Senator Koehler introduced Senate Bill 272 in the 136th General Assembly to amend section 3301.0712 of the Ohio Revised Code and allow a civics assessment to be used in lieu of the American government end-of-course examination.

The bill text would permit a student to choose a civics assessment identical to the civics portion of the naturalization test used by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services agency instead of taking the state's American government end-of-course exam. A student would pass that civics assessment by answering at least 60% of the questions correctly; students who do not pass could retake the assessment until they obtain a passing score. The bill states the civics-assessment option would begin in the 2026–2027 school year for that provision.

Why it matters: The change would alter one element of Ohio’s high school assessment system that factors into diploma eligibility and would formally align the optional civics assessment to the questions used by the federal naturalization test. The bill also includes other changes to end-of-course testing, parent opt-outs for nationally standardized tests, and provisions giving the state education department rulemaking authority to implement the system.

Key provisions in the bill include:

- Option to substitute a civics assessment identical to the USCIS naturalization test's civics portion for the American government end-of-course examination; a passing score is defined as answering at least 60% of questions correctly and retakes are allowed.

- Beginning with students who first entered ninth grade on or after July 1, 2019, the bill reduces the number of required end-of-course examinations from seven to five (English language arts II, science, Algebra I, American history, and American government), while retaining English language arts II and Algebra I as the only mandatory exams for graduation. The text specifies that a student may choose the civics assessment instead of the American government end-of-course examination.

- A parent or guardian may elect, for students who enter ninth grade on or after July 1, 2022, to withhold a nationally standardized college-admissions assessment from their child; in that event the district shall not administer that assessment to the student.

- Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) exams may substitute for end-of-course exams in certain subjects; the department would specify AP/IB score levels that count toward the cumulative performance score used to determine diploma eligibility. The bill treats an AP score of 2 and IB scores of 2 or 3 as equivalent to a "proficient" level for these purposes.

- The department of education and workforce and the chancellor of higher education must develop the assessment system, designate score ranges for each examination, adopt a method to calculate a cumulative performance score, and publish equivalencies across exams. The director of education and workforce must present designated score ranges publicly before the standing committees of the Ohio House and Senate that handle primary and secondary education within 60 days of designation.

- The department must seek a waiver from the U.S. secretary of education when necessary to implement Algebra I as the primary high-school mathematics assessment; if a waiver is not granted the department must continue to include a geometry end-of-course examination for affected cohorts (though geometry would not be required for graduation under the bill's language).

- The bill requires the department to select at least one nationally recognized job-skills assessment, reimburse districts for administration costs for that job-skills test, and set a minimum competency score for workforce-readiness demonstration.

- The department and chancellor are charged with convening experts to align standards and model curricula to the assessments, and the department must adopt implementing rules, including timelines, eligibility rules for diploma recipients who have not passed assessments, and applicability to dropout-prevention programs and home-educated students who opt in.

The bill text closes by repealing the existing section 3301.0712 of the Revised Code and replacing it with the amended language. The provided text is the bill as introduced; it does not include committee referrals, hearings, votes, or amendments.