[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 127 (Tuesday, September 16, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11570-S11571]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BINGAMAN:
  S. 1620. A bill to condition the implementation of assessment 
procedures in connection with the Head Start National Reporting System 
on Child Outcomes, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Head Start 
Assessment Act of 2003. The purpose of this Act is to ensure that the 
full-scale implementation of the Head Start National Reporting System 
takes place after there has been ample opportunity for expert and 
public commentary on the assessment, Congressional oversight hearings 
have been held, and the National Academies have completed a study of 
this issue to ensure that the assessment is reliable and appropriate.
  Currently, children in Head Start are assessed 3 times a year on all 
of the domains of early learning and development, including literacy 
and math. The National Reporting System (NRS) is an assessment 
developed by HHS, which would create an additional test for all 4-year 
olds in Head Start, roughly \1/2\ million children, on literacy and 
math skills only. Children would be assessed twice a year and according 
to Administration documents, changes over time in children's scores 
would be used to judge the success of individual Head Start programs. 
The new testing program is expected to cost about $20 million each 
year. Some pilot testing was begun in April and May of 2003 and HHS 
expects to begin full implementation of the NRS this fall.
  The purpose of the bill that I am introducing today is not to 
undermine this assessment, or to oppose assessment, but to make sure 
that it is done correctly. As you know, I have a long history of 
supporting accountability for educational programs. Assessments are 
important tools for accountability. They can be used to benefit 
teachers and students and to raise the bar for all educational 
programs. That being said, a good assessment takes time to develop and 
the measures and procedures that are used must be thoroughly debated 
and discussed. I have grave concerns about the speed with which the NRS 
was developed as well as with the opacity of the process by which HHS 
has proceeded to date.
  Assessing young children is notoriously difficult. They are not used 
to taking tests and often do not have the emotional maturity to sit 
still and focus on the task at hand. Their test scores tend to 
fluctuate across time and can reflect many factors unrelated to their 
skills. The National Academy of Sciences report, ``Eager to Learn: 
Educating Our Preschoolers'' made it clear that more research on 
assessing young children is needed before such assessments should be 
used for accountability purposes. Because of this, it is crucial that 
the assessment instruments to be used in the NRS are properly validated 
and deemed to be appropriate for 4-year old children. At this point, we 
have little information about exactly what those instruments are and 
HHS has not made available the results of pilot tests or the comments 
made by experts on the content of the assessment.
  To my mind, the speed with which this assessment was rolled out makes 
it unlikely that the measures have been properly developed and tested. 
It has also become clear that the assessment targets only a few of the 
skills that Head Start seeks to instill in children. For example, 
social skills are not being assessed and it is clear that without them, 
children are simply not ready to learn.
  It is also very important that sufficient time be taken to insure 
that English language learners are not put at a disadvantage by being 
given a test that is not appropriate for them. The test is in English 
and Spanish, and yet many Head Start children speak Asian or other 
languages. In my home State of New Mexico, for example, I have heard 
from Native American Head Start Directors who are concerned that the 
NRS, in its current form, is not appropriate for their students, who 
often do not speak English in the home. We should take the time to 
insure that the assessment tool that is ultimately used is valid and 
reliable, assesses the gamut of skills that children acquire in Head 
Start, and is appropriate for children from a wide variety of cultural 
backgrounds.
  It is also crucial that throughout the process of developing these 
instruments, there is ample consultation both with the public and with 
experts in early childhood development and research methodology. The 
results of these consultations and decisions regarding the NRS should 
be made public. Although HHS claims that they have had many meetings 
with ``experts'', there is little or no information publicly available 
that clarifies what went on at these meetings, what decisions were 
reached, and whether the advice of the experts was or was not heeded in 
developing the NRS. To date, there has been no Congressional oversight 
or public task force convened. Development of an assessment tool as 
important as this one should not occur behind closed doors. Congress 
and the public have a right to participate in and comment on this 
process.
  My bill would help to insure that the NRS is developed in the proper 
fashion. The Secretary of HHS would be required to halt the full-scale 
implementation of the NRS until such time as Congressional oversight 
hearings have been held, the Secretary has concluded public forums on 
this issue, and the National Academy of Sciences has conducted a study 
using a panel of nationally recognized experts in early childhood 
assessment, child development, and education. The NAS study would 
provide specific information regarding: a. the skills and competencies 
that are predictive of school readiness and academic success in young 
children, b. the

[[Page S11571]]

development, selection, and use of instruments to assess literacy, 
mathematical, emotional and social skills as well as health and 
physical well-being young children, c. the proper use of early 
childhood assessments to improve Head Start programs and d. the steps 
needed to ensure that assessments take into account the racial, 
cultural, and linguistic diversity of Head Start students, among other 
things.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Head Start is the flagship 
educational program for low-income children. Studies clearly show that 
children who attend Head Start programs show gains in their cognitive 
and social skills, but we also know that more can and should be done 
for this vulnerable population. Assessments can be an important means 
to insure that quality is maintained in each Head Start program, but 
poorly developed or implemented assessments can do more harm than good. 
Let's take our time, consult with the experts and the public, and come 
up with a National Reporting System that we can all be proud of.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1620

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Head Start Assessment Act of 
     2003''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) When used appropriately, valid and reliable assessments 
     can be of positive value for improving instruction and 
     supporting development of young children.
       (2) According to the National Academy of Sciences report, 
     Eager to Learn: Educating Our Preschoolers, assessment of 
     children below school age is in ``flux'' and ``all 
     assessments, and particularly assessments for accountability, 
     must be used carefully and appropriately if they are to 
     resolve, and not create, educational problems.''
       (3) The Eager to Learn report emphasized that the intended 
     purpose and use of the data to be derived from assessments 
     should be considered in determining which assessment 
     instruments and procedures are most appropriate.
       (4) The National Academy of Sciences reports that few early 
     childhood educators and administrators are well-trained in 
     the selection and appropriate use of assessments for young 
     children.
       (5) According to the National Academy of Sciences report, 
     From Neurons to Neighborhoods, the emotional and social 
     development of young children is as critical to school 
     readiness as language and cognitive development.
       (6) The Head Start Act currently requires programs to 
     assess children in Head Start a minimum of three times a year 
     against certain performance standards, which include all 
     domains of the development and learning of children.
       (7) The proposed Head Start National Reporting System on 
     Child Outcomes assessment is not reflective of the full range 
     of skills and competencies that the National Academy of 
     Sciences reports state children require to succeed, and it 
     has not been thoroughly debated by those groups associated 
     with Head Start, including early childhood development and 
     assessment experts, early childhood educators and 
     administrators, family members of children participating in 
     Head Start, or Congress.

     SEC. 3. DELAYED IMPLEMENTATION OF ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES IN 
                   CONNECTION WITH THE HEAD START NATIONAL 
                   REPORTING SYSTEM ON CHILD OUTCOMES.

       (a) Satisfaction of Conditions.--The Secretary of Health 
     and Human Services shall not proceed with the full-scale 
     implementation of the Head Start National Reporting System on 
     Child Outcomes, as described in the project proposal (68 Fed. 
     Reg. 17815; relating to Implementation of the Head Start 
     National Reporting System on Child Outcomes), until the 
     Secretary certifies to Congress that the following conditions 
     have been satisfied:
       (1) Oversight hearings.--Congressional oversight hearings 
     have been concluded concerning the development and 
     implementation of the Head Start National Reporting System on 
     Child Outcomes.
       (2) Public forums.--The Secretary has concluded, consistent 
     with the requirements of subsection (b), public forums in 
     different regions of the United States, and provided an 
     opportunity for written public comments, concerning early 
     childhood assessment proposals.
       (3) Study on early childhood assessments.--The Secretary 
     has submitted, consistent with subsection (c), to Congress a 
     study of early childhood assessments focusing on improving 
     accountability, instruction, and the delivery of services. 
     The Secretary shall request the National Academy of Sciences 
     to prepare the study using a panel of nationally recognized 
     experts in early childhood assessment, child development, and 
     education.
       (4) Availability of funds.--Without reducing the number of 
     students served by Head Start, sufficient funds are available 
     to--
       (A) develop and implement any new Head Start assessments; 
     and
       (B) deliver necessary additional technical assistance and 
     professional development required to successfully implement 
     the new assessments.
       (b) Public Forum Participation.--To satisfy the condition 
     specified in subsection (a)(2), the Secretary shall ensure 
     that participation in the required forums includes--
       (1) early childhood development and assessment experts;
       (2) early childhood educators and administrators; and
       (3) family members of children participating in Head Start.
       (c) Information Required by Study on Early Childhood 
     Assessments.--To satisfy the condition specified in 
     subsection (a)(3), the Secretary shall ensure that the 
     required study contains, at a minimum, specific information 
     regarding the following:
       (1) Which skills and competencies are predictive of school 
     readiness and future academic success.
       (2) The development, selection, and use of instruments, 
     determined to be reliable and validated for preschoolers, 
     including preschoolers in the Head Start population, to 
     assess the development in young children of--
       (A) literacy, language, and mathematical skills;
       (B) emotional and social skills; and
       (C) health and physical well-being.
       (3) The development of appropriate benchmarks and the 
     proper use of early childhood assessments to improve Head 
     Start program effectiveness and instruction.
       (4) The resources required for successful implementation of 
     additional assessments within Head Start and how such 
     additional assessments might be coordinated with current 
     processes.
       (5) Whether a new assessment would provide information to 
     improve program accountability or instruction that is not 
     already available from existing assessments and reporting 
     procedures within Head Start.
       (6) The professional development and personnel needs for 
     successful implementation of early childhood assessments.
       (7) The practicality of employing sampling techniques as 
     part of any early childhood assessment.
       (8) The practicality of employing observational and work-
     sampling assessment techniques as part of an early childhood 
     assessment.
       (9) Steps needed to ensure that assessments accommodate the 
     racial, cultural, and linguistic diversity of young children, 
     including young children with disabilities.
                                 ______