BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2350
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
2350 (O'Donnell)
As Amended May 27, 2016
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Education |7-0 |O'Donnell, Olsen, | |
| | |Kim, McCarty, | |
| | |Santiago, Thurmond, | |
| | |Weber | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |20-0 |Gonzalez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bloom, Bonilla, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, Eggman, | |
| | |Gallagher, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Roger | |
| | |Hernández, Holden, | |
| | |Jones, Obernolte, | |
| | |Quirk, Santiago, | |
| | |Wagner, Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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AB 2350
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SUMMARY: Prohibits English learners (ELs) in middle and high
school from being prevented from enrolling in core curriculum
courses and courses required for graduation, requires that
courses designed for long term English learners (LTELs) be
offered for graduation credit, and requires the California
Department of Education (CDE) to create a video-based
professional development series on English Language Development
(ELD) and revise a publication on improving instruction for ELs.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Prohibits a middle or high school student who is enrolled in
an English language development course or who is classified as
an English learner from being prevented from doing either of
the following:
a) Enrolling in core curriculum courses in English language
arts or any other course required for graduation, grade
promotion, or meeting the a-g subject requirements for
admission to the University of California (UC) or the
California State University (CSU)
b) Taking a full course load in core subjects required for
graduation, grade promotion, or meeting the a-g subject
requirements for admission to the UC or CSU
1)States that this requirement does not apply to a student
participating in an articulated newcomer program unless the
student meets the local educational agency's (LEA's) exit
criteria for transition into a general education program.
Defines, for purposes of this requirement, "articulated
newcomer program" as a separate, sometimes self-contained
program that meets all of the following criteria:
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a) The program is designed to meet the academic and
transitional needs of newly arrived immigrants
b) Instruction is aligned with state academic content
standards in content areas for which standards are adopted
c) Instruction for learning English is aligned with ELD
standards
d) When possible, instruction in the core subjects of
mathematics, science, and history-social science are
offered in the student's primary language
1)Requires that, if an LEA offers a course designed for LTELs,
that the course confer credits in English language arts
necessary to meet graduation or grade promotion requirements.
States the intent of the Legislature that LEAs submit those
courses to the UC and the CSU for approval to meet a-g subject
requirements for admission.
2)Requires the CDE to contract for the development of a series
of videos demonstrating best practices for implementing
designated and integrated ELD in grades transitional
Kindergarten through grade 12, and make the series available
on the CDE website; and requires the CDE to revise its
existing research-based guidance document on improving the
education of English learners. Requires that in developing
the series the CDE to:
a) Compile program models that address the implementation
of designated and integrated ELD instruction during the
school day that allows students to access ELD and academic
content
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b) Convene a group of experts and request public input
c) Complete the series and revised document by the
beginning of the 2019-20 school year
1)States that implementation of requirement to produce the video
series and revised document is contingent upon funding being
provided for this purpose in the annual Budget Act or another
statute.
2)Defines "integrated and designated" ELD as used in the ELD
standards. States that the English Language Arts/English
Language Development Framework adopted by the State Board of
Education in 2014 states that English learners at all levels
require both integrated and designated ELD, defined as
follows:
a) Designated ELD: instruction designed for ELs according
to their level of English proficiency to overcome language
barriers in a reasonable amount of time, during a protected
time in the regular school day, in which teachers use the
ELD standards in ways that build into and from content
instruction in order to develop critical language they need
for content learning in English
b) Integrated ELD: instruction in which all teachers with
ELs in their classrooms, regardless of course content, use
the California ELD standards in tandem with the state
content standards
1)Changes the term "limited English proficient" to "English
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learner" in a section related to credentialing of teachers to
serve English learners, and aligns the definition of
"specially designed content instruction in English" with the
one used in the state's ELD standards.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, administrative costs to the CDE of approximately $1.2
million (federal Title III), over three years, to develop best
practices videos and update guidance documents on instruction.
COMMENTS:
Need for the bill. The author's office states: "The
achievement gap between California's English learners and their
peers is a central challenge facing in our public education
system.
"California's English learner students score substantially lower
on state assessments than non-English learner students, graduate
from high school at lower rates, and attend postsecondary
institutions at lower rates. While there has been incremental
growth in achievement among students in both the general
population and English learners, the rate of growth in the
general population has significantly outpaced that of English
learners. As a result, the achievement gap has actually widened
over time. Results from the first administration of our Common
Core-aligned assessments suggest that the gap may be widening
further.
"Recent evidence has pointed to a number of institutional
barriers to English learners' success, including secondary
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English learners' poor access to the core curriculum and
insufficient teacher preparation and professional development to
address the instructional needs of English learners,
particularly in light of the state's new English language
development standards.
"AB 2350 will improve English learners' access to the core
curriculum and will support educators in improving English
language development instruction. This bill will ensure that
English learners are not held back from enrolling in core
curriculum courses necessary for graduation, and it will ensure
that special courses designed for long term English learners are
credit-bearing. And it will establish a professional
development resource for teachers on California's groundbreaking
English language development standards. These standards
represent provide new and promising opportunities to meet the
language and content learning needs of our students."
English learner achievement gap. There are approximately 1.4
million English learners in California public schools,
representing 22% of the state's enrollment. 2.7 million
students speak a language other than English in their homes,
representing about 43% of the state's public school enrollment.
73% of English learners are enrolled in the elementary grades,
and 27% are enrolled in the secondary grades. One in three
English learners in the United States resides in California.
California's English learner students score substantially lower
on state assessments and other measures of achievement than
non-English learner students. While there has been incremental
growth in achievement on state assessments among all students
over time, the rate of growth in the non-English learner
population has significantly outpaced that of English learners.
As a result, the achievement gap has widened over time. Data
from state sources indicates:
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1)On the 2015 administration of the California Assessment of
Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP), 11% of English
learners in all grades met or exceeded standard in English
language arts/literacy and 11% in math, compared with 69% and
55% for those subjects, respectively, for students proficient
in English.
2)A report by the Public Policy Institute of California found
that in a relatively large number of schools, no EL students
scored at or above the standards for English language arts
(ELA) and math on the CAASPP assessment. The report notes
that, in the past, 30% of districts required ELs to meet the
ELA standard on the California Standards Test to be
reclassified.
3)Graduation rates for English learners are lower compared to
the general population and other subgroups. The 2013-14
four-year cohort graduation was 81%, while the rate for
English learners was 65%, the lowest of any subgroup besides
students in special education. The dropout rate for English
learners, at 21%, was the highest of any subgroup.
4)In 2014, the pass rate of English learners on the California
High School Exit Examination language arts test was half the
rate of English only peers (17% vs. 34%), and was also lower
on the mathematics portion (13% vs. 20%).
5)Data from 2008-09 show that English learners high school
graduates attend postsecondary institutions at the rate of
52%, compared with 74% of English-only students.
When viewing this data it is important to note that English
learners who have achieved proficiency in English and have been
reclassified are no longer included in the English learner
subgroup.
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Access to the core curriculum for English learners. This bill
addresses English learners' access to core curriculum courses in
middle and high school by prohibiting ELs from being prevented
from taking core curriculum courses and courses necessary for
graduation.
Policy Analysis for California Education's (PACE) 2015 report,
"Improving the Opportunities and Outcomes of California's
Students Learning English," reported that ELs are less likely
than non-ELs to be enrolled in core academic subject courses
and, as a result, earn fewer credits toward graduation than
non-EL students. The research further found that limited access
to ELA is largely due to 1) ELD courses being used as a
substitute, rather than a complement, for ELA courses, and 2)
the enrollment of elementary and secondary ELs in intervention
classes for language arts and math which were not designed for
ELs' language and academic needs.
This research found that in one large urban school district, 30%
of ELs were not enrolled in ELA courses, and 35% were not
enrolled in a full course load. PACE reported that this
research "suggests that English learners often suffer from
restricted educational opportunity compared to that of
non-English learners, particularly with regard to their academic
learning needs." The report also noted that, while some
students were prohibited from taking ELA courses because they
were enrolled in ELD courses, the content area preventing ELs
from being reclassified was generally ELA itself. This finding
suggests that some English learners are stuck in a kind of trap
- unable to access ELA courses until they are proficient in ELA.
Analysis Prepared by:
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Tanya Lieberman / ED. / (916) 319-2087 FN:
0003341