Amended in Assembly April 7, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 141

Introduced by Assembly Member Bonilla

January 9, 2015

An act to amend begin delete Sections 44259, 44279.1, and 44279.2 end delete begin insert Section 44259 end insert of the Education Code, relating to teacher credentialing.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 141, as amended, Bonilla. Teacher credentialing: beginning teacher induction programs.

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Existing law establishes the Marian Bergeson Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment System to, among other things, provide an effective transition into the teaching career for first year and 2nd year teachers in this state. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to jointly administer this program, to contract for specified services, and to establish requirements for local teacher induction programs. Existing law makes participation in the system voluntary for teachers, school districts, and county offices of education. Existing law authorizes a school district or a consortium of school districts to apply for funding to establish a local teacher induction program, and sets forth the requirements that a school district or consortium of school districts must meet to be eligible for funding.

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Existing law begin delete separately authorizes end delete begin insert prescribes the minimum requirements for a clear multiple or single subject teaching credential, including the completion of either a beginning teacher induction program approved by the commission and the Superintendent pursuant to the Marian Bergeson Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment System, end insert an alternative program of beginning teacher induction that is provided by one or more local educational agencies and has been approved by the commission and the Superintendent on the basis of initial review and periodic evaluations of the program in relation to appropriate standards of credential program quality and effectiveness that have been adopted by the commission, the Superintendent, and the State Board of Education, as begin delete provided. Existing law authorizes an alternative program of beginning teacher induction that has met state standards to apply for state funding, as specified. end delete

begin delete Existing law also separately authorizes end delete begin insert provided, or end insert an alternative program of beginning teacher induction that is sponsored by a regionally accredited college or university, in cooperation with one or more local school districts, that addresses the individual professional needs of beginning teachers and meets the commission’s standards of begin delete induction. end delete begin insert induction, except as provided. end insert

This bill would, commencing with hiring for the 2016-17 school year, and each school year thereafter, require a school begin delete district or end delete begin insert district, end insert county office of begin delete education end delete begin insert education, or a charter school end insert that hires a beginning teacher to provide that begin insert beginning end insert teacher with begin delete one of these end delete begin insert a beginning teacher end insert induction begin delete programs, end delete begin insert program that is approved by the commission and the Superintendent or one of the alternative beginning teacher induction programs described above, end insert except as provided. The bill begin insert also end insert would begin delete also end delete prohibit a local educational agency from charging a fee to a beginning teacher to participate in an induction program. By requiring begin delete school districts and county offices of education end delete begin insert local educational agencies end insert to provide an induction program to newly hired beginning teachers, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 44259 of the Education Code is amended
to read:

44259.  

(a) Except as provided in subparagraphs (A) and (C)
of paragraph (3) of subdivision (b), each program of professional
preparation for multiple or single subject teaching credentials shall
not include more than two years of full-time study of professional
preparation.

(b) The minimum requirements for the preliminary multiple or
single subject teaching credential are all of the following:

(1) A baccalaureate degree or higher degree from a regionally
accredited institution of postsecondary education. Except as
provided in subdivision (c) of Section 44227, the baccalaureate
degree shall not be in professional education. The commission
shall encourage accredited institutions to offer undergraduate
minors in education and special education to students who intend
to become teachers.

(2) Passage of the state basic skills proficiency test that is
developed and administered by the commission pursuant to Section
44252.5.

(3) Satisfactory completion of a program of professional
preparation that has been accredited by the Committee on
Accreditation on the basis of standards of program quality and
effectiveness that have been adopted by the commission. In
accordance with the commission’s assessment and performance
standards, each program shall include a teaching performance
assessment as set forth in Section 44320.2 that is aligned with the
California Standards for the Teaching Profession. The commission
shall ensure that each candidate recommended for a credential or
certificate has demonstrated satisfactory ability to assist pupils to
meet or exceed academic content and performance standards for
pupils adopted by the state board pursuant to Section 60605.
Programs that meet this requirement for professional preparation
shall include any of the following:

(A) Integrated programs of subject matter preparation and
professional preparation pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section
44259.1.

(B) Postbaccalaureate programs of professional preparation,
pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 44259.1.

(C) Internship programs of professional preparation, pursuant
to Section 44321, Article 7.5 (commencing with Section 44325),
Article 11 (commencing with Section 44380), and Article 3
(commencing with Section 44450) of Chapter 3.

(4) Study of alternative methods of developing English language
skills, including the study of reading as described in subparagraphs
(A) and (B), among all pupils, including those for whom English
is a second language, in accordance with the commission’s
standards of program quality and effectiveness. The study of
reading shall meet the following requirements:

(A) Commencing January 1, 1997, satisfactory completion of
comprehensive reading instruction that is research based and
includes all of the following:

(i) The study of organized, systematic, explicit skills including
phonemic awareness, direct, systematic, explicit phonics, and
decoding skills.

(ii) A strong literature, language, and comprehension component
with a balance of oral and written language.

(iii) Ongoing diagnostic techniques that inform teaching and
assessment.

(iv) Early intervention techniques.

(v) Guided practice in a clinical setting.

(B) For purposes of this section, “direct, systematic, explicit
phonics” means phonemic awareness, spelling patterns, the direct
instruction of sound/symbol codes and practice in connected text,
and the relationship of direct, systematic, explicit phonics to the
components set forth in clauses (i) to (v), inclusive, of subparagraph
(A).

A program for the multiple subjects credential also shall include
the study of integrated methods of teaching language arts.

(5) Completion of a subject matter program that has been
approved by the commission on the basis of standards of program
quality and effectiveness pursuant to Article 6 (commencing with
Section 44310) or passage of a subject matter examination pursuant
to Article 5 (commencing with Section 44280). The commission
shall ensure that subject matter standards and examinations are
aligned with the academic content and performance standards for
pupils adopted by the state board pursuant to Section 60605.

(6) Demonstration of a knowledge of the principles and
provisions of the Constitution of the United States pursuant to
Section 44335.

(7) Commencing January 1, 2000, demonstration, in accordance
with the commission’s standards of program quality and
effectiveness, of basic competency in the use of computers in the
classroom as determined by one of the following:

(A) Successful completion of a commission-approved program
or course.

(B) Successful passage of an assessment that is developed,
approved, and administered by the commission.

(c) The minimum requirements for the clear multiple or single
subject teaching credential shall include all of the following
requirements:

(1) Possession of a valid preliminary teaching credential, as
prescribed in subdivision (b), possession of a valid equivalent
credential or certificate, or completion of equivalent requirements
as determined by the commission.

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), completion of a
program of beginning teacher induction, including one of the
following:

(A)  begin insert (i) end insert begin insert   end insert A program of beginning teacher begin delete support and assessment end delete
begin insert induction end insert approved by the commission and the begin delete Superintendent
pursuant to Section 44279.1, a provision of the Marian Bergeson
Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment System. end delete
begin insert Superintendent. end insert

begin insert

(ii) Commencing with hiring for the 2016-17 school year, and
each school year thereafter, a school district, county office of
education, or charter school that hires a beginning teacher shall
provide that beginning teacher with a program of beginning
teacher induction, unless the beginning teacher meets the
requirements of paragraph (3).

end insert begin insert

(iii) A school district, county office of education, or charter
school shall not charge a fee to a beginning teacher to participate
in the beginning teacher induction program.

end insert

(B) (i) An alternative program of beginning teacher induction
that is provided by one or more local educational agencies and has
been approved by the commission and the Superintendent on the
basis of initial review and periodic evaluations of the program in
relation to appropriate standards of credential program quality and
effectiveness that have been adopted by the commission, the
Superintendent, and the state board pursuant to this subdivision.
The standards for alternative programs shall encourage innovation
and experimentation in the continuous preparation and induction
of beginning teachers. An alternative program of beginning teacher
induction that has met state standards pursuant to this subdivision
may apply for state funding pursuant to Sections 44279.1 and
44279.2.

(ii) A local educational agency shall not charge a fee to a
beginning teacher to participate in an alternative program of
beginning teacher induction that is provided pursuant to this
subparagraph.

(C) (i) An alternative program of beginning teacher induction
that is sponsored by a regionally accredited college or university,
in cooperation with one or more local school districts, that
addresses the individual professional needs of beginning teachers
and meets the commission’s standards of induction. The
commission shall ensure that preparation and induction programs
that qualify candidates for professional credentials extend and
refine each beginning teacher’s professional skills in relation to
the California Standards for the Teaching Profession and the
academic content and performance standards for pupils adopted
by the state board pursuant to Section 60605.

(ii) A school district shall not charge a beginning teacher a fee
to participate in an alternative program of beginning teacher
induction that is provided pursuant to this subparagraph.

(3) (A) If a candidate satisfies the requirements of subdivision
(b), including completion of an accredited internship program of
professional preparation, and if that internship program fulfills
induction standards and is approved as set forth in this subdivision,
the commission shall determine that the candidate has fulfilled the
requirements of paragraph (2).

(B) If an approved induction program is verified as unavailable
to a beginning teacher, or if the beginning teacher is required under
the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 6301
et seq.) to complete subject matter coursework to be qualified for
a teaching assignment, the commission shall accept completion of
an approved clear credential program after completion of a
baccalaureate degree at a regionally accredited institution as
fulfilling the requirements of paragraph (2). The commission shall
adopt regulations to implement this subparagraph.

(4) Experience that includes the application of knowledge and
skills previously acquired in a preliminary credential program, in
accordance with commission standards, that addresses the
following:

(A) Health education, including study of nutrition,
cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and the physiological and
sociological effects of abuse of alcohol, narcotics, and drugs and
the use of tobacco. Training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation shall
also meet the standards established by the American Heart
Association or the American Red Cross.

(B) Field experience in methods of delivering appropriate
educational services to pupils with exceptional needs in regular
begin delete education end delete begin insert educational end insert programs.

(C) Advanced computer-based technology, including the uses
of technology in educational settings.

(d) The commission shall develop and implement standards of
program quality and effectiveness that provide for the areas of
application listed in subparagraphs (A) to (C), inclusive, of
paragraph (4) of subdivision (c), starting in professional preparation
and continuing through induction.

(e) A credential that was issued before January 1, 1993, shall
remain in force as long as it is valid under the laws and regulations
that were in effect on the date it was issued. The commission shall
not, by regulation, invalidate an otherwise valid credential, unless
it issues to the holder of the credential, in substitution, a new
credential authorized by another provision in this chapter that is
no more restrictive than the credential for which it was substituted
with respect to the kind of service authorized and the grades,
classes, or types of schools in which it authorizes service.

(f) A credential program that is approved by the commission
shall not deny an individual access to that program solely on the
grounds that the individual obtained a teaching credential through
completion of an internship program when that internship program
has been accredited by the commission.

(g) Notwithstanding this section, persons who were performing
teaching services as of January 1, 1999, pursuant to the language
of this section that was in effect before that date, may continue to
perform those services without complying with any requirements
that may be added by the amendments adding this subdivision.

(h) Subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (4) of subdivision
(b) do not apply to any person who, as of January 1, 1997, holds
a multiple or single subject teaching credential, or to any person
enrolled in a program of professional preparation for a multiple
or single subject teaching credential as of January 1, 1997, who
subsequently completes that program. It is the intent of the
Legislature that the requirements of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of
paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) be applied only to persons who
enter a program of professional preparation on or after January 1,
1997.

begin delete

SEC. 2.  

Section 44279.1 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

44279.1.  

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that the
beginning years of the career of a teacher are a critical time in
which it is necessary that intensive professional development and
assessment occur. The Legislature recognizes that the public invests
heavily in the preparation of prospective teachers, and that more
than one-half of all new teachers leave some California school
districts after one or two years in the classroom. Intensive
professional development and assessment are necessary to build
on the preparation that precedes initial certification, to transform
academic preparation into practical success in the classroom, to
retain greater numbers of capable beginning teachers, and to
remove novices who show little promise as teachers. It is the intent
of the Legislature that the commission and the Superintendent
develop and implement policies to govern the support and
assessment of beginning teachers, as a condition for the
professional certification of those teachers in the future.

(b) There is hereby established the California Beginning Teacher
Support and Assessment System, to be administered jointly by the
commission and the Superintendent. In administering the system,
the commission and the Superintendent shall approve the most
cost-effective programs of support and assessment. The
commission and the Superintendent also shall ensure that programs
meet the Standards of Quality and Effectiveness for Beginning
Teacher Support and Assessment Programs adopted by the
commission and that local programs support beginning teachers
in meeting the competencies described in the California Standards
for the Teaching Profession adopted by the commission. The
system shall do all of the following:

(1) Provide an effective transition into the teaching career for
first-year and second-year teachers in California.

(2) Improve the educational performance of pupils through
improved training, information, and assistance for new teachers.

(3) Enable beginning teachers to be effective in teaching pupils
who are culturally, linguistically, and academically diverse.

(4) Ensure the professional success and retention of new
teachers.

(5) Ensure that a support provider provides intensive
individualized support and assistance to each participating
beginning teacher.

(6) Improve the rigor and consistency of individual teacher
performance assessments and the usefulness of assessment results
to teachers and decisionmakers.

(7) Establish an effective, coherent system of performance
assessments that are based on the California Standards for the
Teaching Profession adopted by the commission.

(8) Examine alternative ways in which the general public and
the educational profession may be assured that new teachers who
remain in teaching have attained acceptable levels of professional
competence.

(9) Ensure that an individual induction plan is in place for each
participating beginning teacher and is based on an ongoing
assessment of the development of the beginning teacher.

(10) Ensure continuous program improvement through ongoing
research, development, and evaluation.

(c) (1) Participation in the system shall be voluntary for
teachers, and participation by certificated employees shall not be
made a condition of employment. The commission and the
Superintendent shall adopt and implement criteria and standards
for participation in the system, including criteria regarding the
eligibility of teachers and standards of local program quality and
intensity for schools, school districts, county offices of education,
colleges, universities, and other educational and professional
organizations. The criteria and standards shall be consistent with
the purposes of the system.

(2) Commencing with hiring for the 2016-17 school year, and
each school year thereafter, a school district or county office of
education that hires a beginning teacher shall provide that
beginning teacher with a program of beginning teacher induction
described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) of Section 44259,
unless the beginning teacher meets the requirements of paragraph
(3) of subdivision (c) of Section 44259.

(d) (1) For purposes of this article, unless the context otherwise
requires, “beginning teacher” means a teacher with a valid
California credential, as defined in Section 44259.

(2) For purposes of this article, “beginning teacher” does not
include a teacher with a life or a clear teaching credential who
returns to serve in a certificated teaching position.

(e) Subject to verification and approval by the director of an
induction program, a beginning teacher shall not be required to
demonstrate that an induction standard has been met, or complete
an element of an approved induction program designed to assist a
candidate in mastering a given standard, if the candidate previously
met the induction standard while participating in a
commission-approved preparation program.

(f) The Superintendent and the commission shall disseminate
the California Standards for the Teaching Profession adopted by
the commission to colleges, universities, school districts, county
offices of education, and professional associations, who shall be
encouraged to use the standards in efforts to improve teacher
preparation and support programs. Performance assessments
developed under this article shall be designed to provide useful,
helpful feedback to beginning teachers and their support providers.
That information shall not be used for employment-related
evaluations, as a condition of employment, or as a basis for
terminating employment.

(g) It is the intent of the Legislature that the commission and
the Superintendent establish a statewide teacher induction program
that supports locally designed, high-quality induction programs
that provide individualized support and formative assessment for
all participating beginning teachers as defined in subdivision (d).
At the discretion of the local beginning teacher support and
assessment system teacher induction program, funds allocated to
a program on the basis of eligible beginning teachers may be used
to provide support, assistance, and preparation services to other
credential candidates who are in their first or second year of
employment as a classroom teacher.

(h) This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Marian
Bergeson Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment System.

SEC. 3.  

Section 44279.2 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

44279.2.  

(a) The Superintendent and the commission shall
jointly administer the California Beginning Teacher Support and
Assessment System pursuant to this chapter. In administering this
section, the Superintendent and the commission shall provide or
contract for the provision of all of the following:

(1) Establishing requirements for reviewing and approving
teacher induction programs.

(2) Developing and administering a system for ensuring teacher
induction program quality and effectiveness. For purposes of this
section, “program effectiveness” means producing excellent
program outcomes in relation to the purposes defined in subdivision
(b) of Section 44279.1. For purposes of this section, “program
quality” means excellence with respect to program factors,
including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(A) Program goals.

(B) Design resources.

(C) Management, evaluation, and improvement of the program.

(D) School context and working conditions.

(E) Support and assessment services to each beginning teacher.

(3) Developing purposes and functions for reviewing and
approving supplemental grants and standards for program clusters
and program consultants, as defined pursuant to Section 44279.7.

(4) Improving and refining the formative assessment system.

(5) Improving and refining professional development materials
and strategies for all personnel involved in implementing induction
programs.

(6) Conducting and tracking research related to beginning
teacher induction.

(7) Periodically evaluating the validity of the California
Standards for the Teaching Profession adopted by the commission
and the Standards of Quality and Effectiveness for Beginning
Teacher Support and Assessment Program adopted by the
commission and making changes to those documents, as necessary.

(b) As part of the California Beginning Teacher Support and
Assessment System, the commission and the Superintendent shall
establish requirements for local teacher induction programs.

(c) A school district or consortium of school districts may apply
to the Superintendent for funding to establish a local teacher
induction program pursuant to this section. From amounts
appropriated for purposes of this section, the Superintendent shall
allocate three thousand dollars ($3,000) for each beginning teacher
participating in the program. That amount shall be adjusted each
fiscal year by the inflation factor set forth in Section 42238.1. To
be eligible to receive funding, a school district or consortium of
school districts shall, at a minimum, meet all of the following
requirements:

(1) Develop, implement, and evaluate teacher induction
programs that meet the Quality and Effectiveness for Beginning
Teacher Induction Program Standards adopted by the commission.

(2) Support beginning teachers in meeting the competencies
described in the California Standards for the Teaching Profession
adopted by the commission.

(3) Meet criteria for the cost-effective delivery of program
services.

(4) From amounts received from local, state, or resources
available for purposes of teacher induction programs, contribute
not less than two thousand dollars ($2,000) for the costs of each
beginning teacher served in the induction program.

(5) Not charge a fee to a beginning teacher to participate in the
induction program.

(d) Teachers who have received their preliminary credential in
a district intern program pursuant to Article 7.5 (commencing with
Section 44325) or an intern program pursuant to Article 3
(commencing with Section 44450) of Chapter 3 and who are
participating in an induction program pursuant to this section are
not eligible for funding pursuant to Article 11 (commencing with
Section 44380) of Chapter 2.

end delete

begin delete SEC. 4. end delete
begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.