2004 Senate Bill 1153 (Replace MEAP test with nationally recognized test )

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Public Act 596 of 2004

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Introduced by Sen. Wayne Kuipers (R) on April 21, 2004, to replace the Michigan Education Assessment Program test (MEAP) given to high school juniors with a nationally recognized academic achievement or vocational test, such as the ACT or the ACT WorkKeys test. Students would also be given a separate social studies test, since ACT does not cover this subject .
- Referred to the Senate Education Committee on April 21, 2004.
  - Reported in the Senate on November 9, 2004, with the recommendation that the substitute (S-1) be adopted and that the bill then pass.
- Substitute offered in the Senate on November 9, 2004, to replace the previous version of the bill with one that would also require schools to include on high school transcripts the pupil's scaled score on each subject area of the test and the pupil's attendance record.
Passed in the Senate (35 to 1) on November 10, 2004, to replace the Michigan Education Assessment Program test (MEAP) given to high school juniors with a new Michigan Merit Examination, which would be nationally recognized academic achievement or vocational test, such as the ACT or the ACT WorkKeys test, with a separate social studies test, which the ACT does not include. Schools would be required to include on high school transcripts a pupil's scaled score on each subject area of the test and the pupil's attendance record. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the House on November 10, 2004.
- Referred to the House Education Committee on November 10, 2004.
- Substitute offered by Rep. Brian Palmer (R) on December 8, 2004, to replace the previous version of the bill with one that also transfers administration of the "Freedom to Learn program," which gives laptop computers to some middle school students, from the "Michigan Virtual University" to Ferris State University. The substitute also revises some details but does not change the substance of the bill as previously described. The substitute passed in the House by voice vote on December 8, 2004.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Mike Nofs (R) on December 8, 2004, to clarify that the House version of the bill requires a social studies test. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on December 8, 2004.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Brian Palmer (R) on December 8, 2004, to require social studies test questions be factually accurate, and require the state superintendent of public instruction to remove them if they are not. Note: The MEAP social studies test has been highly controversial in the past because of percieved "political correctness," allegations of "attitudes assessment," and more. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on December 8, 2004.
Passed in the House (99 to 10) on December 8, 2004, to replace the Michigan Education Assessment Program test (MEAP) given to high school juniors with a new Michigan Merit Examination, which would be nationally recognized academic achievement or vocational test, such as the ACT or the ACT WorkKeys test, with a separate social studies test, which the ACT does not include. Schools would be required to include on high school transcripts a pupil's scaled score on each subject area of the test and the pupil's attendance record. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the Senate on December 9, 2004, to concur with the House-passed version of the bill. Passed in the Senate (35 to 1) on December 9, 2004. [Vote Details and Comments]
Signed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm on January 5, 2005.

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1) Couple of points . . . [by Anonymous Citizen on January 7, 2005]
Mike H wrote:

>”We do need to test students on US government, especially what is meant by the 9th & 10th amendments. . . .”<

It would be hard to disagree that students -- and perhaps citizens in general -- should seriously study the US Constitution. If we’re going to single out important articles and passages, though, some particular attention also should be given to Article V, which provides for amending the Constitution. I would say that several amendments -- most notably the 14th and including the 15th, 19th, 24th and 26th -- speak to issues raised in the 9th and 10th amendments (articles 9 and 10 in the Bill of Rights).

The real point is that the Constitution ought to be studied in its entirety and not just cherry-picked to find provisions that suit our particular views of things.

Then . . .

>”In fact, the idea of federally or even state controlled education would blow the founding fathers minds. Education was for parents, or maybe the town to take care of.”<

I probably agree with this. Given the chance to vote on the concept of local education a decade or so ago, though, Michigan residents overwhelmingly elected to shift control over education out of their local communities and move it to the state level. How? By approving Proposal A.

Of course, dumping the MEAPs in favor of a “nationally recognized test” (which SB 1153 proposes) is not exactly the same thing as extending federal control over education. The MEAPs are “nationally recognized” tests, designed to gauge and challenge all students. This legislation only opens the door to bringing in the nationally *used* ACT and adding a social studies component to it (which the MEAP system already has). The primary effect most likely would be added frustration for public school educators by once again changing the yardstick against which their schools’ performance is to be measured.
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2) Federal Control of Education [by Mike Hignite on January 6, 2005]
... has already happened long before this test.

We do need to test students on US government, especially what is meant by the 9th & 10th amendments. I'd dump the silly Michigan curriculum benchmarks in economics (outdated by 30 years) and government (all PC) and replace it with "The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History," by Thomas E. Woods Jr.

For example, our curriculum postulates a historical core American value of "diversity". The value of "diversity" certainly was not valued before the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The closest value Americans have held historically is "tolerance". The American core value of tolerance insists that the federal government not pass laws restricting the actions of one race vs. another. The pretend value of diversity attempts to justify forcing Christianity out of schools, forced violation of the American core value of "freedom of association" and strange judicial activism cures like forced busing.

In fact, the idea of federally or even state controlled education would blow the founding fathers minds. Education was for parents, or maybe the town to take care of.
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3) ACT TEST ? Republican Control? [by Anonymous Citizen on November 12, 2004]

In 2003, Michigan had 69% of graduates tested with an Average Composite Score: 21.3

Percent of ACT-Tested Seniors Reporting Core Curriculum, 1993–2003 in 2003 61.9
The national average composite score on the ACT remained at 20.8 in 2003. A record number of nearly 1.2 million graduates took the exam—40 percent of all graduating seniors nationally.

The results, however, indicate that many graduates have not mastered the skills they need to be ready for first-year science and math courses that count toward a college degree. Only a fourth (26%) of 2003 graduates earned a score of 24 or higher on the ACT Science Test, while just four in ten earned a score of 22 or higher on the ACT Math Test. ACT research has shown that students who attain these college readiness benchmarks are more likely than others to be ready for college biology and algebra courses, respectively. These students have a high probability of completing these first-year courses with a grade of C or higher.

In comparison, the large majority (67%) of students received a score of 18 or higher on the ACT English Test, indicating they likely have the skills necessary to be ready for college English composition classes.

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