SB1259 - 502R

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Title 15, chapter 8, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 15-808.01, to read:

START_STATUTE15-808.01. Online courses; standards; requirements; funding

A. Beginning July 1, 2013, school districts shall allow each pupil in grades seven through twelve, as part of the pupil's regular course load, to enroll in up to two online courses each academic year pursuant to this section. In school years 2013‑2014 and 2014‑2015, the state board of education shall limit the approved category of online courses to courses that award potential college credits and core academic courses. Core academic courses shall be aligned to common core standards. Beginning in school year 2015‑2016, the state board of education may expand the approved category of online courses to include specified elective courses. Pupils must be enrolled in a school district in this state in order to take online courses offered pursuant to this section.

B. The department of education or an organization selected by the department shall maintain a master list of online courses that are approved by the state board of education. The master list shall be prominently displayed on the website maintained by the department of education. The state board of education may charge a fee to online course providers that submit applications for inclusion on the master list of approved online courses. School districts, charter schools, nonprofit organizations, for‑profit organizations and open education resource providers may submit applications for courses to the state board of education for inclusion on the master list of approved online courses. The state board of education shall adopt criteria to ensure the quality and effectiveness of the approved online courses. The state board of education may enter into reciprocity agreements with other states or with public or private organizations to provide assistance to the state board in the review of online courses. For school years 2013‑2014 through 2018‑2019, The department of education shall automatically approve online course providers that have previously provided instruction pursuant to section 15‑808. Beginning in school year 2019‑2020, online course providers that have previously provided instruction pursuant to section 15‑808 shall submit an application to the state board of education for approval of their courses to remain on the master list.

C. A pupil who wishes to enroll in an online course pursuant to this section shall select an online course from the master list of approved online courses maintained by the department of education. On or before March 15, the pupil shall notify the school district where the pupil is enrolled of the online courses in which the pupil will enroll during the following school year and shall provide the name of the approved online course provider. A school district may waive the notification prescribed in this subsection if it is in the best interest of the pupil. The online course provider shall notify the school district where the pupil is enrolled within thirty days after the enrollment of that pupil in an online course.

D. At the time an online course provider submits an application to the state board of education for inclusion on the master list of approved online courses, the online course provider shall also provide to the state board of education the price that will be charged to enroll a pupil in the online course in this state. The price of the online course shall not be listed on the master list provided to pupils and parents but shall be available to school districts in this state. For school year 2013‑2014, the maximum price for an online course that is included on the master list is seven hundred dollars. Beginning in school year 2014‑2015, the state board of education shall annually adjust the maximum price for an online course in accordance with a nationally recognized inflationary index selected by the state board.

E. The funding for each online course shall be equivalent to the total state and local funding that would otherwise have been allocated to the school district if that pupil had taken a course in the same subject matter at a physical location in the school district. A school district shall distribute thirty‑five per cent of the funding for the online course to the online course provider on the thirtieth day of the pupil's enrollment in the online course. The school district shall distribute fifty per cent of the funding for the online course to the online course provider when the pupil completes the online course with a grade of C minus or better, or the equivalent. The school district shall distribute the remaining fifteen per cent of the funding for the online course to the online course provider when the pupil has demonstrated mastery of the subject matter of the online course through an assessment approved by the department of education. Notwithstanding the two-course limitation prescribed in subsection A of this section, If the pupil has demonstrated mastery of the subject matter on the assessment associated with that course, the pupil may enroll in a different online course during the same academic year even if the pupil has already enrolled in two online courses during that academic year. For the purposes of this subsection, "demonstrated mastery" means that the pupil obtains one of the following:

1. A grade of A or B, or the equivalent, on an end-of-course assessment. The state board of education may require that a specific end‑of‑course assessment be used to demonstrate mastery pursuant to this paragraph. For the purposes of this paragraph:

(a) "A" means a score of at least ninety-two per cent on a one hundred point scale.

(b) "B" means a score of at least eighty-two per cent on a one hundred point scale.

2. If the online course awards potential college credits, a score that grants college credit on the final examination.

F. The state board of education shall select and enter into an agreement with an independent organization, which shall:

1. Collect and analyze feedback from pupils, parents and school districts about the online course. The feedback collected shall be shared with the online course provider, and the aggregated feedback data shall be incorporated into the master list to enable pupils and parents to evaluate the potential effectiveness of specific online courses.

2. Review passing rates, completion rates, state test scores and dropout rates for individual online courses and individual online course providers.

3. Develop a ranking system to identify and award higher rankings to the online courses that are:

(a) most effective for specific demographic and socioeconomic groups of pupils and for pupils with varied language capabilities.

(b) Taught by certificated teachers.

4. Develop a methodology to allow online course providers to provide feedback to the private organization.

5. Develop a process to allow online course providers to challenge or explain the feedback submitted pursuant to paragraph 1 of this subsection.

G. The state board of education shall adopt policies and procedures to ensure that the collection, analysis and sharing of data with the independent organization selected pursuant to subsection F of this section comply with state and federal requirements under the family educational rights and privacy act.

H. In addition to the funding provided pursuant to subsection E of this section, the state board of education may charge the online course provider a fee, which shall be distributed as follows:

1. one‑third to the school district where the pupil is enrolled.

2. One‑third to the department of education to maintain and operate the master list of online course providers.

3. One‑third to the independent organization selected by the state board of education pursuant to subsection F of this section for the costs associated with the duties prescribed in subsection F of this section.

I. The state board of education shall establish a process to remove from the master list:

1. Online courses that consistently rank near the bottom of the ranking system prescribed in subsection F, paragraph 3 of this section.

2. All online courses provided by online course providers that consistently rank near the bottom of the ranking system prescribed in subsection F, paragraph 3 of this section.

J. The midterm and final examinations for each online course shall be monitored by a nonfamily member who shall be physically in the same room with the pupil during the entire examination.

K. Notwithstanding any other law, a teacher of record is not required for an online course offered pursuant to this section. END_STATUTE