BILL NUMBER: SB 714 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 24, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 7, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 15, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 1, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Senator Block
FEBRUARY 22, 2013
An act to add and repeal Sections 46308 and 46309 of the Education
Code, relating to schools.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 714, as amended, Block. Schools: average daily attendance:
online instruction.
Existing law establishes the public elementary and secondary
school system in this state, and further establishes a funding system
pursuant to which the state apportions funds to local educational
agencies based on, among other factors, the average daily attendance
of pupils at the schools operated by those agencies. Existing law
authorizes, commencing with the 2014-15 school year, for purposes of
computing average daily attendance, the inclusion of pupils in grades
9 to 12, inclusive, under the immediate supervision and control of a
certificated employee of the school district or county office of
education who is delivering synchronous, online instruction, as
defined, provided that this instruction meets specified criteria.
This bill, separate from the authority related to online
instruction described above, subject to the adoption by the
Superintendent of Public Instruction of implementing rules and
regulations on or before January 1, 2015, and commencing with the
2015-16 fiscal year, would authorize school districts, county offices
of education, and charter schools providing classroom-based
instruction that offer high-quality online education courses,
as defined, to claim up to 10% of the total average daily attendance
of pupils enrolled in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, on the basis of a
pupil's satisfactory pupil progress toward obtaining a high school
diploma by earning course credit through attendance in online
educational learning programs, as defined. The bill would cap, as
specified, the number of pupils a school district, county office of
education, or charter school may enroll in an online course or
courses. The bill would also require a school district, county office
of education, or charter school providing classroom-based
instruction that did not offer an online course or courses in
the 2014-15 school year but chooses to enroll pupils in an online
course or courses, to offer the course or courses at the beginning of
the school year and to submit semiannual reports to the State
Department of Education comparing the course credits earned by pupils
enrolled in an online course or courses to the course credits earned
by pupils enrolled in classroom-based courses.
The bill would authorize a school district, county office of
education, or charter school providing classroom-based
instruction that operates an online educational learning
program to receive state apportionments for up to 10% of the total
average daily attendance of pupils enrolled in grades 9 to 12,
inclusive, for 3 consecutive years , and for an additional
3 years if semiannual reports are submitted, as described above, and
the enrolled pupils are achieving satisfactory pupil progress. The
bill would require a school district, county office of education, or
charter school that enrolls pupils in an online course or courses to
develop and adopt policies that evaluate if a pupil is achieving
satisfactory pupil progress and if a pupil should be allowed to
continue to enroll in the online educational learning program. The
bill would require a participating school district, county office of
education, or charter school to submit pupil records for review by
the department that compare the course completion rate of pupils
participating in the online educational learning program to the
overall course completion rate for pupils enrolled in grades 9 to 12,
inclusive, if the pupils participating in the online educational
learning program are earning less than 75% of the course credits
earned by pupils enrolled in classroom-based courses. The bill would
require the department to develop a process authorizing a school
district, county office of education, or charter school to reduce the
state apportionment it receives for the online educational learning
program if projected pupil enrollment or satisfactory pupil progress
is not being achieved. The bill would authorize the department to
reduce or eliminate the apportionments a school district, county
office of education, or charter school receives for pupils
participating in the online educational learning program if the
participating pupils have not achieved satisfactory pupil progress or
the semiannual reports are not submitted. The bill would authorize a
school district, county office of education, or charter school to
appeal a decision of the department to reduce or eliminate the state
apportionments received for pupils participating in the online
educational learning program.
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. Section 46308 is added to the Education Code, to read:
46308. (a) Subject to subdivision (k) and commencing with the
2015-16 fiscal year, a school district, county office of education,
or charter school providing classroom-based instruction, as
defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) of Section 47612.5,
may claim, for up to 10 percent of the total average daily
attendance of pupils enrolled in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, in the
school district, county office of education, or charter school, state
apportionments pursuant to Section 46309, on the basis of a pupil's
satisfactory pupil progress toward obtaining a high school diploma by
earning course credit through attendance in online educational
learning programs. Online educational learning programs may include
one online course, multiple online courses, or a combination of
online coursework and classroom-based coursework. Online educational
learning programs shall be separate from online courses offered
pursuant to Section 46300.8. Pupils shall be eligible to participate
in online educational learning programs if all of the following
apply:
(1) The pupil is enrolled in grade 9, 10, 11, or 12 in a
participating school district, county office of education, or charter
school .
(2) The pupil is a California resident.
(3) The pupil is enrolled in classes that include courses in a
classroom-based setting, courses that are offered through an online
program, or both.
(4) The pupil is not enrolled in a community day school or
juvenile court school.
(5) The pupil meets minimum instructional time requirements
pursuant to:
(A) Section 46141 and Section 46201, 46201.5, or 46202, as
applicable, for pupils enrolled in a noncharter school in a school
district or county office of education.
(B) Section 46170, for pupils enrolled in a continuation school.
(C) Section 46180, for pupils enrolled in an opportunity school.
(D) Subdivision (e) of Section 47612.5, for pupils enrolled in a
charter school.
(6) Each online course in which the pupil is enrolled is a
high-quality online course.
(b) For the purposes of this section, a "high-quality online
course" is defined as an online course that meets all of the
following requirements:
(1) The online course is approved by the governing board of the
school district or county office of education, or by the governing
body of the charter school.
(2) The online course is certified to meet the requirements of
this subdivision, through board resolution, by the governing board of
the school district or county office of education, or by the
governing body of the charter school.
(3) The online course is certified by the governing board of the
school district or county office of education, or by the governing
body of the charter school, as being as rigorous as a classroom-based
course and meeting or exceeding all relevant state content
standards.
(4) (A) A teacher teaching
an online course or courses operated pursuant to this section shall
be accessible to each pupil enrolled in the online course or courses
to respond to pupil queries, assign tasks, and dispense information.
A teacher teaching an online course shall provide timely feedback on
communications for pupils within 24 hours and timely feedback for
assessing pupils' work within 72 hours for minor assignments and
within one week for major assignments, including, but not limited to,
midterm and final examinations, major projects, and compositions. A
teacher teaching an online course shall employ all of the following:
(i)
(A) Periodic proctored examinations.
(ii)
(B) Direct teacher-pupil meetings, in person, no less
than twice per calendar month.
(iii)
(C) A visual connection, including, but not limited to,
an Internet Web camera.
(5) Specific minimum standards for teacher-pupil contact shall be
determined through a collective bargaining agreement.
(6) (A) The ratio of pupils enrolled in the online course who are
18 years of age or younger to school district full-time equivalent
certificated employees who provide online instruction, to be
calculated in a manner prescribed by the department, shall not exceed
the equivalent ratio of pupils to full-time certificated employees
for all other educational programs operated by the school district,
unless a higher or lower ratio is negotiated in a collective
bargaining agreement.
(B) The ratio of pupils enrolled in the online course who are 18
years of age or younger to county office of education full-time
equivalent certificated employees who provide online instruction, to
be calculated in a manner prescribed by the department, shall not
exceed the equivalent ratio of pupils to full-time certificated
employees for all other educational programs operated by the high
school or unified school district with the greatest average daily
attendance of pupils in that county, unless a higher or lower ratio
is negotiated in a collective bargaining agreement.
(C) The computation of the ratios in subparagraphs (A) and (B)
shall be performed annually by the reporting agency at the time of,
and in connection with, the second principal apportionment report to
the Superintendent.
(7) When a classroom-based course of the same course title exists
within the school district, county office of education, or charter
school, the subject matter content of the online course shall meet or
exceed the content standards applied to the classroom-based course.
(8) The teacher of the online course holds the appropriate subject
matter credential and credential,
meets the requirements for a highly qualified teacher pursuant to the
federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 6301 et
seq.). seq.), and is employed in the state of
California.
(9) (A) Statewide testing results for pupils enrolled in an online
course or courses are reported and assigned to the school in which
the pupil is enrolled for classroom-based courses, and to any school
district or county office of education within which that school's
testing results are aggregated.
(B) Statewide testing results for pupils enrolled in an online
course or courses may be disaggregated for purposes of comparing the
testing results of those pupils to the testing results of pupils
enrolled in classroom-based courses.
(10) The online course is offered by a high school, continuation
school, county office of education, or charter school offering
instruction in any of grades 9 to 12, inclusive.
(11) No pupil is assigned to the online course unless the pupil
voluntarily elects to participate in the online course and the parent
or guardian of the pupil provides written consent before the pupil
participates in the online course.
(12) No pupil voluntarily electing to participate in the online
course is denied access because the pupil lacks the computer hardware
or software necessary to participate in the online course.
(13) No pupil is charged for his or her participation in the
online course.
(14) A pupil enrolled in the online course shall take examinations
by proctor, or other reliable methods used to ensure test integrity,
and there is a clear record of pupil work, using the same method of
documentation and assessment as used in a classroom-based course.
(c) Nothing in this section shall affect a state board
determination made pursuant to Section 47612.5.
(d) Compliance with this section shall be subject to the audit
conducted pursuant to Section 41020.
(e) (1) Each high-quality online course shall be deemed to be an
offering of 60 minutes for purposes of calculating instructional
time.
(2) A pupil shall not receive course credit for the same
high-quality online course more than once.
(3) A pupil enrolled in a high-quality online course shall be
credited with a day of attendance for each schoolday the pupil is
enrolled in the high-quality online course and in accordance with
paragraph (5) of subdivision (a).
(4) "Satisfactory pupil progress" means a pupil has earned at
least 60 course credits in a school year.
(f) To remain eligible for claiming and generating apportionments,
a pupil over 19 years of age enrolled in an online course or courses
shall be continuously enrolled in public school and achieve
satisfactory pupil progress, as defined in paragraph (4) of
subdivision (e), toward award of a high school diploma.
(g) To receive state apportionments, a school district, county
office of education, or charter school providing classroom-based
instruction, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) of
Section 47612.5, offering an online course or courses meeting
the requirements of subdivision (b) shall not be required to meet the
requirements of Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 51745) of
Chapter 5 of Part 28.
(h) (1) A participating school district, county office of
education, or charter school providing classroom-based
instruction, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) of
Section 47612.5, shall receive state apportionments, for up to
10 percent of the total average daily attendance for pupils enrolled
in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, in the school district, county office
of education, or charter school, for pupils enrolled in a
high-quality online course or courses, as defined in subdivision (b),
based on the number of pupils enrolled in an online course or
courses in the 2014-15 school year, or the percentage of pupils
authorized to enroll in an online course or courses pursuant to
paragraph (2), whichever is greater.
(2) A participating school district, county office of education,
or charter school providing classroom-based instruction, as
defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) of Section 47612.5,
that did not offer an online course or courses in the 2014-15 school
year shall receive state apportionments, for up to 10 percent of the
total average daily attendance of pupils enrolled in grades 9 to 12,
inclusive, of the school district, county office of education, or
charter school, if all of the following conditions are met:
(A) A participating school district, county office of education,
or charter school satisfies the requirements of subdivisions (a) and
(b).
(B) A participating school district, county office of education,
or charter school offers the online course or courses at the
beginning of the school year and demonstrates that at least the same
number of pupils that the school district, county office of
education, or charter school is eligible to receive state
apportionments for under an online educational learning program are
actually enrolled in the online course or courses.
(C) The participating school district, county office of education,
or charter school submits a semiannual report to the department
comparing the course credits earned by pupils enrolled in an online
course or courses to course credits earned by pupils enrolled in
classroom-based courses.
(i) For purposes of this section, "online educational learning
program" means a program of study that may include any combination of
courses where the teacher and the pupil are online at the same time
or are online at different times and do not interact simultaneously.
A pupil may enroll in online courses, classroom-based courses, or a
combination of both, during a schoolday to complete the pupil's
established program of study that satisfies the requirement of
achieving satisfactory pupil progress toward obtaining a high school
diploma by earning course credits.
(j) No provision of this section shall be waived unless the waiver
is specifically authorized in statute.
(k) The Superintendent, on or before January 1, 2015, shall adopt
rules and regulations implementing this section.
(l) This section shall become inoperative on June 30, 2019, and,
as of January 1, 2020, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2020, deletes or
extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
SEC. 2. Section 46309 is added to the Education Code, to read:
46309. (a) Subject to subdivision (g), a school district, county
office of education, or charter school providing cla
ssroom-based instruction, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision
(e) of Section 47612.5, that operates an online educational
learning program is eligible to receive state apportionments for up
to 10 percent of the total average daily attendance of pupils
enrolled in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, of the school district, county
office of education, or charter school, pursuant to Section 46308,
for three consecutive years. A school district, county office of
education, or charter school providing classroom-based
instruction, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) of
Section 47612.5, is eligible to receive state apportionments
for an additional three years if the school district, county office
of education, or charter school submits the semiannual reports
described in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (h) of
Section 46308, and the pupils enrolled in the online course or
courses are achieving satisfactory pupil progress, as defined in
paragraph (4) of subdivision (e) of Section 46308.
(b) A participating school district, county office of education,
or charter school shall develop and adopt policies that evaluate if a
pupil is achieving satisfactory pupil progress, as defined in
paragraph (4) of subdivision (e) of Section 46308, and if a pupil
should be allowed to continue to participate in the online
educational learning program.
(c) If, in any year of participation, the pupils participating in
an online educational learning program offered by a school district,
county office of education, or charter school are earning less than
75 percent of the course credits earned by pupils enrolled in
classroom-based courses, the participating school district, county
office of education, or charter school shall submit pupil records for
review by the department that compare the course completion rate of
pupils participating in the online educational learning program to
the overall course completion rate for pupils enrolled in grades 9 to
12, inclusive, in the participating school district, county office
of education, or charter school.
(d) The department shall develop a process authorizing a school
district, county office of education, or charter school, to
voluntarily reduce the state apportionments received for the online
educational learning program if projected pupil enrollment is not
achieved, or the pupils are not achieving satisfactory pupil
progress, as defined in paragraph (4) of subdivision (e) of Section
46308.
(e) The department may reduce or eliminate the state
apportionments a participating school district, county office of
education, or charter school receives for pupils participating in an
online educational learning program if the pupils have not achieved
satisfactory pupil progress, as defined in paragraph (4) of
subdivision (e) of Section 46308, for three consecutive years or the
school district, county office of education, or charter school does
not comply with the semiannual reporting requirements described in
subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (h) of Section
46308. The department shall review the pupil records of pupils
participating in the online educational learning program to make this
determination. If the department decides to eliminate the state
apportionments a participating school district, county office of
education, or charter school receives for pupils participating in an
online educational learning program, the state apportionments shall
be eliminated in the year following the year the department decides
to eliminate the state apportionments. A participating school
district, county office of education, or charter school may appeal to
the state board the decision of the department to reduce or
eliminate the state apportionments a participating school district,
county office of education, or charter school receives for pupils
participating in an online educational learning program.
(f) Compliance with this section shall be subject to the audit
conducted pursuant to Section 41020.
(g) The Superintendent, on or before January 1, 2015, shall adopt
rules and regulations implementing this section.
(h) This section shall become inoperative on June 30, 2019, and,
as of January 1, 2020, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2020, deletes or
extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.