BILL NUMBER:S2567

TITLE OF BILL:

An act directing the state department of education to place a
moratorium on the use of Test Assessing Secondary Completion (TASC)
until certain requirements are met; and to amend the state finance
law, in relation to the high school equivalency account

PURPOSE:

This bill requires the state department of education to place a
moratorium on the use of TASC until specific requirements are met.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Provides that the Commissioner of the State Education
Department will place a moratorium on the use of the Test Assessing
Secondary Completion (TASC) high school equivalency assessment until:
(1) a curriculum is developed, (2) instructors trained in the TASC
curriculum (estimated to be a 3-4 training course), (3) basic computer
and scientific calculator skills are provided to applicants, (4) fee
forgiveness is provided for applicants who paid for and took the
General Educational Development (GED) course at a SUNY community
college, and (5) a process is implemented that ensures that TASC
results will be processed and made available to the applicant within
              

sixty days of the test date.

Section 2: Amends section 97-hhh of the state finance law to authorize
the state comptroller to receive for deposit to the credit of the high
school equivalency account, fees established by the Commissioner of
Education to supplement the administration of TASC tests.

Section 3: Provides that this act shall take immediately.

JUSTIFICATION:

The GED test was first launched in 1942. It has been revised over the
years, but 2014 will be the biggest change in two generations.
Effective January 1, 2014 the GED was eliminated. The test for a "high
school equivalency diploma" will now become more difficult, cover more
disciplines, and will be aligned with Common Core.

Adult educators estimate that these changes to the high school
equivalency test mean it will take longer to prepare their students
for this crucial test. They also worry that their students, who are
already beaten down and vulnerable, will give up.

There is no debate that academic standards must be at a level that
will render New Yorkers competitive in a global society. There are 2.8
million people without a high school diploma in New York State and of
those, 1.2 million are adults. The TASC presents numerous challenges
for which educators in community colleges, BOCES, community-based
programs, cooperative extension programs and students who were in the
midst of taking courses for the GED, are completely unprepared.


Failure to lay a solid framework for the sweeping change from the GED
to the TASC, is compounded by the transition from the GED's "pen and
paper" test to the TASC's "computer based" (CBT) test. The new test,
as a consequence, will additionally require computer literacy and
scientific calculator skills on top of the new knowledge needed to
take it. Therefore, teachers preparing students to take the TASC will
need technology resources to inculcate computer skills into
individuals who may not have had any computer training in their early
education.

Furthermore, those who have taken the GED preparatory course and have
paid a fee in SUNY community colleges, estimated at $1,200 with the
expectation of taking the GED, will now need to take an additional
preparatory course for the new test. Since there will be no refund of
the fee paid for the GED test prep course, this will create an onerous
economic burden for the average student earning minimum wage.  If one
is unable to take the preparatory course again (when and if teachers
are trained), the probability of failure and disillusionment will
multiply enormously.

Traditionally, students who have been prepared by BOCES, school
districts, community colleges and community based programs have had a
23% higher success ratio than students who have walked into the test
without being prepared. The inability of large numbers of people to be
able to afford a duplicate test preparation class, and the lack of
individuals/teachers trained to lead test preparatory courses, makes
it strongly likely the passage rate will drop precipitously. It is
obvious therefore that the State has a compelling interest in funding
the preparatory class for those students who have already paid for the
abruptly eliminated GED, and for those students who will need a
preparatory class to succeed. The investment in ensuring the success
of the TASC will be returned to the State, as studies have shown that
for every individual who attains a high school equivalency degree
there is a benefit to their home municipality of $325,000 in increased
tax contributions over the lifetime of the student.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2013-2014: S.6896 - Referred to Finance

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

This act shall take effect immediately.