{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-158.860","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 158.860","heading":"Examination upon completion of core content course.","body":"(1) As used in this section:\n(a) \"Core course\" means any course offered in the middle grades or high school\ngrades that is a specific high school graduation requirement or a course that\nmay be used to fulfill a minimum graduation requirement in the content are as\nof language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies as specified in\nadministrative regulation promulgated by the Kentucky Board of Education\nunder the provisions of KRS 156.160; and\n(b) \"End-of-course examination\" or \"end -of-course exam\" means a test that\nmeasures a student's knowledge and skills upon completion of a core content\ncourse.\n(2) The Kentucky Department of Education shall coordinate the development of end -\nof-course exams.\n(a) The development process shall initially include end -of-course exams for\nAlgebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry.\n(b) Content teachers in the core courses, postsecondary faculty including subject\nmatter specialists as well as teacher educators, curriculum specialists, and\nother appropriate practitioners shall be involve d in the development and\nreview of items for the exams. Content teachers shall comprise the majority of\nthe developers and reviewers of the test items.\n(c) The department shall ensure that each end-of-course exam:\n1. Aligns with the standards, content, goa ls, and academic expectations\nrelevant to the course;\n2. Requires student demonstration of knowledge, comprehension,\napplication, and higher order cognitive skills;\n3. Provides reliable and valid test items;\n4. Is available to schools in an on -line format if resources are available;\nand\n5. Provides individual student scores; test item analyses; aggregate\ncomparisons of student data at the school, district, and state levels; and\ndisaggregated data by student subpopulations at the school district and\nstate levels.\n(d) The department shall make available a parallel form for each exam.\n(e) The initial end -of-course exam developed as required in paragraph (a) of this\nsubsection shall be available and piloted in selected school districts no later\nthan the end of the 2007-2008 school year.\n(3) The department may contract for services as deemed necessary to fulfill its duties\nunder this section.\n(4) The Kentucky Department of Education shall conduct a study of the end -of-course\nexaminations and the processes used during the pilot of the exams.\n(a) Following the initial use of the end -of-course exams in Algebra 1, Algebra II,\nand Geometry, the department, with assistance from the developers identified\nin subsection (2)(b) of this section, shall determine whether the exams meet\nthe requirements in subsection (2)(c) of this section. The determination  shall\nbe based on an analysis of individual test items, analyses of student results on\nthe exams, pilot teachers' input, and review of other data gathered during the\npilot year.\n(b) The department shall consult with the Education Assessment and\nAccountability Review Subcommittee, the National Technical Advisory Panel\non Assessment and Accountability, and the School Curriculum, Assessment,\nand Accountability Council regarding the implications for statewide\nimplementation and shall advise the Kentucky Board of Education of its\nfindings and recommendations.\n(c) Following the consultations and discussions required in paragraphs (a) and (b)\nof this subsection, the commissioner of education shall report the findings of\nthe pilot project and policy options to the Interim Joint Committee on\nEducation.\n(5) End-of-course exams in the pilot period shall not be used as a criterion for formally\nevaluating or compensating teachers. Student results may be discussed during the\nformative evaluation stage in compliance with KRS 156.557.\n(6) The department shall develop the test procedures, including testing\naccommodations for students with special needs, retest provisions, reporting\nrequirements, and other procedures as necessary to implement the provisions of this\nsection.\n(7) A teacher shall use a student's score on any end-of-course exam that is administered\nin calculating the student's final grade in accordance with policies of the local board\nof education and the school-based decision making council.\n(8) The commissioner o f education or a designee shall provide a written status report\nregarding implementation of this section to the Interim Joint Committee on\nEducation and the Education Assessment and Accountability Review Subcommittee\nby December 1, 2007, and July 1, 2008.\n(9) The Kentucky Department of Education and local school districts shall use end -of-\ncourse exams to promote increased student accountability. The department and local\nschool districts shall also use test results to determine the need for technical\nassistance, professional development, and other resources to improve instruction.","path":["KRS Chapter 158"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=3625","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:51:06Z","sha256":"9aef620c7e2029a31b93f1cf4c39e18f8a640a1ef321da4cc1195f75a9bcecc6","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-158.856","next":"us-ky/krs-158.865"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}