the education committees of the senate and the house of representatives regarding the implementation of this bill by July 1, 2024.
This bill also requires the department to review literacy in Tennessee, literacy instruction, and the cost of teacher education. The department must produce a report of its review by March 1, 2022.
TEACHER TRAINING
By July 31, 2021, this bill requires the department to develop and submit to the state board for approval, foundational literacy skills standards for use by all educator preparation providers:
(1) For the instruction of candidates seeking a license to teach students in kindergarten through grade three; and
(2) In instructional leadership specialty area programs for the instruction of candidates seeking an instructional leader license.
The full text of this bill specifies several components that the foundational literacy skills standards must include.
Beginning August 1, 2022, this bill requires educator preparation providers to provide to candidates seeking licensure to teach students in kindergarten through grade three, as well as candidates seeking an instructional leader license, training on reading instruction focused primarily on the foundational literacy skills standards.
Beginning August 1, 2023, candidates seeking initial licensure, or an endorsement, advancement, or renewal of existing licensure, to teach students in kindergarten through grade three or as an instructional leader will be required to either:
(1) Provide a certificate documenting the candidate's passage of a Tennessee reading instruction test developed or identified by the department and approved by the state board that tests the candidate's knowledge of foundational literacy skills instruction. The department will recommend to the state board for approval, the score that constitutes passage of the test. Also, the department will provide the test at no cost to the candidate or educator preparation provider; or
(2) Provide evidence documenting the candidate's completion of a foundational literacy skills instruction course within the previous year.
EVALUATION
Present law requires LEAs to use at least one appropriate alternative growth model that has been approved by the state board in order to provide individual growth scores to teachers in non-tested grades and subjects.
Beginning with the 2021-2022 school year, this bill authorizes LEAs and public charter schools to authorize teachers in the non-tested grades pre-kindergarten through two to use the results of the Tennessee universal reading screener or a universal reading screener approved by the state board, as an approved alternative growth model to generate individual growth scores for teachers pursuant to the evaluation guidelines developed by the department. This bill prohibits the department from basing the reading screener used to evaluate teachers on the pre-k/kindergarten portfolio growth model.
ON JANUARY 21, 2021, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 7003, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT #1 adds a requirement that the department of education post the foundational literacy skills plan approved for each LEA and public charter school on the department's website.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 39-17-1313