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2001 SESSION

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HB 2831 Standards of Quality; diploma requirements.

Introduced by: John S. (Jack) Reid | all patrons    ...    notes | add to my profiles

SUMMARY AS PASSED HOUSE: (all summaries)

Standards of Quality; diploma requirements. Directs the Board of Education, in establishing diploma requirements, to require multiple criteria through the accumulation of standard and verified units of credit. Standard units of credit shall be awarded upon (i) the successful completion of the 140-hour class and any projects, portfolios, writing assignments, demonstrations, homework, classroom tests, reports, and teacher evaluations as prescribed by the local school board or individual school; or (ii) without completing the 140-hour class, upon demonstration of mastery of the course content and objectives, as may be permitted by the division superintendent as currently provided in Standard 3.

Verified units of credit shall be awarded upon earning the standard unit of credit and obtaining a passing score on the relevant Standards of Learning assessment or other objective measure of student achievement approved by the Board of Education for such purpose. For the purpose of meeting the combined credit requirements for a high school diploma, standard and verified units shall have the same numeric value. Standard units of credit shall comprise at least 70 percent of the combined required credits, and verified units shall comprise no more than 30 percent of such combined credits.

No student shall be denied a diploma based solely on the failure to achieve a passing score on the single administration of an assessment approved for the award of a verified unit of credit. The Board shall provide, by regulation, for multiple opportunities for students to retake such failed assessments and for alternative forms of assessment for those courses for which verified units of credits are required.

In addition, a second enactment clause provides that, applicable only to students enrolled in grades six through nine in the 2000-2001 school year, the Board will establish guidelines for local school boards to provide for additional criteria to determine the award of a verified unit of credit. Such guidelines shall be designed to ensure consistency and fairness in the selection and administration of any such additional criteria. The issuance of such guidelines shall be exempt from the provisions of the Administrative Process Act, except that the Board shall provide for public review and comment.

Currently, the Standards of Accreditation (SOA) require 22 standard units of credit, with six verified units of credit, for a Standard Diploma; 24 standard units of credit, with nine verified units of credit, for an Advanced Studies Diploma; and 20 standard units of credit for a Modified Standard Diploma (8 VAC 20-131-50).


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