BILL ANALYSIS Ó
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 644|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 644
Author: Blumenfield (D), et al.
Amended: 8/6/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 8-0, 6/27/12
AYES: Lowenthal, Alquist, Blakeslee, Huff, Liu, Price,
Simitian, Vargas
NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner, Hancock, Vacancy
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 8/16/12
AYES: Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Dutton, Lieu, Price,
Steinberg
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant
SUBJECT : Online instruction: average daily attendance
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill authorizes a school district or county
office of education (COE) to claim attendance for pupils in
grades 9-12 participating in online synchronous courses, as
specified, toward average daily attendance (ADA) for the
purpose of calculating revenue limit funding. This bill
requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to
establish rules and regulations for implementing the bill's
provisions. The provisions of this bill sunset on July 1,
2018.
CONTINUED
AB 644
Page
2
ANALYSIS : Existing law establishes the minimum school
day for a high school student to be 240 instructional
minutes in a classroom, in independent study programs, or
in a combination of the two settings. Students taking a
combination must meet attendance standards for both the
classroom and independent study courses in order for a
district to claim a pupil's attendance for funding
purposes.
Existing law further requires that pupils in grades 9
through 12 attend school for at least 64,800 minutes per
year in no less than 180 days (or 175 days under budget
flexibility language through 2014-15).
Existing law also requires the majority of the state's
revenue limit funding allocated to local educational
agencies (LEAs) to be based on ADA. ADA is the average
amount of time a pupil attends class under the immediate
supervision of a certificated employee.
Within existing ADA requirements, LEAs are able to provide
online courses to pupils in the following ways: (1) pupils
receive online instruction in a classroom setting under the
immediate supervision of a certificated employee; (2)
pupils are enrolled in a part-time or full-time independent
study program; (3) pupils meet the minimum instructional
requirement in traditional classroom instruction and take
additional online courses; and (4) pupils are enrolled in a
charter school, which has less traditional accounting and
attendance requirements for its pupils; and typically must
meet statutory requirements, where applicable, or
regulatory guidelines adopted by the State Board of
Education.
This bill defines "synchronous online instruction" as a
class or course in which the pupil and the certificated
employee who is providing instruction are online at the
same time and use real-time, Internet-based collaborative
software that combines audio, video, file sharing, and
other forms of interaction. It authorizes, commencing with
the 2013-14 fiscal year, a school district or COE to claim
attendance for pupils in grades 9 to 12, toward ADA for the
purpose of calculating revenue limit funding for online
synchronous courses. This bill provides that ADA can be
CONTINUED
AB 644
Page
3
computed for synchronous online instruction provided that
all of the following occur:
1. The certificated employee providing instruction confirms
pupil attendance through visual recognition or periodic
voice responses during the class period.
2. The class has a regularly scheduled starting and ending
time, and the pupil is scheduled to attend the entire
class period.
3. An individual with exceptional needs, as specified, may
participate in synchronous online instruction only if
his or her individualized education program, as
specified, provides for that participation.
4. A school district or COE offering synchronous online
instruction shall not deny enrollment to a pupil based
solely on the pupil's lack of access to the computer
hardware or software necessary to participate in the
course. If a pupil does not have access to the
necessary equipment, the school district or COE shall
provide such access.
5. The ratio of teachers to pupils shall not exceed the
equivalent ratio for all other educational programs by
the school district or COE, as specified, unless a
higher or lower ratio is negotiated in a collective
bargaining agreement.
This bill requires the SPI to establish rules and
regulations for purposes of implementing this measure that,
at a minimum, address (1) how school districts and COEs
include pupil attendance in online courses in the
calculation of ADA; and (2) how to ensure a pupil meets the
minimum instructional time requirements pursuant to various
code sections governing district schools, continuation
schools, opportunity schools, etc.
This bill further requires the SPI to provide guidance to
LEAs on how to offer synchronous, online education, and to
require attendance accounted for under this bill's
provisions to be subject to audit requirements.
CONTINUED
AB 644
Page
4
The provisions of this bill sunset on July 1, 2018.
Comments
The impact this bill has on ADA and revenue limit funding
will depend on the number of schools that opt to use the
new authority, and the number of high school pupils who opt
to take qualifying online courses. The intent of the bill
is to make these courses more attractive to offer, since
schools will be able to count on receiving ADA funding for
them. If online courses are taken by students who would
otherwise be enrolled in traditional schools, there will
likely be no change in ADA-related revenue limit funding
for those students. The rules the SPI develops for
implementing these provisions, however, will ultimately
determine the impact to ADA changes and revenue limit
funding.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Rules and regulations: $90,000-$120,000 (General Fund)
in one-time costs to develop implementation regulations
and guidelines.
SPI/CDE support: Approximately $25,000 (General Fund) in
annual costs to provide local assistance.
ADA: Potentially substantial increase in ADA and related
funding, depending upon how online attendance is
calculated in ADA per the new regulations.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/20/12)
California School Boards Association
California Teachers Association
Children Now
San Diego County Office of Education
San Diego Unified School District
TechNet
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author, "the
CONTINUED
AB 644
Page
5
state's classrooms remain stuck in the 20th century and
have failed to embrace a changed world full of innovation
and technology - despite California being the cradle of the
technological revolution. If California aspires to compete
with other states and nations as an economic engine, it
must make dramatic changes in its classrooms to usher in a
meaningful 21st century education and it must make them
soon. One clear example is the virtual classroom.
Technology and the internet provide educators with new
tools and students with better options to break down
barriers created by geography, poverty, language and other
conditions."
PQ:n 8/20/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****
CONTINUED