California Assembly Bill AB711 Latest Draft

 BILL NUMBER: AB 711AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 23, 2015 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Santiago FEBRUARY 25, 2015 An act to amend Section 60605.3 of the Education Code, relating to school curriculum. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 711, as amended, Santiago. School curriculum: foreign languages. Existing law requires the State Board of Education, on or before June 1, 2009, to adopt content standards for teaching foreign languages in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, pursuant to recommendations developed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction.  This   Unless AB 740 of the 2015-16 Regular Session is enacted and becomes operative, this  bill would require the state board, on or before  January   September  1, 2017, to adopt  or reject  specified national content standards for teaching foreign languages in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, pursuant to recommendations developed by the Superintendent.  If AB 740 of the 2015-16 Regular Session is enacted and becomes operative, the bill would require the state board to appoint an advisory committee to recommend updated national content standards for teaching foreign language in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to the state board and would require the state board to adopt or reject those content standards, as specified.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) The national World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages are in the process of being published. Those standards reflect new research on best practices for teaching languages and cultures and offer a sound vision for program goal setting, teaching and facilitating learning, and assessing the standards pupils know and applying that knowledge in global settings. Those standards have now been adopted in total or with minor modifications in 40 states. (b) The national World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages are based on the original national standards,  publish   published  in 1996, that stood the test of time in providing common language and descriptors for world languages and cultures education. (c) Pupils will benefit from the clarity that will arise from following the widely adopted and updated national standards. World language and culture educators in California, as of January 1, 2016, need to navigate between national and state standards as they read and research professional documents, collaborate with other world language and culture educators from other states and nations, and engage in other professional standards-based work, including national assessments for assessing learners proficiency in world languages and cultures. (d) If the World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages are adopted by the State Board of Education by  June 1,   September 1,  2017, the standards and framework could be developed in tandem, rather than revising the standards adopted as of January 1, 2016, to reflect new framework and research, resulting in significant cost savings for the state. (e) The national World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages provide pupils friendly and clearly stated functional learning goals and assessment tasks through a series of "I can" statements based on predictable descriptors of language development. SEC. 2. Section 60605.3 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60605.3. (a)  (1)    On or before  June 1,   September 1,  2017, the state board shall adopt  or reject  national content standards in accordance with the World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages,  published, in 2015,   published in 2015  by the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Languages, pursuant to recommendations developed by the Superintendent, for teaching foreign languages in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive.  (2) If the state board rejects the national content standards, it shall submit a written explanation to the Superintendent, the Governor, and the Legislature of the reasons why the proposed content standards were rejected.   (3) This subdivision shall not become operative if Assembly Bill 740 of the 2015-16 Regular Session is enacted and becomes operative.   (b) (1) The state board shall appoint an advisory committee to recommend updated national content standards for teaching foreign language in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to the state board. The advisory committee shall consist of 21 members, appointed as follows:   (A) Ten members appointed by the Governor.   (B) Four members appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules.   (C) Four members appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.   (D) Three members appointed by the Superintendent.   (2) Members of the advisory committee shall serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority.   (3) Not less than one-half of the members appointed by each of the appointing authorities pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be current public school elementary or secondary classroom teachers who have a professional credential under state law, and meet the definition of "highly qualified" under federal law.   (4) The advisory committee shall review the content standards established in its particular subject matter and shall prepare updates to the content standards as the committee deems necessary.   (5) When making its recommendation, the advisory committee shall consider both of the following criteria:   (A) The extent to which its proposed updates reflect current and confirmed research in the subject area under consideration.   (B) The impact that the proposed updates will have upon school districts and existing curricula and assessments.   (6) The advisory committee shall conduct at least two, and no more than six, in-person meetings that are open to the public and include opportunities for public input. The advisory committee may convene additional meetings by teleconference or the Internet subject to the requirements of Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.   (7) Upon completing this review, the terms of the members of the advisory committee shall cease.   (8) Upon updating the content standards, the advisory committee shall forward them to the state board, which shall do either of the following within 120 days of the receipt:   (A) Adopt the proposed updates as proposed by the advisory committee.   (B) Reject the proposed updates as proposed by the advisory committee. If the state board rejects the content standards, it shall provide a specific written explanation to the Superintendent, the Governor, and the Legislature of the reasons why the proposed content standards were rejected.   (9) Prior to final action pursuant to paragraph (4), the department shall post on its Internet Web site the updates proposed by the advisory committee for a minimum of 60 days. The department shall include a link by which members of the public may submit comments on the proposed updates.   (10) Members of the advisory committee shall serve without compensation, except for actual and necessary travel expenses and substitute costs.   (11) This subdivision shall become operative only if Assembly Bill 740 of the 2015-16 Regular Session is enacted and becomes operative.   (b)   (   c)  The content standards  adopted pursuant to subdivisions (a) or (   b)  shall support the goals of Section 51212 and subdivision (c) of Section 51220 by including all of the following: (1) A summary of the language goals which recognizes that instruction may begin in elementary or secondary school. (2) A description of individual language skills that should be taught and attained at each level. (3) Course content that is aligned with findings from research on second language acquisition and education. (4) Course content that is aligned with the admission requirements for the California State University and the University of California.  (c)   (   d)  The content standards  adopted pursuant to subdivisions (a) or (   b)  may be used by school districts to develop language programs and course assessments but are not mandatory.