Amends TCA Title 49.

The present law provisions governing evaluation of school principals require that the principal's annual evaluation be based on student achievement data, with a significant portion being student growth data as reflected in teacher effect data and Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS) data. Present law provides that other standards that may be considered in the evaluation include other benchmarks for student proficiency, graduation rates, ACT scores where applicable and student attendance; this bill removes ACT scores from this provision and includes instead student performance on the postsecondary readiness and career readiness assessments given to students in grade 11 under present law.<br /> <br /> This bill also adds student performance on the postsecondary readiness and career readiness assessment to the list of factors used to assign a letter grade to schools under the school grading system. This bill specifies that if a student is enrolled in a dual enrollment course through a Tennessee college of applied technology and takes both assessments, then the department must use the highest score, as determined by the department.<br /> <br /> This bill exempts a student from taking chemistry or physics to graduate from high school if the student is enrolled in a dual enrollment course through a Tennessee college of applied technology and completes biology and one lab science.<br />