Ind. Code ch. 20-32-5.1

Ind. Code ch. 20-32-5.1
in effect

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-1 Applicability of chapter

Sec. 1. This chapter applies after June 30, 2018. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-2 Purpose

Sec. 2. The purpose of the Indiana's Learning Evaluation Assessment Readiness Network (ILEARN) program developed under this chapter is to establish an assessment system that is student centered and provides meaningful and timely information to all stakeholders on both a student's on grade proficiency level and the student's growth toward Indiana's college and career readiness educational standards under IC 20-19-2-14.5. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-3 Indiana's Learning Evaluation Assessment Readiness Network (ILEARN) program

Sec. 3. The Indiana's Learning Evaluation Assessment Readiness Network (ILEARN) program consists of: (1) the statewide assessment program described in section 7 of this chapter; (2) optional benchmark assessments described in section 17 of this chapter; (3) requirements to integrate statewide assessment literacy described in section 18 of this chapter; and (4) any programs or policies approved by the state board that are necessary to carry out this chapter. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.192-2018, SEC.36; P.L.150-2024, SEC.44.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-4 Assessment program requirements

Sec. 4. To carry out the purposes described in section 2 of this chapter: (1) assessment reporting for assessments developed under this chapter must be: (A) reliable; (B) accurate; (C) user friendly; and (D) timely; (2) the statewide assessment program must help students understand their college and career readiness; and (3) the statewide assessment program must hold schools accountable for preparing students for college and careers. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.150-2024, SEC.45.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-5 Alignment of assessments to Indiana's college and career readiness educational standards

Sec. 5. (a) An assessment developed under this chapter must be aligned to Indiana's college and career readiness educational standards under IC 20-19-2-14.5. (b) All assessments approved by the state board under this chapter must comply with each of the following requirements: (1) All assessment data results shall be owned by the school corporation or school that administers the assessment. (2) All assessment data shall be available to the school corporation or school promptly upon request and at no additional charge. (3) The assessment data shall be provided in a manner that permits it to be used with any instructional program. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-6 Duties of state board; department

Sec. 6. (a) The state board shall: (1) authorize and oversee the department's development and implementation of the Indiana's Learning Evaluation Assessment Readiness Network (ILEARN) program, including: (A) establishment of criteria for requests for proposals for statewide assessments developed or authorized under this chapter; (B) establishment of criteria for membership of evaluation teams; and (C) establishment of criteria for content and format of the statewide assessment; and (2) require the department to conduct ongoing analysis of whether the statewide assessment program's results are predictive of success in college and career training programs. (b) The passing scores on a statewide summative assessment must be determined by statistically valid and reliable methods as determined by independent experts selected by the state board. (c) The state board, in consultation with The Arc of Indiana and Indiana Council of Administrators of Special Education (ICASE), shall select one (1) or more individuals who specialize in special education who shall, in turn, be consulted with by the state board as part of the state board's oversight of the development and implementation of the Indiana's Learning Evaluation Assessment Readiness Network (ILEARN) program. (d) The secretary of education, with the approval of the state board, is responsible for the development, implementation, and monitoring of the Indiana's Learning Evaluation Assessment Readiness Network (ILEARN) program. (e) The department shall prepare detailed design specifications for the statewide assessment program developed under this chapter that must do the following: (1) Take into account the academic standards adopted under IC 20-31-3. (2) Include testing of students' higher level cognitive thinking in each subject area tested. (f) A statewide summative assessment described in section 7 of this chapter may be in a form that allows the department and the state board, to the extent possible, to compare the proficiency of Indiana students to the proficiency of students in other states. A statewide summative assessment may consist of original test items for Indiana's exclusive use if the state board determines that: (1) developing original test items for Indiana's exclusive use will result in cost savings; or (2) it would be impractical to develop a statewide summative assessment adequately aligned to Indiana's academic standards without including original test items developed for Indiana's exclusive use. (g) The state board shall establish a method for virtual administration of the statewide summative assessment described in section 7 of this chapter. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.82-2020, SEC.3; P.L.43-2021, SEC.105; P.L.5-2024, SEC.13; P.L.150-2024, SEC.46.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-7 Statewide assessment program; applicable subjects, grades, and formation; administration; subject matter; use of technology

Sec. 7. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this section and in the manner provided in section 6 of this chapter, the state board is responsible for determining the appropriate subjects, grades, and format of the statewide assessment program. (b) For each school year beginning after June 30, 2018, and except as provided in section 11 of this chapter, the statewide assessment program must be administered to all full-time students attending a school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) in grades subject to the statewide summative assessment required by federal law and in a manner prescribed by the state board. (c) Subject matter tested on by the statewide assessment program as determined by the state board under subsection (a) must, at a minimum, do the following: (1) Comply with requirements established under federal law with: (A) math and English/language arts assessed yearly in grades 3 through 8, and at least once in grades 9 through 12; and (B) science assessed at least once in grades 3 through 5, grades 6 through 9, and grades 10 through 12. (2) Require that United States history or United States government be assessed at least once in grades 5 or 8. (d) Except as provided under subsection (e), for each school year beginning after June 30, 2021, a nationally recognized college entrance exam such as the ACT, SAT, or Classic Learning Test must be administered for the high school subjects required under subsection (c). The proficiency benchmark must be approved by the commission for higher education, in consultation with the state educational institutions, and may not be lower than the national college ready benchmark established for that particular exam. (e) If the state board determines that no nationally recognized college entrance exam assesses a given high school subject that is required under subsection (c), the state board may select another type of assessment, including an end of course assessment, for that subject. (f) The statewide assessment program: (1) may not use technology that may negatively influence the ability to measure a student's mastery of material or a particular academic standard being tested; and (2) may use a technology enhanced test question only when the technology enhanced test question is the best way to measure the academic standard being tested. (g) A statewide summative assessment, other than an assessment administered under subsection (d), must use a scale score that will ensure the statewide summative assessment scores are comparable to scale scores used as part of the ISTEP program under IC 20-32-5, before its expiration. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.192-2018, SEC.37; P.L.11-2023, SEC.67; P.L.150-2024, SEC.47; P.L.108-2026, SEC.5.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-8 Testing window; administration of end of course assessments; through-year assessment program

Sec. 8. (a) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c), the statewide summative assessment must be administered in a single testing window that must take place at the end of a school year on dates determined by the state board. (b) If an end of course assessment is administered, the end of course assessment may be administered at the end of the course for that particular subject matter. (c) If a through-year assessment program is administered, the assessments making up the through-year assessment program may: (1) be administered throughout the year in the manner determined by the department; and (2) include as one (1) of the assessments a single statewide summative assessment that meets the requirements set forth in subsection (a). As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.192-2018, SEC.38; P.L.150-2024, SEC.48.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-9 Development of United States government final exam

Sec. 9. The state board shall develop a United States government course final exam that schools may administer at the completion of a United States government course. The exam must include the structure of state and federal governments, including the role of separation of powers, the freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights of the Constitution of the United States, and the Federalist Papers. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-10 Acquisition of statewide assessment program assessments at no charge; assessment program results

Sec. 10. (a) The governing body of each school corporation or the equivalent authority for each charter school, eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7), or state accredited nonpublic school is entitled to acquire at no charge from the department: (1) the assessments under the statewide assessment program; and (2) the scoring reports used by the department. (b) A state accredited nonpublic school or an eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) shall make available to the department the results of the statewide assessment program's assessment or assessments, as applicable. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.150-2024, SEC.49; P.L.74-2026, SEC.123.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-11 Students with a disability; accommodations

Sec. 11. (a) A student who is a student with a disability (as defined in IC 20-35-1-8) shall be tested under this chapter with appropriate accommodations as outlined in the student's individualized education program, service plan developed under 511 IAC 7-34, or choice scholarship education plan developed under 511 IAC 7-49 in testing materials and procedures unless the individuals who develop the student's individualized education program, service plan, or choice scholarship education plan determine that testing or a part of the testing under this chapter is not appropriate for the student and that an alternate assessment will be used to test the student's achievement. (b) Any decision concerning a student who is a student with a disability (as defined in IC 20-35-1-8) regarding the student's: (1) participation in testing under this chapter; (2) receiving accommodations in testing materials and procedures; (3) participation in remediation; or (4) retention at the same grade level for consecutive school years; must be made in accordance with the student's individualized education program, service plan, or choice scholarship education plan in compliance with the statewide assessment program's policies and federal law. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.214-2025, SEC.175.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-12 Scoring of statewide summative assessment by Indiana teachers; machine scoring

Sec. 12. (a) The department shall establish policies and procedures that foster, to the extent possible, the scoring of student responses of an open ended writing assessment on a statewide summative assessment by Indiana teachers. The teacher may not grade student responses of students who are enrolled in the same school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) in which the teacher is currently employed. (b) The scoring of student responses under a statewide summative assessment: (1) must adhere to scoring rubrics and anchor papers; (2) must measure student achievement relative to the academic standards established by the state board; and (3) may not reflect the scorer's judgment of the values expressed by a student in the student's responses. (c) The department, in consultation with the technical advisory committee established by the state board, shall conduct a study to analyze and determine the reliability of machine scoring student responses to items on the statewide summative assessment. After conducting the study, the department may, if recommended by the technical advisory committee, utilize machine scoring for purposes of scoring student responses to items on the statewide summative assessment. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.139-2022, SEC.15; P.L.150-2024, SEC.50.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-13 Reporting of proficiency of students and student scores; criteria to provide opportunity to inspect questions

Sec. 13. (a) The proficiency of students under a statewide summative assessment must be reported to the state board not later than: (1) for the 2025-2026 school year, September 1, 2026; and (2) for each school year beginning after June 30, 2026, July 1 of the year in which the statewide summative assessment is administered. (b) Reports of student scores on the statewide summative assessment must be: (1) returned to the school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) that administered the test; and (2) accompanied by a guide for interpreting scores. (c) Subject to approval by the state board, reports of student results on computer scored items under a statewide summative assessment may be returned to schools regardless of whether the hand scored items are returned. (d) After reports of final student scores on the statewide summative assessment are returned to a school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7), the school corporation or school shall promptly do the following: (1) Give each student and the student's parent the student's statewide summative assessment test scores, including the summary described in section 14.5 of this chapter. (2) Make available for inspection to each student and the student's parent the following: (A) A copy of the student's scored responses. (B) A copy of the anchor papers and scoring rubrics used to score the student's responses. A student's parent or the student's principal may request a rescoring of a student's responses to a statewide summative assessment, including a student's essay. A student's final score on a rescored statewide summative assessment must reflect the student's actual score on the rescored statewide summative assessment regardless of whether the student's score decreased or improved on the rescored assessment. (e) The department shall develop criteria to provide a student's parent the opportunity to inspect questions in a manner that will not compromise the validity or integrity of a statewide summative assessment. (f) A student's statewide summative assessment scores may not be disclosed to the public. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.139-2022, SEC.16; P.L.30-2023, SEC.1; P.L.150-2024, SEC.51; P.L.159-2026, SEC.15.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-14 Discussion of statewide summative assessment results at parent/teacher conference; notice offering to meet to discuss results; provision of enrichment resources

Sec. 14. (a) After a school receives statewide summative assessment score reports, a teacher who currently teaches a student shall discuss with a parent of the student the student's statewide summative assessment results at the next parent/teacher conference if the parent participates in the parent/teacher conference. If a school does not hold parent/teacher conferences, a teacher who currently teaches a student shall send a notice to a parent of the student offering to meet with the parent to discuss the student's statewide summative assessment results and, upon the parent's request, meet with the parent. (b) The department shall provide enrichment resources to parents and students to provide assistance to students in subject matter included in the student's most recently completed statewide summative assessment. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.139-2022, SEC.17; P.L.150-2024, SEC.52.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-14.5 Contract with vendor to conduct statewide summative assessment

Sec. 14.5. For a contract entered into or renewed after June 30, 2023, with a vendor to conduct the statewide summative assessment, the department shall include in the contract a requirement that the vendor provide a summary of a student's statewide summative assessment results that: (1) is in an easy to read, understandable format for parents; and (2) includes information regarding how the student's statewide summative assessment results compare to statewide summative assessment results of other students in the same grade level in Indiana. As added by P.L.139-2022, SEC.18. Amended by P.L.30-2023, SEC.2; P.L.150-2024, SEC.53.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-15 Public inspection of statewide summative assessment results; provision of results

Sec. 15. (a) Each school corporation shall compile the total results of the statewide summative assessments in a manner that will permit evaluation of learning progress within the school corporation. The school corporation shall make the compilation of test results available for public inspection and shall provide that compilation to the parent of each student of the school corporation tested under the statewide summative assessment. (b) The school corporation shall provide the statewide summative assessment program test results on a school by school basis to the department upon request. (c) Upon request by the commission for higher education, the department shall provide statewide summative assessment results to the commission for those students for whom the commission under 20 U.S.C. 1232g has obtained consent. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.150-2024, SEC.54.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-16 Annual performance reports; disaggregation of test results for high ability students

Sec. 16. (a) The department shall develop a format for the publication by school corporations in an annual performance report required by statute of appropriate academic information required by the department, including statewide assessment scores and information required to be disaggregated by the department under subsection (b), in a manner that a reasonable person can easily read and understand. (b) The department shall disaggregate from the total results of the statewide assessment test results for a school corporation the percentage of students in each school and each grade in the school corporation that are identified as high ability students (as defined by IC 20-36-1-3) by the school corporation who also achieved a score in the highest performance level designated for the statewide assessment. However, this disaggregation is not required in a case in which the results would reveal personally identifiable information about an individual student under the federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g et seq.). As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-17 Benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessments; grant or reimbursement; data share agreement

Sec. 17. (a) The state board shall approve two (2) or more benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessments to identify students that require remediation and provide individualized instruction in which a school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) may receive a grant under subsection (g). (b) For a benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessment described in subsection (a) that is administered to students in kindergarten through grade 2, the assessment must meet one (1) or more of the following: (1) The assessment: (A) focuses on English/language arts; and (B) shows alignment, verified by a third party, to Indiana's academic standards for English/language arts domains, specifically foundational reading skills. (2) The assessment is a universal screener that: (A) meets the screening requirements listed in IC 20-35.5-2-2; (B) measures foundational reading skills; (C) received a convincing or partially convincing rating for accuracy, reliability, and validity by the National Center on Intensive Intervention or a nationally recognized dyslexia assessment expert; (D) screens for early literacy skill deficits; (E) provides parents and schools with data analysis guides for interpreting results and comprehensive support for schools to guide classroom instruction and the implementation of reading interventions; and (F) provides the department with an annual analysis of statewide data trends to support identification of early literacy skill deficits and guides targeted intervention efforts. (3) The assessment focuses on numeracy and shows alignment, verified by a third party, to Indiana's academic standards for mathematical domains, specifically: (A) number sense; (B) computation and algebraic thinking; and (C) measurement. (c) For a benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessment described in subsection (a) that is administered to students in grades 3 through 7, the assessment must show alignment, verified by a third party, to Indiana's academic standards. (d) For a benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessment described in subsection (a) that is administered to students in grades 8 through 10, the assessment must show alignment, verified by a third party, to: (1) Indiana's academic standards; or (2) the nationally recognized college entrance exam required to be administered under section 7 of this chapter. (e) This subsection does not apply to an assessment that is a universal screener described in subsection (b)(2). The majority of the benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessment reporting must indicate the degree to which students are on track for grade level proficiency and college and career readiness. Approved assessments must also provide predictive study results for student performance on the statewide summative assessment under section 7 of this chapter, not later than two (2) years after the statewide summative assessment has been first administered. (f) This subsection does not apply to an assessment that is a universal screener described in subsection (b)(2). A school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) may elect to administer a benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessment described in subsection (a). If a school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) administers an assessment described in subsection (a), the school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) may prescribe the time and the manner in which the assessment is administered. (g) If a school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) elects to administer a benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessment described in subsection (a), the school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) is entitled to receive a grant or reimbursement from the department in an amount not to exceed the cost of the assessment. The department shall provide grants and reimbursements to a school corporation, charter school, state accredited nonpublic school, or eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) under this section from money appropriated to the department for the purpose of carrying out this section. (h) Except as provided in subsection (j), the state board and the department may not contract with, approve, or endorse the use of a single vendor to provide benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessments for any grade level or levels of kindergarten through grade 7. (i) Before the state board may approve a benchmark, formative, interim, or similar assessment described in subsection (a), the assessment vendor must enter into a data share agreement with the department in the manner prescribed by the department. A vendor providing an assessment described in subsection (b)(2) shall provide a summary of a student's assessment results to the student and the student's parents. The summary of the results must be in an understandable format for parents that is easy to read. (j) The department shall procure a preferred assessment that meets the requirements specified in subsection (b)(2) for use by schools in which, over the course of three (3) consecutive years, fewer than an average of seventy-five percent (75%) of students in the school achieved a valid passing score on the determinant evaluation of reading skills approved by the state board. (k) This subsection applies to: (1) a public school, including a charter school; (2) a state accredited nonpublic school; and (3) an eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7). An elementary school shall administer an assessment described in subsection (b)(2) to students in kindergarten through grade 2. The department shall provide guidance as to the number of times the assessment is required and when the administrations of the assessment should occur. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.269-2019, SEC.9; P.L.155-2020, SEC.16; P.L.211-2021, SEC.33; P.L.245-2023, SEC.10; P.L.5-2024, SEC.14; P.L.150-2024, SEC.55; P.L.120-2026, SEC.5.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-18 Development of policies to improve assessment literacy

Sec. 18. (a) The department, with the approval of the state board, shall develop and implement programs, policies, and procedures necessary to carry out this chapter to: (1) continuously improve teacher, student, parent, and community understanding of assessment results; (2) strategically use data and information from the assessment results to improve student growth and proficiency of all students; (3) instruct teachers and administrators on how formative assessment practices can be used on a daily basis during class instruction; and (4) if a through-year assessment program is administered as described in section 8 of this chapter, advise teachers and administrators on how through-year assessment practices can inform teaching and learning. (b) The department shall establish requirements for teacher preparation programs (as described in IC 20-28-3-1(b)) under IC 20-28-3 to improve assessment literacy skills to improve a teacher preparation program student's ability to strategically use data and information from assessment results to improve student growth and proficiency. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41. Amended by P.L.150-2024, SEC.56.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-18.4 Restrictions on use of scores

Sec. 18.4. Notwithstanding any other law, a student's score on the statewide summative assessment may not be the primary factor or measure used to determine whether a student is eligible for a particular course or program. As added by P.L.82-2020, SEC.4. Amended by P.L.150-2024, SEC.57.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-18.5 Accommodations; approval of guidance or recommendations

Sec. 18.5. (a) The department shall, to the extent permitted under federal law, provide the same text-to-speech, screen reader, or human reader and calculator accommodations to a student in grades 6 through 12 on every section of the statewide summative assessment program if that accommodation is provided as part of the student's: (1) individualized education program; (2) service plan developed under 511 IAC 7-34; (3) choice special education plan developed under 511 IAC 7-49; or (4) plan developed under Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. 794. (b) The department must submit any guidance or recommendations the department plans to distribute to a school corporation or school that attempts to affect in any manner based on statewide summative assessment accommodations which instructional methods are included or excluded from a program or plan described in subsection (a) to the state board for approval. As added by P.L.287-2019, SEC.10. Amended by P.L.82-2020, SEC.5; P.L.11-2023, SEC.68; P.L.150-2024, SEC.58.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-18.8 Expired

As added by P.L.82-2020, SEC.6. Amended by P.L.32-2021, SEC.61. Expired 7-1-2022 by P.L.82-2020, SEC.6.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-19 Adoption of rules

Sec. 19. The state board shall adopt rules under IC 4-22-2 to implement this chapter. As added by P.L.242-2017, SEC.41.

Ind. Code § 20-32-5.1-20 Reading proficiency; guidance

Sec. 20. Beginning with the 2024-2025 school year, the department shall develop a method for identifying students in grade 4 through grade 8 who: (1) did not pass the determinant evaluation of reading skills approved by the state board; and (2) are at risk of not being proficient in reading as determined by Lexile scores on the statewide summative assessment. The department shall develop guidance for schools on how to support students in grade 4 through grade 8 who are at risk of not being proficient in reading. As added by P.L.7-2024, SEC.1.
Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://iga.in.gov/laws/2026/ic/titles/20Fetched: 10/17/2026