BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Carol Liu, Chair
2013-2014 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 1993
AUTHOR: Fox
AMENDED: May 27, 2014
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 11, 2014
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Lynn Lorber
SUBJECT : Bullying: training module.
SUMMARY
This bill requires the California Department of Education to
develop an online training module regarding bullying.
BACKGROUND
Bullying
Current law:
1) Authorizes schools to suspend or recommend for expulsion
a student who engages in an act of bullying, which is
defined as any severe or pervasive physical or verbal
act or conduct, including communications made in writing
or by means of an electronic act, directed toward one or
more students that has or can be reasonably predicted to
have the effect of one or more of the following:
a) Placing a reasonable student or students in
fear of harm to that student's or those students'
person or property.
b) Causing a reasonable student to experience a
substantially detrimental effect on his or her
physical or mental health.
c) Causing a reasonable student to experience
substantial interference with his or her academic
performance.
d) Causing a reasonable student to experience
substantial interference with his or her ability to
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participate in or benefit from the services,
activities, or privileges provided by a school.
(EC § 48900(r)(1))
2) Defines "electronic act" as the creation and
transmission, originated on or off the schoolsite, by
means of an electronic device, including but not limited
to a telephone, wireless telephone, or other wireless
communication device,
computer, or pager, of a communication, including but not
limited to any of the following:
a) A message, text, sounds, or image.
b) A post on a social network website including,
but not limited to:
i) Posting to or creating a burn page,
as defined, created for the purpose of having
one or more of the effects listed above.
ii) Creating a credible impersonation of
another actual student, as defined, for the
purpose of having one or more of the effects
listed above.
iii) Creating a false profile, as
defined, for the purpose of having one or more
of the effects listed above. (EC §
48900(r)(2))
Training
Current law requires the Department of Justice and the
California Department of Education to contract with one or
more professional trainers to coordinate statewide workshops
for school districts, county offices of education, and
schoolsite personnel to assist them in the development of
their respective school safety and crisis response plans, and
provide training in the prevention of bullying. (Education
Code § 32283)
Resources
The Safe Place to Learn Act requires the Superintendent of
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Public Instruction to post on the Internet and provide to
each school district a list of statewide resources that
provide support to youth who have been subjected to
school-based discrimination, harassment, intimidation, or
bullying. The website must also include a list of statewide
resources for youth who have been affected by gangs, gun
violence, and psychological trauma caused by violence at
home, at school, and in the community. (EC § 234.5)
ANALYSIS
This bill requires the California Department of Education to
develop an online training module regarding bullying.
Specifically, this bill:
1) Requires the California Department of Education to
develop an online training module to assist all school
staff, school administrators, parents, students and
community members in increasing their knowledge of the
dynamics of bullying and cyberbullying.
2) Requires the online training module to include, but not
be limited to, identifying an act of bullying or
cyberbullying, and implementing strategies to address
bullying and cyberbullying.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Existing training . The School Community Violence
Prevention program was made flexible as part of
categorical program reform. This program provided
5-year grants to school districts and county offices of
education to address any unmet violence-prevention
needs, including training regarding bullying. Training
sessions through this program assist teachers,
administrators, parents, students, certificated staff,
risk management, and community members to increase their
knowledge of the dynamics of bullying, have a greater
understanding of a systematic approach to bullying, and
increase their skills in identifying and implementing
strategies to address bullying. As this program and
funding is being phased-out due to categorical
flexibility, few districts and county offices are
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conducting training pursuant to this program.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/vp/scvptraining.asp?display=m
obile
Current law requires the Department of Justice and the
California Department of Education to contract with one
or more professional trainers to coordinate statewide
workshops for school districts, county offices of
education, and schoolsite personnel to assist them in
the development of their respective school safety and
crisis response plans, and provide training in the
prevention of bullying. These workshops have not been
developed due to a lack of funding.
This bill ensures that a program of training is available to
school districts and county offices of education.
2) Existing resources . Various resources are currently
available to schools, parents, and students about
policies, best practices and resources regarding the
prevention of bullying. The website of the California
Department of Education contains links to much of this
information:
a) Resources for parents, administrators, and
students on how bullying can be prevented and
addressed, including publications, sample policies,
and frequently asked questions.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/se/bullyingprev.asp
b) Publications and resources, including
community-based organizations, for educators,
parents, and community members with tools for
recognizing bullying behavior and approaches for
determining how to respond.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/se/bullyres.asp
These resources describe strategies to prevent and
address bullying, but do not appear to be developed to
serve as training modules.
3) Fiscal impact . According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, this bill could impose General Fund
administrative costs of $40,000 to the California
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Department of Education.
4) Related legislation . AB 1455 (Campos) authorizes
schools to refer a victim of bullying, or other students
affected by bullying, for case management, counseling,
and participation in a restorative justice program. AB
1455 is scheduled to be heard in this Committee on June
11.
SB 840 (Lara) requires each local educational agency to
develop and implement a policy against bullying. SB 840
was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
SB 231 (Correa) would have required the California Department
of Education to establish the California Bullying
Prevention Advisory Council for the purpose of providing
information about bullying, abuse, safety, and referrals
to other agencies. SB 231 was held in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee.
SUPPORT
None on file.
OPPOSITION
None on file.