BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION Carol Liu, Chair 2013-2014 Regular Session BILL NO: SB 897 AUTHOR: Steinberg AMENDED: February 20, 2014 FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: March 26, 2014 URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Kathleen Chavira SUBJECT : Adult Education Consortium and California Career Pathways Trust programs. SUMMARY This bill modifies the requirements established for participation in the recently established California Career Pathways Trust and Adult Education Consortium programs to include civics instruction, as specified, and makes other technical and clarifying changes. BACKGROUND Current law, AB 86 (Chapter 48, Statutes of 2013), adopted as part of the 2013-14 Governor's Budget, among other things, established the following two programs: The Adult Education Consortium Program which provides $25 million in planning grants for purposes of regionally creating and implementing plans to provide adult education programs. The California Career Pathways Trust which provides $250 million for school districts, county superintendents of school, charter schools, and community college districts in the form of one-time competitive grants for K-14 career pathways programs. Adult Education Consortium Program The requirements of AB 86 are being jointly implemented by the California Department of Education and the California Community College Chancellor's Office. Eligibility for the SB 897 Page 2 planning grant funds is limited to consortiums consisting of at least one community college district and at least one school district within the boundaries of a community college district. Consortia may include other entities providing adult education courses, such as correctional facilities, other local public entities and community-based organizations. The planning grants must be used to create and implement a plan to better provide adults in its region with all of the following: Elementary and secondary basic skills, including classes required for a high school diploma or high school equivalency certificate. Classes and courses for immigrants eligible for educational services in citizenship and English as a second language, and workforce preparation classes in basic skills. Education programs for adults with disabilities. Short-term career technical education programs with high employment potential. Programs for apprentices. The California Community College Chancellor and the California Department of Education are required to submit a joint status report on the plans submitted by consortia and recommendations for improvements in the delivery system serving adult learners by March 1, 2014, with a final report by March 1, 2015. (Education Code § 84830) California Career Pathways Trust AB 86 provided for the use of $250 million appropriated in the Budget Act of 2013 for the purposes of career technical education. It established the California Career Pathways Trust to apportion funds for school districts, county superintendents of school, charter schools, and community college districts in the form of one-time competitive grants for purposes of K-14 career pathways programs that, among other things, establish regional collaborative relationships and partnerships with business entities, community organizations, and local institutions of SB 897 Page 3 postsecondary education. ANALYSIS This bill : 1) Replaces the provisions providing for the use of funds apportioned in the Budget Act for purposes of establishing the California Career Pathways Trust with codified provisions. 2) Clarifies that, for purposes of the California Career Pathways Trust, "business entities" include public sector entities. 3) Requires, for a career pathways program connected with a public sector entity, that the Superintendent of Public Instruction consider whether the grant recipient should be required to include the College Career and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards in the program as a condition of the receipt of funds. 4) Requires that the adult education courses for elementary and secondary basic skills, including classes required for a high school diploma or high school equivalency certificate, and classes for immigrants in citizenship and English as a second language and workforce preparation classes in basic skills, which are delivered via the consortia include basic instruction in American Government and civics with instruction to include but not be limited to federal, state, and local government, the three branches of government, the importance of civic engagement, and registering to vote. 5) Requires that the new requirements on the specified adult education courses apply to any funding provided to the regional consortia beginning with the fiscal year 2015-16 and in future fiscal years. STAFF COMMENTS 1) Rationale for the bill . According to the author, "Too many studies show an alarming deficiency in civic knowledge and in turn the ability for our residents SB 897 Page 4 and citizens to protect our democracy?..As a democracy, we depend on a knowledgeable and engaged population. Education plays a fundamental role in building civic vitality within our communities and states." 2) Clarification consistent with practice . According to the California Department of Education (CDE), based upon the defined needs of a consortium, a business partner or employer can be a private business, a governmental agency, or a nonprofit agency or organization. This bill clarifies that partnerships with business entities includes public sector entities, consistent with the CDE interpretation and implementation of the Career Pathways Trust Program requirements. 3) Civics instruction in adult education programs . Current law specifies that students must pass a minimum set of required courses and an exit examination in order to graduate from high school. These requirements include three courses in social studies, which, among other things, must include a one-semester course in American government and civics. (EC § Section 51225.3) Current law also provides for the General Educational Development (GED) test for adults who do not have a high school diploma. Those who pass the test receive a California High School Equivalency Certificate. GED testing reports that 25% of the questions in the social studies area are from the civics and government content areas. It appears that, for some adult education courses, the civics instruction proposed by this bill may already be required. However, for some of the individual basic skills or basic workforce courses, it may not be practical or advisable to require actual civics instruction. According to the author, the intent of the legislation is to insure that information on these topics is provided, not that curriculum be developed and instructed. Staff recommends the bill be amended to insert new language to clarify that it is the legislature's intent that, consistent with the requirements of education code sections 51225.3 and 52555, that participants in the specified adult SB 897 Page 5 education programs receive instruction in civics and government. Staff further recommends the bill be amended on page 6, line 17 to replace "shall include basic instruction" with "shall distribute basic information" in the specified classes and courses. 4) C3 Framework ? According to the National Council for the Social Studies, the C3 framework is not a standards document, but rather, provides a framework to assist states, districts and schools in framing their own standards and curriculum requirements. The Council also notes that they purposefully avoided dictating standards and requirements which might be acceptable in some places and not others. In addition, the Council notes that the C3 framework is not part of the Common Core. 5) Inappropriate authority ? This bill directs the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to consider whether to require the inclusion of the C3 framework as a condition of the receipt of grant funds. Directing the SPI to consider whether to require a curriculum which has never been reviewed or adopted for any state purpose would extend a new authority to the SPI. Currently the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC) reviews and recommends, and the State Board of Education (SBE) adopts any curriculum frameworks and standards. The processes for reviewing frameworks and adopting instructional materials have been suspended since July 28, 2009, and the SBE is specifically prohibited from reviewing frameworks and adopting instructional materials until the 2015-16 school year, except as provided is staff comment #6. (EC § 60200.7) 6) Alternative ? Current law requires the SBE to adopt revised frameworks that are aligned to the common core standards in Mathematics by November 30, 2013, and English language arts by May 30, 2014. (EC § 60207) Current law also authorizes the SBE to adopt a revised framework for history social science, but only after the CDE has completed work related to the frameworks for the common core standards. (EC § 60200.8) SB 897 Page 6 Although civics is generally included in the history-social science standards and framework, current law requires the SBE and the CDE to request that the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC) review and revise, as necessary, the course requirements in the history-social science framework to ensure that minimum standards for courses in American government and civics include sufficient attention to teaching students how to interact, in a practical manner, with state and local governmental agencies and representatives to solve problems and to petition for changes in laws and procedures. In addition, when the history-social science framework is revised, the IQC must ensure that specified historical documents are incorporated into the framework, as appropriate. (EC § 33540) If it is the desire of the committee that the C3 framework be considered for use in any state purposes, staff recommends the bill be amended to require the Instructional Quality Commission, when revising the history-social science framework, to consider whether and how to incorporate the C3 Framework. 7) Prior legislation . Similar efforts to integrate civics instruction into curriculum have recently been enacted by the Legislature and Governor. As proposed to be amended per staff comment #6, the process established by the bill would be consistent with these recent efforts: AB 700 (Gomez, Chapter 483, Statutes of 2013) requires the Instructional Quality Commission, in its regular adoption schedule for the history/social science framework, to ensure that voter education information is included in the American government and civics curriculum at the high school level, including, but not limited to, information on the importance of registering to vote in local, state, and federal elections, where and how to access and understand the voter information pamphlet and other materials to become an informed voter. AB 137 (Buchanan, Chapter 225, Statutes of 2013) requires the Instructional Quality Commission, when revising the history-social science framework, among SB 897 Page 7 other things, to receive input from civics learning experts, including civics education program providers, associations of civics educators, and organizations dedicated to research on civics learning, for the purpose of integrating civics learning content, concepts, and skills, at all appropriate grade levels and with the SBE adopted standards in the core curriculum areas. SUPPORT California Adult Education Administrators Association California Council for Adult Education California Council for the Social Studies California School Boards Association State Bar of California Students First OPPOSITION California Right to Life Committee