California Assembly Bill AB2350 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 2350AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 28, 2016 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member O'Donnell FEBRUARY 18, 2016 An act to  amend Section 313 of   add Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 60080) to Chapter 1 of Part 33 of Division 4 of Title 2 of  the Education Code, relating to English learners. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2350, as amended, O'Donnell. English  learners: English language proficiency assessment.   learners.   Existing law requires the State Board of Education to adopt curriculum frameworks and evaluation criteria that are aligned to specified content standards for English language arts on or before July 30, 2014.   This bill would define the terms "designated English language development" and "integrated English language development" for purposes of the English Language Arts/English Development Framework adopted by the state board, as specified. The bill would state that a middle or high school pupil who is enrolled in an English language development course or is classified as an English learner shall not be prevented from enrolling in specified other courses required for graduation or in courses that meet specified college admission standards, and would require credit toward graduation to be conferred for courses designed for long-term English learners. By imposing additional duties on local educational agencies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the State Department of Education to contract for the development of a video series demonstrating best practices for implementing designated and integrated English language development, and to make the video series available for use by local educational agencies.   The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.   This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.   Existing law requires each school district that has one or more pupils who are English learners and, to the extent required by federal law, each county office of education and each charter school, to assess the English language development of each of those pupils in order to determine their level of proficiency. Existing law requires the State Department of Education, with the approval of the State Board of Education, to establish procedures for conducting the assessment and for the reclassification of a pupil from English learner to English proficient. Existing law requires that the assessment primarily use the English language development test identified or developed, or developed or acquired, by the Superintendent pursuant to a specified statute.   This bill would delete English language development tests that are identified or acquired, but not developed, from tests that may be used by the assessment referenced above. The bill would also make nonsubstantive changes to this provision.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program:  no   yes  . THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:   (a) California is home to the largest population of English learners in the country, and one in three English learners in the United States resides in California.   (b) There are approximately 1.4 million English learners in California public schools. About 2.7 million pupils speak a language other than English in their homes, representing about 43 percent of the state's public school enrollment.   (c) California's English learner pupils score substantially lower on state assessments than non-English learner pupils. While there has been incremental growth in achievement among pupils in the general population, scores for English learners have largely remained static, widening the achievement gap between English learners and their peers over time.   (d) On the 2015 administration of the California Assessment of Student Performance, 11 percent of English learners in all grades met or exceeded standard in English language arts/literacy and 11 percent in math, compared with 69 percent and 55 percent for those subjects, respectively, for pupils proficient in English.   (e) The English Language Arts/English Language Development Framework adopted by the State Board of Education in 2014 represents an important state endorsement of the use of both designated English language development and the integration of English language development across the curriculum. This combined approach will require major changes in teaching and learning for all pupils, including English learners, and there is a need for training for, and technical assistance to, teachers and administrators on implementing these instructional reforms.   (f) Recent research has found that English learners are less likely than non-English learners to be enrolled in core academic subject courses and, as a result, earn fewer credits than non-English learner pupils. Research has further found that limited access to English language arts is largely due to English language development classes being used as substitutes for, rather than complements to, English language arts, and due to the enrollment of elementary and secondary English learners in intervention classes for English language arts and math that are not designed for the learners' language and academic needs.   (g) English language development classes aligned to the state English Language Development standards are designed to give access to core academic subjects while developing English proficiency, and are part of the academic core for English learners.   (h) There are many options for addressing the issues of access and course offerings for English Learners in middle and high school.   (i) Graduation rates for English learners are lower than for the general population and for other subgroups of students. According to the State Department of Education, the overall 2013-14 four-year cohort graduation was 81 percent, while the rate for English learners was 65 percent, the lowest of any subgroup besides students in special education. The dropout rate for English learners, at 21 percent, was the highest of any subgroup.   SEC. 2.   Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 60080) is added to Chapter 1 of Part 33 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Education Code, to read: Article 5.5. English Learners 60080. Except for pupils participating in articulated newcomer programs, a middle or high school pupil who is enrolled in an English language development course or who is classified as an English learner shall not be prevented from doing either of the following: (a) Enrolling in core curriculum courses in English language arts or any other course required for graduation or to meet the a-g subject requirements for admission to the University of California or the California State University. (b) Taking a full course load in core subjects required for graduation or to meet the a-g subject requirements for admission to the University of California or the California State University. 60081. If a local educational agency offers a course designed for long-term English learners, the course shall confer credits in English language arts necessary to meet graduation requirements. It is the intent of the Legislature that local educational agencies submit those courses to the University of California and California State University for approval to meet the a-g subject requirements for admission. 60082. (a) The English Language Arts/English Language Development Framework adopted by the state board in 2014 states that English learners at all English proficiency levels and at all ages require both integrated English language development and specialized attention to their particular language learning needs, otherwise known as designated English language development, as part of their daily curriculum. (b) The following definitions shall apply to the English Language Arts/English Language Development Framework referenced in subdivision (a): (1) "Designated English language development" means instruction designed for English learners according to their level of English proficiency to overcome language barriers in a reasonable amount of time, during a protected time in the regular schoolday, in which teachers use the California English Language Development Standards as the focal standards in ways that build into and from content instruction in order to develop the critical language that English learners need for content learning in English. (2) "Integrated English language development" means instruction in which all teachers with English learners in their classrooms, regardless of the course content, use the California English Language Development Standards in tandem with the California state standards. 60083. (a) The department shall contract for the development of a series of videos demonstrating best practices for implementing designated and integrated English language development in transitional kindergarten to grade 12, inclusive, and shall make the series available on the department's Internet Web site. (b) In developing the video series, the department shall compile program models that address the structuring of the school day to allow for instruction in the full curriculum and in English language development. The department shall include information on how to implement these models in the series. (c) In developing the video series, the department shall convene a group of experts and request public comment. (d) The video series shall be designed to assist local educational agencies in providing instruction in designated English language development and integrated English language development across different content areas. (e) By the beginning of the 2017-18 academic year, the video series shall be completed and made available for voluntary use by local educational agencies.   SEC. 3.  If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.   SECTION 1.   Section 313 of the Education Code is amended to read: 313. (a) Each school district that has one or more pupils who are English learners and, to the extent required by federal law, each county office of education and each charter school shall assess the English language development of each pupil in order to determine the level of proficiency for purposes of this chapter. (b) The department, with the approval of the state board, shall establish procedures for conducting the assessment required pursuant to subdivision (a) and for the reclassification of a pupil from English learner to English proficient. (c) Commencing with the 2000-01 school year until subdivision (d) is implemented, the assessment shall be conducted upon initial enrollment, and annually, thereafter, during a period of time determined by the Superintendent and the state board. The annual assessments shall continue until the pupil is redesignated as English proficient. The assessment shall primarily use the English language development test developed by the Superintendent pursuant to Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 60810) of Part 33 of Division 4 of Title 2. (d) (1) This subdivision shall not be implemented unless and until the department receives written documentation from the United States Department of Education that federal law permits the implementation of the changes set forth in this subdivision or until the 2013-14 school year, whichever occurs later. (2) The assessment shall be conducted annually during a period that commences on the day upon which 55 percent of the instructional year is completed through July 1 of that calendar year. Annual assessments shall continue until the pupil is redesignated as English proficient. The annual assessment shall primarily use the English language development test developed by the Superintendent pursuant to Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 60810) of Part 33 of Division 4 of Title 2. (3) The assessment shall be conducted upon the initial enrollment of a pupil in order to provide information to be used to determine if the pupil is an English learner. (A) If the initial enrollment of a pupil occurs on a date outside of the testing period identified pursuant to paragraph (2), the prior year's annual assessment for the grade in which the pupil is enrolling shall be used for this purpose. (B) If the initial enrollment of a pupil occurs on a date within the testing period identified pursuant to paragraph (2), the initial assessment of the pupil shall be conducted as part of the annual assessment conducted pursuant to paragraph (2). (4) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), a school district shall assess the English language development of a pupil pursuant to this section no more than one time per school year. (e) The assessment conducted pursuant to subdivision (d) shall be conducted in a manner consistent with federal statutes and regulations. (f) The reclassification procedures developed by the department shall use multiple criteria in determining whether to reclassify a pupil as proficient in English, including, but not limited to, all of the following: (1) Assessment of language proficiency using an objective assessment instrument, including, but not necessarily limited to, the English language development test that is developed pursuant to Section 60810. (2) Teacher evaluation, including, but not necessarily limited to, a review of the pupil's curriculum mastery. (3) Parental opinion and consultation. (4) Comparison of the performance of the pupil in basic skills against an empirically established range of performance in basic skills based upon the performance of English proficient pupils of the same age, that demonstrates whether the pupil is sufficiently proficient in English to participate effectively in a curriculum designed for pupils of the same age whose native language is English. (g) This section does not preclude a school district or county office of education from testing English learners more than once in a school year if the school district or county office of education chooses to do so.