BILL NUMBER: S5228

SPONSOR: PARKER
 
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 morato-
rium on the use of TASC until specific requirements are met.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Provides that the Commissioner of the State Education Depart-
ment 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.  Effec-
tive January 1, 2014 the GED was eliminated. The test for a "high school
equivalency diploma" will now become more difficult, cover more disci-
plines, 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. There-
fore, 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 prepara-
tory 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 bene-
fit to their home municipality of $325,000 in increased tax contrib-
utions over the lifetime of the student.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2019-20:S.4881- Referred to Elections

2017-18:S.2805- REFERRED TO ELECTIONS

2015-16:S.2567- Referred to Finance

2013-2014: S.6896 - Referred to Finance

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.