BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2680
Page A
Date of Hearing: April 6, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Patrick O'Donnell, Chair
AB 2680
(Bonilla) - As Amended March 30, 2016
SUBJECT: Parent, guardian, pupil, and family engagement support
and services: plans
SUMMARY: Requires local education agencies (LEAs) to plan and
implement parent training programs, as specified, subject to
one-time funding being provided in the Budget Act.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires, subject to one-time funding being provided for these
purposes in the annual Budget Act , LEAs, including county
offices of education (COEs), charter schools, alternative
education programs and schools, state special schools, and
state subsidized preschools and child development programs,
that elect to participate in family, parent, guardian, and
pupil engagement support and services to development and
implement a plan that addresses at least one of the following:
a) Active and meaningful participation and training of
parents, guardians, pupils, and families of children serve
by the LEA in the development and updating of local control
AB 2680
Page B
and accountability plans (LCAPs);
b) Active and meaningful participation and training at the
schoolsite or program site and school district or county
office of education level that empowers parents, guardians,
pupils, and families of children served by the LEA to
become active leaders through diverse channels for
participation, including, but not limited to, schoolsite
committees and councils; school district or COE committees
and councils; English learner advisory committees, parent,
guardian, teacher, or pupil associations; and other
advisory bodies that involve parents, guardians, pupils, or
families
c) Programs and activities that promote parent, guardian,
and family engagement of children served by the LEA in
schools, support parents and guardians as their children's'
first teacher, develop parent leaders, encourage parents
and guardians to advocate for a complete education that
includes a full curriculum to close the access, achievement
and opportunities gaps; or
d) For COEs only, active and meaningful participation and
activities for purposes of serving parents and families in
state subsidized infant and toddler programs, early
childhood education programs, state and local preschools,
and child care and development programs serving children
from birth to five years of age, inclusive, and active and
meaningful outreach to parents, guardians, and families who
may benefit from countywide training and support services
offered by the COE.
AB 2680
Page C
2)Requires an LEA that accepts funds for these purposes to
develop a plan that aligns to its LCAP and that delineates how
the funds will be spent.
3)Requires the plan to be developed using research-based family
engagement practices and standards.
4)Requires the plan to include outreach in multiple languages if
15% or more of the pupils enrolled in a public school speak a
single primary language other than English, and to include
diverse and innovative outreach to parents, guardians and
families that are underrepresented in the school, school
district, or COE.
5)Requires the plan to include the estimated target number of
parents, pupils, and families who will receive training and
support services.
6)Requires the plan to be explained in a public meeting of the
governing board of the school district or COE or the governing
body of the charter school before its adoption in a subsequent
public meeting.
7)Authorizes LEA to use funds appropriated for these purposes
for:
a) Active and meaningful strategies related to the use of
computing devices and the Internet as a tool for accessing
information, training, and support relevant to the proposed
parent engagement plan; and
AB 2680
Page D
b) Active and meaningful participation and training for
teachers, classified employees, school board members and
administrators to develop a deeper understanding regarding
effective parent and family engagement in order to work
effectively with parents, students and families as
partners.
8)Requires LEAs that elect to receive funding for these purposes
to notify the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) no
later than June 1, 2017 of their intent to participate.
9)Requires participating LEAs to expend the funds between the
2016-17 and 2018-19 fiscal years, inclusive.
10)Provides that the funds are intended to supplement and not
supplant funds used by the LEA for parent, pupil, and family
engagement.
11)Requires adopted plans to be posted on the LEA's website.
12)Provides that the funds appropriated for these purposes shall
be counted towards Proposition 98.
EXISTING LAW:
1) Requires school districts and COEs to adopt and annually
update LCAPs.
AB 2680
Page E
2) Requires school districts and COEs to establish a parent
advisory committee to provide advice regarding the
development of the LCAP.
3) Requires, as part of the LCAP development process,
school districts and COEs to establish an English learner
parent advisory committee if the enrollment of the school
district or COE includes at least 15 percent English
learners and the school district or COE enrolls at least 50
pupils who are English learners.
4) Requires LCAPs to address eight state priorities,
including parental involvement, including efforts the
school district makes to seek parent input in making
decisions for the school district and each individual
schoolsite, and including how the school district will
promote parental participation in programs for unduplicated
pupils and individuals with exceptional needs.
5) Requires LEAs that receive federal Title I dollars to
implement programs, activities, and procedures for the
involvement of parents. LEAs must reserve at least 1% for
parent engagement programs, and at least 90% of that money
must go directly to schools.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS: Parent involvement has been shown to be positively
correlated with student academic achievement. A synthesis of
AB 2680
Page F
research by the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory ("A
New Wave of Evidence," 2002) found that, regardless of family
background or income, students with involved parents are more
likely to:
Earn higher grades and test scores and enroll in
higher-level programs;
Be promoted, pass their classes, and earn credits;
Attend school regularly;
Have better social skills, show improved behavior, and
adapt well to school; and
Graduate and go on to postsecondary education.
In recognition of this, state and federal law require specified
parental involvement activities at both the LEA and schoolsite
level. State law requires parent participation, through formal
parent councils and other avenues, in the development and annual
revision of LCAPs. Federal law required specified parent
involvement activities as a condition of receiving Title I
funds. Federal law requires Title I districts to do at least
one of the following:
Support schools in training school staff regarding
parent engagement strategies;
AB 2680
Page G
Support programs that reach families at home, in the
community and at school;
Disseminate information on best practices focused on
engagement, especially for increasing engagement of
economically disadvantaged families;
Subgrant to schools to collaborate with community-based
organizations or businesses that have a track record of
improving family engagement; or
Engage in any other activities that the district
believes are appropriate in increasing engagement.
The activities required by this bill are consistent with
existing state and federal requirements regarding parental
involvement. The purpose of the bill is to provide additional
funding in support of those activities.
Parental involvement and parental involvement programs. Parent
involvement incorporates a wide range of activities, from
reading to their children and making sure they do their homework
to serving on schoolsite or district councils. The question is
what types of parent involvement are most strongly associated
with increased student achievement. Research suggests that
parental involvement directly with their children produces
larger academic gains than parental involvement in school or
AB 2680
Page H
district functions.<1> Information provided by the author's
office cites a report that concludes that schools would have to
spend $1,000 more per student to reap the same gains in
achievement than an involved parent brings. In that study, the
authors measured how frequently parents do the following:
Discuss activities or events of particular interest to
the child;
Discuss things the child studies in class;
Discuss selecting courses or programs at school;
Attend a school meeting; and
Volunteer at the child's school.
The finding of a $1,000-value benefit is associated with the
first three "dinnertime parental effort measures," and is the
difference between parents who report sometimes having such
---------------------------
---------------------------
<1> William H. Jeynes, "Parental Involvement and Student
Achievement: A Meta-Analysis." Harvard Family Research
Project, December 2005.
AB 2680
Page I
AB 2680
Page J
discussions and parents who report never having them.<2> It is
not associated with school-based activities.
With respect to parent involvement programs, research suggests
that the most effective programs (in terms of increasing student
achievement) are those that emphasize parental actions such as
shared reading, teacher-parent partnership, checking homework,
and teacher-parent communication.<3>
This bill requires parental involvement plans to focus on parent
involvement in the LCAP planning process and on developing
parent leaders and advocates. While these may be desirable
objectives, they have not been shown by research to be the most
effective means by which to improve student achievement.
Accordingly, staff recommends that the bill be amended to
include a focus on parent involvement activities that are more
strongly associated with increased student achievement and to
eliminate duplicative provisions. Specifically, staff
recommends that the sections of the bill described in 1) a.
through 1) d. of the summary on page one of this analysis be
struck and replaced with the following:
---------------------------
<2> Andrew J. Houtenville and Karen Smith Conway, "Parental
Effort, School Resources, and Student Achievement." The Journal
of Human Resources, Volume XLIII, No. 2, 2008.
<3> William H. Jeynes, "A Meta-Analysis of the Efficacy of
Different Types of Parental Involvement Programs for Urban
Students." Harvard Family Research Project, February 2013>
AB 2680
Page K
"Active and meaningful participation and training of
parents, guardians, pupils and families of children
served by local educational agencies in the
development and updating of local control and
accountability plans required pursuant to Article 4.5
(commencing with Section 52060) of Chapter 6.1,
involvement at the school site, school district or
county office of education level that empowers parents
to become active leaders on local advisory bodies,
empowerment and support to advocate for a complete
education that includes a full curriculum and other
services to close the access, achievement and
opportunity gaps. The plan may include activities to
help teachers and other school staff improve
teacher-parent and school-parent communication and
create a welcoming environment for parent
participation.
The plan shall also address strategies, programs and
activities that promote parents, guardians and
families to directly engage with their child or
children to promote student success academically,
socially and emotionally. Strategies, programs and
activities including but not limited to how to become
your child's first teacher, shared reading, developing
a strong teacher- parent partnership, how to discuss
and support your child's activities, studies and
homework, how to effectively navigate and understand
the public school system."
AB 2680
Page L
In addition, staff recommends the following amendments:
Clarify the allocation of funds by providing they be
distributed on the basis of an equal amount per average
daily attendance among participating LEAs.
Remove "state subsidized preschools and child
development programs" from the definition of LEA (this
ensures the funds will go only to school-based programs,
including school-based preschool and child development
programs)
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Advancement Project
California State PTA
Families in Schools
Public Advocates
AB 2680
Page M
Numerous individuals
Opposition
None received
Analysis Prepared by:Rick Pratt / ED. / (916) 319-2087