Reference is to the bill as introduced.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by deleting all after the enacting words and inserting:
/ SECTION 1. Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 59-155-110.
There is established within the Department of Education
the South Carolina Read to Succeed Office to implement a
comprehensive, systemic approach to reading which will ensure
that:
(1) classroom teachers,
use evidence-based reading instruction in prekindergarten
through grade twelve to include oral language, phonological
awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension;
administer and interpret valid and reliable assessments; analyze
data to inform reading instruction; and provide evidence-based
interventions as needed so that all students develop proficiency
with literacy skills and comprehension;
(2) classroom teachers
periodically reassess their curriculum and instruction to
determine if they are helping each student progress as a
proficient reader and make modifications as appropriate;
(3) each student who
cannot yet comprehend grade-level texts identified and served as
early as possible and at all stages of his or her educational
process;
(4) each student
receives targeted, effective comprehension support from the
classroom teacher and, if needed, supplemental support from a
reading interventionist so that ultimately all students can
comprehend grade-level texts;
(5) each student and
his parent or guardian is continuously informed in writing
of:
(a)
the student's reading proficiency needs, progress, and
ability to comprehend and write grade-level text;
(b)
specific actions the classroom teacher and other reading
professionals have taken and will take to help the student
comprehend and write grade-level texts; and
(c)
specific actions that the parent or guardian can take to
help the student comprehend grade-level texts by providing
access to books, assuring time for the student to read
independently, reading to students, and talking with the student
about books;
(6) classroom teachers
receive preservice and in-service coursework which prepares them
to help all students comprehend grade-level text;
(7) all students
develop reading and writing proficiency to prepare them to
graduate and to succeed in career and post-secondary education;
and
(8) each school
district and each school develops and publishes annually a
comprehensive research based reading plan that includes
intervention options available to students and funding for these
services.
Section 59-155-120. As
used in this chapter:
(1) 'Department' means
the State Department of Education.
(2) 'Board' means the
State Board of Education.
(3) 'Readiness
assessment' means assessments used to analyze students'
literacy, mathematical, physical, social, and emotional
behavioral competencies in prekindergarten or kindergarten.
(4) 'Research based
formative assessment' means assessments used within the school
year to analyze the strengths and weaknesses in reading
comprehension of students individually to adapt instruction to
meet individual student needs, make decisions about appropriate
intervention services, and inform placement and instructional
planning for the next grade level.
(5) 'Summative
assessment' means state approved assessments administered in
grades three through eight and any statewide assessment used in
grades nine through twelve to determine student mastery of grade
level or content standards.
(6) 'Discipline
specific literacy' means the ability to read, write, listen, and
speak across various disciplines and content areas including,
but not limited to, English/language arts, science, mathematics,
social studies, physical education, health, the arts, and career
and technology education.
(7) 'Reading
interventions' means individual or group assistance in the
classroom and supplemental support based on curricular and
instructional decisions made by classroom teachers who have
proven effectiveness in teaching reading and an add-on literacy
endorsement or reading/literacy coaches who meet the minimum
qualifications established in guidelines published by the
Department of Education.
(8) 'Reading
proficiency' means the ability of students to meet state reading
standards in kindergarten through grade twelve, demonstrated by
readiness, formative or summative assessments.
(9) 'Reading
proficiency skills' means the ability to understand how written
language works at the word, sentence, paragraph, and text level
and mastery of the skills, strategies, and oral and written
language needed to comprehend grade appropriate texts.
(10) 'Third grade
reading proficiency' means the ability to read grade-level texts
by the end of a student's third grade year as demonstrated by
the results of state approved assessments administered to third
grade students, or through other assessments as noted in this
chapter and adopted by the board.
(11) 'Substantially
fails to demonstrate third-grade reading proficiency' means a
student who does not demonstrate reading proficiency at the end
of the third grade as indicated by scoring at the lowest
achievement level on the statewide summative reading assessment
that equates to Not Met 1 on the Palmetto Assessment of State
Standards (PASS).
(12) 'Summer reading
camp' means an educational program offered in the summer by each
local school district for students who are unable to comprehend
grade-level text.
(13) 'Reading
portfolio' means an organized collection of evidence and
assessments documenting that the student has demonstrated
mastery of the state standards in reading equal to at least a
level above the lowest achievement level on the state reading
assessment.
(14) 'Writing
proficiency skills' means the ability to communicate
information, analysis, and persuasive points of view effectively
in writing.
Section 59-155-130. The
Read to Succeed Office must guide and support districts and
collaborate with university teacher training programs to
increase reading proficiency through the following functions
including, but not limited to:
(1)
providing professional development to teachers, school
principals, and other administrative staff on reading and
writing instruction and reading assessment that informs
instruction;
(2)
providing professional development to teachers, school
principals, and other administrative staff on reading and
writing in content areas;
(3)
working collaboratively with institutions of higher
learning offering courses in reading and writing and those
institutions of higher education offering accredited master's
degrees in reading-literacy to design coursework leading to a
literacy teacher add-on endorsement by the State;
(4)
providing professional development in reading coaching for
already certified literacy coaches and literacy teachers;
(5)
developing information and resources that school districts
can use to provide workshops for parents about how they can
support their children as readers and writers;
(6)
assisting school districts in the development and
implementation of their district reading proficiency plans for
research-based reading instruction programs and to assist each
of their schools to develop its own implementation plan aligned
with the district and state plans;
(7)
annually designing content and questions for and review
and approve the reading proficiency plan of each district;
(8)
monitor and report to the State Board of Education the
yearly success rate of summer reading camps. Districts must
provide statistical data to include the:
(a)
number of students enrolled in camps;
(b)
number of students by grade level who successfully
complete the camps;
(c)
number of third-graders promoted to fourth grade;
(d)
number of third-graders retained; and
(e)
total expenditure made on operating the camps by source of
funds to include in-kind donations; and
(9)
provide an annual report to the General Assembly regarding
the implementation of the South Carolina Read to Succeed Act and
the State's and districts' progress toward ensuring that
ninety-five percent of all students are reading at grade level.
Section 59-155-140.
(A)(1) The department, with approval
by the State Board of Education, will develop, implement,
evaluate, and continuously refine a comprehensive state plan to
improve reading achievement in public schools. The State Reading
Proficiency Plan must be approved by the board by February 1,
2015, and must include, but not be limited to, sections
addressing the following components:
(a)
reading process;
(b)
professional development to increase teacher reading
expertise;
(c)
professional development to increase reading expertise and
literacy leadership of principals and assistant principals;
(d)
reading instruction;
(e)
reading assessment;
(f)
discipline specific literacy;
(g)
writing proficiency skills;
(h)
support for struggling readers;
(i)
early childhood interventions;
(j)
family support of literacy development;
(k)
district guidance and support for reading proficiency;
(l)
state guidance and support for reading proficiency;
(m)
accountability; and
(n)
urgency to improve reading proficiency.
(2)
The plan must be based on reading research and proven
effective practices, applied to the conditions prevailing in
reading-literacy education in this State, with special emphasis
on addressing instructional and institutional deficiencies that
can be remedied through faithful implementation of
research-based practices. The plan must provide standards,
format, and guidance for districts to use to develop and
annually update their plans as well as to present and explain
the research based rationale for state level actions to be
taken. The plan must be updated annually and must incorporate a
state reading proficiency progress report.
(3)
The plan must include specific details and explanations
for all substantial uses of state, local, and federal funds
promoting reading literacy and best judgment estimates of the
cost of research supported, thoroughly analyzed proposals for
initiation, expansion, or modification of major funding programs
addressing reading and writing. Analyses of funding requirements
must be prepared by the department for incorporation into the
plan.
(B)(1) Beginning in
Fiscal Year 2015-2016, each district must prepare a
comprehensive annual reading proficiency plan for
prekindergarten through twelfth grade consistent with the plan
by responding to questions and presenting specific information
and data in a format specified by the Read to Succeed Office.
Each district's PK-12 reading proficiency plan must present the
rationale and details of its blueprint for action and support at
the district, school, and classroom levels. Each district should
develop a comprehensive plan for supporting the progress of
students as readers and writers, monitoring the impact of its
plan, and using data to make improvements and to inform its plan
for the subsequent years. The model district plan piloted in
school districts in 2013-2014 and revised based on the input of
districts will be used as the initial district reading plan
template implemented in Fiscal Year 2015-2016.
(2)
Each district PK-12 reading proficiency plan shall:
(a)
document the reading and writing assessment and
instruction planned for all prekindergarten through twelfth
grade to be provided to all struggling readers who are not able
to comprehend grade-level texts. Supplemental instruction
should be provided by teachers who have a literacy teacher
add-on endorsement or by reading/literacy coaches and offered
during the school day and, as appropriate, before or after
school in book clubs, through a summer reading camp, or
both;
(b)
include a system for helping parents understand how they
can support the student as a reader at home;
(c)
provide for the monitoring of reading achievement and
growth at the classroom, school and district levels with
decisions about intervention based on all available data.
(d)
ensure that students are provided with wide selections of
texts over a wide range of genres and written on a wide range of
reading levels to match the reading levels of students;
(e)
provide teacher training in reading and writing
instruction; and
(f)
include strategically planned and developed partnerships
with county libraries, state and local arts organizations,
volunteers, social organizations and school media specialists to
promote reading.
(3)(a)
The Read to Succeed Office shall develop the format for
the plan and the deadline for districts to submit their plans to
the office for approval. A school district that does not submit
a plan or whose plan is not approved will receive no state funds
for reading until it submits a plan that is approved. All
district reading plans must be reviewed and approved by the Read
to Succeed Office. The office will provide written comments to
each district on its plan and to all districts on common issues
raised in prior or newly submitted district reading plans.
(b)
The Read to Succeed Office will monitor the district and
school plans and use their findings to inform the training and
support the office provides to districts and schools.
(c)
The Read to Succeed Office may direct a district that is
persistently unable to prepare an acceptable PK-12 reading
proficiency plan or to help all students comprehend grade-level
texts to enter into a multi district or contractual arrangement
to develop an effective intervention plan.
(C) Each school must
prepare an implementation plan aligned with the plan of its
district to enable the district to monitor and support
implementation at the school level. The school plan should be a
component of the school's strategic plan required by Section
59-18-1310. A school plan should be sufficiently detailed to
provide practical guidance for classroom teachers. Proposed
strategies for assessment, instruction, and other activities
specified in the school plan must be sufficient to provide to
classroom teachers and other instructional staff helpful
guidance that can be related to the critical reading and writing
needs of students in the school. In consultation with the School
Improvement Council, each school must include in its plan the
training and support that will be provided to parents as needed
to maximize their promotion of reading and writing by students
at home and in the community.
Section 59-155-150. (A)
The State Board of Education shall ensure
that every student entering the public schools for the first
time in prekindergarten and kindergarten will be administered a
readiness assessment by the forty-fifth day of the school year.
The assessment must assess each child's early language and
literacy development, mathematical thinking, physical wellbeing,
and social emotional development. The assessment may include
multiple assessments, all of which must be approved by the
board. The approved assessments of academic readiness must be
aligned with first and second grade standards for English
language arts and mathematics. The purpose of the assessment is
to provide teachers and parents or guardians with information to
address the readiness needs of each student, especially by
identifying language, cognitive, social, emotional, and health
problems, and concerning appropriate instruction and support for
each child. The results of the assessments and the developmental
intervention strategies recommended to address the child's
identified needs must be provided, in writing, to the parent or
guardian. Reading instructional strategies and developmental
activities for children whose oral language skills are assessed
to be below the norm for their peers in the State must be
aligned with the district's reading proficiency plan for
addressing the readiness needs of each student. The results of
each assessment also must be reported to the Read to Succeed
Office through an electronic information system.
(B) Any student
enrolled in prekindergarten, kindergarten, first grade, second
grade, or third grade who is substantially not demonstrating
proficiency in reading, based upon formal diagnostic assessments
or through teacher observations, must be provided intensive
in-class and supplemental reading intervention and immediately
upon determination. The intensive interventions must be provided
as individualized and small group assistance based on the
analysis of assessment data. All sustained interventions must be
aligned with the district's reading proficiency plan. These
interventions must be at least thirty minutes in duration and be
in addition to ninety minutes of daily reading and writing
instruction provided to all students in kindergarten through
grade three. The district must continue to provide intensive in
class intervention and at least thirty minutes of supplemental
intervention until the student can comprehend and write
grade-level text independently. In addition, the parent or
guardian of the student must be notified in writing of the
child's inability to read grade-level texts during and at the
end of the planned interventions. The results of the initial
assessments and progress monitoring also must be provided to the
Read to Succeed Office for individually identified students.
(C) Programs that focus
on early childhood literacy development in the State are
required to promote:
(1)
parent training and support for parent involvement in
developing children's literacy; and
(2)
development of oral language, print awareness, and
emergent writing; and are encouraged to promote community
literacy including, but not limited to, primary health care
providers, faith based organizations, county libraries, and
service organizations.
(3)
Districts that fail to provide reports on summer reading
camps pursuant to Section 59-15-130(8) are ineligible to receive
state funding for summer reading camps for the following fiscal
year; however, districts must continue to operate summer reading
camps as defined in this act.
Section 59-155-160. (A)
Beginning with the 2017-2018 school year, a
student must be retained in the third grade if the student fails
to demonstrate reading proficiency at the end of the third grade
as indicated by scoring at the lowest achievement level on the
state summative reading assessment that equates to Not Met 1 on
the Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (PASS). A student may
be exempt for good cause from the mandatory retention but shall
continue to receive instructional support and services and
reading intervention appropriate for their age and reading
level. Good cause exemptions include students:
(1)
with limited English proficiency and less than two years
of instruction in English as a Second Language program;
(2)
with disabilities whose individualized education plan
indicates the use of alternative assessments or alternative
reading interventions and students with disabilities whose
individual education plan or Section 504 plan reflects that the
student has received intensive remediation in reading for more
than two years but still does not substantially demonstrate
reading proficiency;
(3)
who demonstrate third grade reading proficiency on an
alternative assessment approved by the board and which teachers
may administer following the administration of the state
assessment of reading and after a student's participation in a
summer reading camp;
(4)
who have received two years of reading intervention and
were previously retained; and
(5)
who through a reading portfolio document the student's
mastery of the state standards in reading equal to at least a
level above the lowest achievement level on the state reading
assessment. Such evidence must be an organized collection of
the student's mastery of the State's English/language arts
standards that are assessed by the Grade Three state reading
assessment. The student portfolio must meet the following
criteria:
(a)
be selected by the student's English/language arts teacher
or summer reading camp instructor;
(b)
be an accurate picture of the student's ability and
include only student work that has been independently produced
in the classroom;
(c)
include evidence that the benchmarks assessed by the Grade
Three state reading assessment have been met. Evidence is to
include multiple choice items and passages that are
approximately sixty percent literary text and forty percent
information text, and that are between one hundred and seven
hundred words with an average of five hundred words. Such
evidence could include chapter or unit tests from the district's
or school's adopted core reading curriculum that are aligned
with the State English/language arts standards or
teacher-prepared assessments;
(d)
be an organized collection of evidence of the student's
mastery of the English/language arts state standards that are
assessed by the Grade Three state reading assessment. For each
benchmark, there must be at least three examples of mastery as
demonstrated by a grade of seventy percent or above; and
(e)
be signed by the teacher and the principal as an accurate
assessment of the required reading skills.
(B) The superintendent
of the local school district must determine whether a student in
the district may be exempt from the mandatory retention by
taking all of the following steps:
(1)
The teacher of a student eligible for exemption must
submit to the principal documentation on the proposed exemption
and evidence that promotion of the student is appropriate. This
evidence must be limited to the individual education program,
alternative assessments or student reading portfolio. The Read
to Succeed Office must provide districts with a standardized
form to use in the process.
(2)
The principal must review the documentation and determine
whether the student should be promoted. If the principal
determines the student should be promoted, the principal must
submit a written recommendation for promotion to the district
superintendent for final determination.
(3)
The district superintendent's acceptance or rejection of
the recommendation must be in writing and a copy must be
provided to the parent or guardian of the child.
(C) Students scoring at
the lowest achievement level on the statewide summative reading
assessment may enroll in a summer camp prior to being retained
the following school year. Summer camps must be six to eight
weeks long for four or five days each week and include at least
four hours of instructional time daily. The camps must be
taught by compensated teachers who have at least a Literacy
Endorsement add-on and who have demonstrated substantial success
in helping students comprehend grade-level texts. A parent or
guardian of a student who does not substantially demonstrate
proficiency in comprehending texts appropriate for his grade
level must make the final decision regarding the student's
participation in the summer camp. A district may offer summer
reading camps for students who are not exhibiting reading
proficiency in prekindergarten through second grade. The
district may charge fees based on a sliding scale pursuant to
Section 59-19-90. Students who demonstrate third grade reading
proficiency through an alternative assessment or student reading
portfolio after completing the summer reading camp qualify for
good cause exemptions specified in Section 59-155-160 and
promotion to the fourth grade.
(D) Retained students
must be provided intensive instructional services and supports
including a minimum of ninety minutes of daily reading and
writing instruction, supplemental instruction, and other
strategies prescribed by the school district. These strategies
may include, but are not limited to, instruction directly
focused on improving the student's individual reading
proficiency skills through small group instruction, reduced
teacher-student ratios, more frequent student progress
monitoring, tutoring or mentoring, transition classes containing
students in multiple grade spans, and extended school day, week,
or year reading support. The school must report to the Read to
Succeed Office on the progress of students in the class at the
end of the school year and at other times as required by the
office based on the reading progression monitoring requirements
of these students.
(E) If the student is
not demonstrating third-grade reading proficiency by the end of
third grade, his parent or guardian must be notified in a timely
manner and in writing, that the student will be retained unless
exempted from mandatory retention for good cause. The parent or
guardian may designate another person as an education advocate
also to act on their behalf to receive notification and to
assume the responsibility of promoting the reading success of
the child. The written notification must include a description
of the proposed reading interventions that will be provided to
help the student comprehend grade-level texts. The parent,
guardian, or other education advocate must receive written
reports at least monthly on the student's progress towards being
able to read grade-level texts based upon the student's
classroom work, observations, tests, assessment, and other
information. The parent, guardian, or other education advocate
also must be provided with a plan for promoting reading at home,
including participation in shared or guided reading workshops
for the parent, guardian, or other family members. The parent or
guardian of a retained student must be offered supplemental
tutoring for the retained student in evidenced-based services
outside the instructional day.
(F) For students in
grades four and above who are substantially not demonstrating
reading proficiency, interventions will be provided in the
classroom and supplementally by teachers with a Literacy Teacher
add-on endorsement or reading/literacy coaches. This
supplemental support will be provided during the school day and,
as appropriate, before or after school in book clubs or through
a summer reading camp.
Section 59-155-170. (A)
To help students develop and apply their
reading and writing skills across the school day in all the
academic disciplines, including, but not limited to,
English/language arts, mathematics, science, social studies,
art, career and technology education, and physical and health
education, teachers of these content areas at all grade levels
must focus on helping students comprehend print and non-print
texts authentic to the content area. The Read to Succeed
Program is intended to institutionalize in public schools a
comprehensive system to promote high achievement in the content
areas described in this chapter through extensive reading and
writing. Research-based practices must be employed to promote
comprehension skills through, but not limited to:
(1)
vocabulary;
(2)
connotation of words;
(3)
connotations of words in context with adjoining or prior
text;
(4)
concepts from prior text;
(5)
personal background knowledge;
(6)
ability to interpret meaning through sentence structure
features;
(7)
questioning;
(8)
visualization; and
(9)
discussion of text with peers.
(B) These practices
must be mastered by teachers through high quality training and
addressed through well-designed and effectively executed
assessment and instruction implemented with fidelity to
research-based instructional practices presented in the state,
district, and school reading plans. All teachers,
administrators, and support staff must be trained adequately in
reading comprehension in order to perform effectively their
roles enabling each student to become proficient in content area
reading and writing.
(C) During the
2014-2015 school year, the Read to Succeed Office will establish
a set of essential competencies that describe what certified
teachers at the early childhood, elementary, middle, or
secondary levels must know and be able to do so that all
students can comprehend grade-level texts. These competencies,
developed collaboratively with faculty of higher education
institutions and based on research and national standards, must
then be incorporated into the coursework required by Section
59-155-180. The Read to Succeed Office, in collaboration with
South Carolina Educational Television, shall provide
professional development courses to ensure that educators have
access to multiple avenues of receiving endorsements.
Section 59-155-180.
(A) As a student progresses through
school, reading comprehension in content areas such as science,
mathematics, social studies, English/language arts, career and
technology education, and the arts is critical to the student's
academic success. Therefore, to improve the academic success of
all students in prekindergarten through twelfth grade, the State
will strengthen its preservice and inservice teacher education
programs.
(B)(1) Beginning with
students entering a teacher education program in the fall
semester of the 2016-2017 school year, all pre-service teacher
education programs including Master of Arts in Teaching degree
programs must require all candidates seeking certification at
the early childhood or elementary level to complete a
twelve-credit hour sequence in literacy that includes a
school-based practicum and ensures that candidates grasp the
theory, research and practices that support and guide the
teaching of reading. The six components of the reading process
that are comprehension, oral language, phonological awareness,
phonics, fluency, and vocabulary will provide the focus for this
sequence to ensure that all teacher candidates are skilled in
diagnosing a child's reading problems and are capable of
providing effective intervention. All teacher preparation
programs must be approved for licensure by the State Department
of Education to ensure that all teacher education candidates
possess the knowledge and skills to assist effectively all
children in becoming proficient readers. The General Assembly is
not mandating an increase in the number of credit hours required
for teacher candidates, but is requiring that pre-service
teacher education programs prioritize its mission and resources
so all early and elementary education teachers have the
knowledge and skills to provide effective instruction in reading
and numeracy to all students.
(2)
Beginning with students entering a teacher education
program in the fall semester of the 2016-2017 school year, all
pre-service teacher education programs, including Master of Arts
in Teaching degree programs, must require all candidates seeking
certification at the middle or secondary level to complete a
six-credit hour sequence in literacy that includes a course in
the foundations of literacy and a course in content-area
reading. All middle and secondary teacher preparation programs
are to be approved by the Read to Succeed Office to ensure that
all teacher candidates possess the necessary knowledge and
skills to assist effectively all adolescents in becoming
proficient readers.
(C)(1) To ensure that
practicing professionals possess the knowledge and skills
necessary to assist all children and adolescents in becoming
proficient readers, multiple pathways are needed for developing
this capacity.
(2)(a)
Reading/literacy coaches employed in schools will serve as
job-embedded, stable resources for professional development
through a school to foster improving in reading instruction and
student reading achievement. Beginning in 2015-2016
reading/literacy coaches are required to earn the add-on
certification within six years by taking the courses as required
by the department for the add-on endorsement. Reading/literacy
coaches will support and provide initial and ongoing
professional development to teachers based on an analysis of
student assessment and the provision of differentiated
instruction and intensive intervention. The reading/literacy
coach will:
(i)
model effective instructional strategies for teachers;
(ii)
facilitate study groups;
(iii)
train teachers in data analysis and using data to
differentiate instruction; coaching and mentoring
colleagues;
(iv)
work with teachers to ensure that research-based reading
programs are implemented with fidelity; and
(v)
help lead and support reading leadership teams.
(b)
The reading coach must not be assigned a regular classroom
teaching assignment, must not perform administrative functions
that deter from the role of improving reading instruction and
reading performance of students.
(3)
Beginning in 2015-2016, early childhood and elementary
education certified classroom teachers, reading
interventionists, and special education teachers who provide
learning disability and speech services to students who need to
improve substantially their low reading and writing proficiency
skills are required to earn the literacy teacher add-on
endorsement within ten years of their most recent certification
by taking at least two courses or six credit hours every five
years, or the equivalent professional development hours as
determined by the South Carolina Read to Succeed Office,
consistent with existing recertification requirements. The
courses leading to the endorsement must be approved by the State
Board of Education and must include classes in foundations,
assessment, content area reading and writing, instructional
strategies, and an embedded or stand-alone practicum. Whenever
possible, these courses must be offered at a professional
development rate which is lower than the certified teacher rate.
Early childhood and elementary education certified classroom
teachers, reading specialists, and special education teachers
who provide learning disability and speech services to students
who need to improve substantially their reading and writing
proficiency and who already possess their add-on reading teacher
certification can take a content area reading course to obtain
their literacy teacher add-on endorsement. Teachers who have
earned a masters degree or doctorate degree in reading, who have
earned a literacy teacher add-on endorsement, or who have
completed an intensive, prolonged professional development
program like Reading Recovery or another program that are
approved by the State Board of Education in regulation are
exempt from this requirement.
(4)
Beginning in 2015-2016, middle and secondary certified
classroom teachers are required to take at least two courses or
six credit hours, or the equivalent professional development
hours as determined by the South Carolina Read to Succeed
Office, to improve reading instruction within five years of
their most recent certification. The courses must be approved by
the State Board of Education and include courses leading to the
literacy teacher add-on endorsement. Coursework in reading must
include a course in reading in the content areas. Whenever
possible, these courses will be offered at a professional
development rate which is lower than the certified teacher rate.
Only certified teachers who have earned a masters degree or
doctorate degree in reading, who have earned a literacy teacher
add-on endorsement, or who have completed an intensive,
prolonged professional development program like Reading Recovery
or another program as approved by the State Board of Education
in regulation are exempt from this requirement.
(5)
Beginning in 2015-2016, principals and administrators who
are responsible for reading instruction or intervention and
school psychologists in a school district or school are required
to take at least one course or three credit hours within five
years of their most recent certification or the equivalent
professional development hours as determined by the South
Carolina Read to Succeed Office. The course or professional
development must include information about reading processes,
instruction, and assessment or content area literacy and must be
approved by the Read to Succeed Office.
(6)
Beginning in 2015-2016, reading/literacy coaches are
required to earn the add-on certification within six years by
taking the courses as required by the department for the add-on.
Section 59-155-190. Local school districts are encouraged to create family school community partnerships that focus on increasing the volume of reading, in school and at home, during the year and at home and in the community over the summer. Schools and districts should partner with county libraries, community organizations, local arts organizations, faith-based institutions, pediatric and family practice medical personnel, businesses, and other groups to provide volunteers, mentors, or tutors to assist with the provision of instructional supports, services, and books that enhance reading development and proficiency. A district shall include specific actions taken to accomplish the requirements of this section in its reading proficiency plan.
Section 59-155-200. The Read to Succeed Office and each school district must plan for and act decisively to engage the families of students as full participating partners in promoting the reading and writing habits and skills of their children. With support from the Read to Succeed Office, districts and individual schools shall provide families with helpful information about how they can support this progress. This family support must include providing time for their child to read as well as reading to the child. To ensure that all families have access to a considerable number and diverse range of books appealing to their children, schools should develop plans for enhancing home libraries and for accessing books from county libraries and school libraries and to inform families about their child's ability to comprehend grade-level texts and how to interpret information about reading that is sent home. The districts and schools shall help families learn about reading and writing through home visits, open houses, South Carolina ETV, video and audio tapes, websites, and school-family events and collaborations that help link home and school. The information should enable family members to understand the reading and writing skills required for graduation and essential for success in a career.
Section 59-155-210. The board and department shall translate the statutory requirements for reading and writing specified in this act into standards, practices, and procedures for school districts, boards, and their employees and for other organizations as appropriate. In this effort they will solicit the advice of education stakeholders who have a deep understanding of reading as well as school boards, administrators, and others who play key roles in facilitating support for and implementation of effective reading instruction."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor and is subject to the availability of state funding. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.