BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2016
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Date of Hearing: April 30, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Joan Buchanan, Chair
AB 2016 (Campos) - As Amended: April 21, 2014
SUBJECT : Pupil instruction: Sexual abuse and sexual assault
awareness and prevention
SUMMARY : Requires the State Superintendent of Public
Instruction (SPI) to recommend and the State Board of Education
(SBE) to adopt content standards in sexual abuse and sexual
assault awareness and prevention. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires, on or before March 1, 2017, the SPI to recommend and
the SBE to adopt age-appropriate content standard for
transitional kindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 - 12,
inclusive, in sexual abuse and sexual assault awareness and
prevention, including information on available counseling and
resources for children who are sexually abused.
2)Permits school districts, county offices of education, and
charter schools to provide age-appropriate instruction
pursuant to these adopted content standards.
3)Requires a pupil, upon the written request of his or her
parent or legal guardian, to be excused from receiving
instruction in sexual abuse and sexual assault awareness and
prevention.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires the course of study in grades 1 - 6, inclusive, to
include instruction in health, including instruction in the
principles and practices of individual, family, and community
health.
2)Requires, on or before March 1, 2008, the SBE to adopt content
standards in health education and specifies that school
districts are not required to follow the content standards.
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FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
Curriculum, Standards, and Frameworks
California curriculum is based on academic content standards
that are developed by the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC)
(also referenced in statute as the "commission") and approved by
the SBE. The frameworks, similarly developed by the IQC and
approved by the SBE, are guidelines for implementing these
standards. To date, the SBE has adopted academic content
standards in career technical education, English language
arts/English language development, health education,
history/social science, mathematics, model school library,
physical education, science, visual and performing arts, and
world languages. These standards define the knowledge,
concepts, and skills that students should acquire at each grade
level within each subject area. Each of the adopted content
standards spans kindergarten through grade 12, inclusive, with
the exception of visual and performing arts, which also includes
prekindergarten.
This bill requires the SPI to recommend and the SBE to adopt
content standards in sexual abuse and sexual assault awareness
and prevention. Staff recommends an amendment to change this
requirement to language that requires the SBE to consider, based
on a recommendation of the SPI, adopting these standards. This
amendment is consistent with the approach this committee has
taken on other bills mandating the inclusion of particular
topics within the academic content standards. Staff also
recommends requiring the SBE to consider, based upon the
recommendation of the SPI, including sexual abuse and sexual
assault awareness and prevention the next time the Health
frameworks are revised to ensure that this content is
appropriately presented to the students of California as
intended by the Legislature.
The committee may wish to consider the extent to which the
provisions of this bill are met in existing law. The current
Health Framework includes a discussion of child abuse.
Specifically, this framework includes grade-level content and
concepts that repeatedly address the issue of child abuse and
sexual exploitation. The framework includes a discussion of in
each of the identified grades spans as follows:
Kindergarten - grade 3 encourages instruction to
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highlight that a child is not at fault if the child is
touched in an improper or uncomfortable way by an adult and
emphasizes the child's responsibility in this situation is
to tell a trusted adult what had occurred.
Grades 4 - 6 encourages instruction to make students aware
that no one, not even a parent, has the right to abuse a
child or another family member physically, that neglect and
child abuse are serious problems that may require outside
assistance, how and where to seek help or advice if needed,
and suggests information on how to resist sexual abuse or
exploitation should also be presented.
Middle school and high school instruction is encouraged to
include information on the neglect and abuse of children
and students should be told forcefully that these problems
are serious and that they may require outside assistance.
The framework also suggests that students be provided with
information on sexual abuse and rape and should be helped
to develop skills enabling them to prevent, avoid, and cope
with unwanted sexual advances and be asked to demonstrate
those skills. Student should also know that even when
precautions are taken, however, sexual abuse or rape may
occur and for that reason students should be made aware of,
and be given access to, resources available for those who
have been sexually abused, molested, or assaulted.
Previous Legislation
SCR 73, Resolutions of 2012, Chapter 87, encourages school
districts to include age-appropriate instruction related to
child sexual abuse in their curriculum in order to help pupils
understand the difference between appropriate and inappropriate
conduct in situations where child sexual abuse could occur, and
to provide pupils with resources on how to handle these
potentially dangerous situations.
AB 1857 (Fong) (2012) authorizes school districts to provide
education programs that promote healthy relationships and
prevent teen dating abuse through curricular, extracurricular,
and school climate improvement activities, as specified, and
requires the SPI to post information about model curriculum
programs on the CDE's Internet Web site. AB 1857 was held in
the Assembly Appropriations Committee after passing out of the
Assembly Education Committee by a vote of 7 - 3.
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AB 1373 (Fong) of 2011 authorizes school districts to provide
education programs that promote healthy relationships and
prevent Teen Dating Violence Prevention (TDV) through
curricular, extracurricular, and school climate improvement
activities, as specified, and requires the SPI to post
information about model curriculum programs on the CDE's
Internet Web site. AB 1373 was held in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee after passing out of the Assembly
Education Committee by a vote of 8 - 2.
SB 13 (Correa) of 2011 establishes the Teen Dating Violence
Prevention Education Act; authorizes school districts to provide
TDV prevention education as part of sexual health education
programs; and requires districts that choose to implement such
programs to follow specific guidelines and to provide parental
notification of such programs and an opportunity for parents to
opt their children out of this instruction. Requires the
inclusion of TDV prevention education in the heath curriculum
framework, and codifies several definitions. SB 13 failed
passage in the Senate Education Committee.
SB 1300 (Correa) of 2010 establishes the Teen Dating Violence
Prevention Education Act, authorizes school districts to provide
TDV prevention education as part of sexual health education
programs, and requires districts that choose to implement such
programs to follow specific guidelines and to provide parental
notification of such programs and an opportunity for parents to
opt their children out of this instruction. Requires the
inclusion of TDV prevention education in the heath curriculum
framework, and codifies several definitions relative to TDV. SB
1300 failed passage in the Assembly Education Committee.
AB 578 (Honda) of 2000 requires the SPI to develop training
standards for teachers on domestic violence and sexual assault
recognition and appropriate prevention responses, and stipulates
that the use of these standards as optional for school
districts. AB 578 was held in the Senate Appropriations
Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Family Resource Association
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California Police Chiefs Association, Inc.
The Child Abuse Prevention Center
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Jill Rice / ED. / (916) 319-2087