BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular Session
SB 318 (Morrell) - Education technology and digital resources
training pilot program.
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|Version: April 23, 2015 |Policy Vote: ED. 7 - 0 |
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|Urgency: No |Mandate: No |
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|Hearing Date: May 11, 2015 |Consultant: Jillian Kissee |
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This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill
Summary: This bill appropriates $1 million General Fund to the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (Superintendent) to be
allocated to local educational agencies (LEAs) that apply to
participate in a pilot program to train kindergarten and grades
1 through 12 teachers. The purpose of the pilot is to train
teachers to use technology in their instructional day, and to
teach students skills needed to succeed on state's
computer-based assessments and prepare them for college and
careers. This bill requires the focus of this pilot program to
be on teachers working with underserved populations.
Fiscal
Impact:
This bill appropriates $1 million Proposition 98 General Fund
to the Superintendent. This bill also creates a cost pressure
to provide ongoing funding for this program.
The California Department of Education (CDE) indicates the
SB 318 (Morrell) Page 1 of
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need for 3 additional positions at a cost of $325,000 General
Fund to develop and administer this program for its duration.
Actual workload would depend on the number of applicants
received.
Background: The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), enacted as part of
the 2013-14 Budget Act, was a significant reform to the state's
system of financing K-12 public schools. It replaced the prior
system of revenue limits and restricted funding for a multitude
of categorical programs with a new funding formula that provides
base funding for the core educational needs of all students and
supplemental funding for the additional educational needs of
low-income students, English learners, and foster youth. Because
the LCFF funds have limited spending restrictions, local
educational agencies (LEAs) have considerable flexibility to
direct LCFF resources to best meet their students' needs.
One of the previous categorical programs included the California
Technology Assistance Project (CTAP), which provided a
regionalized network of technical assistance to schools and
school districts on the implementation of education technology.
The CTAP was composed of regional consortia that worked
collaboratively with school districts and county offices of
education to meet locally defined technology based needs. Its
functions included technical services to support access,
planning, and use of high-speed telecommunications networks as
well as providing technology planning and implementation
assistance to rural and technologically underserved school
districts and county offices of education.
California joined the Smarter Balanced Assessments Consortium
(SBAC) as a governing state in 2011, for the purpose of
developing assessments that are aligned to the Common Core State
Standards. California committed to administering the SBAC
assessments to pupils beginning in the 2014-15 school year. The
state adopted the new standards, it has also updated curricular
frameworks, professional development modules, supplemental
instructional materials, and is working on the adoption of
instructional materials. LEAs have been provided significant
funding to implement the instruction aligned to the new
standards, including funding for technology necessary for
computer-based assessments and professional development.
SB 318 (Morrell) Page 2 of
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Proposed Law:
This bill appropriates $1 million General Fund to the
Superintendent to be allocated to LEAs who apply for funds to
implement the implementation of a pilot program to train
kindergarten and grades 1 through 12 teachers. The purpose of
this pilot is to train teachers working with underserved
populations to use technology in their instructional day, and to
teach students skills needed to succeed on state's
computer-based assessments and prepare them for college and
careers.
Specifically, this bill requires that the Superintendent give
priority to LEAs that apply for funding that serve a large
percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals.
This bill requires the pilot to provide professional
development for teachers to ensure that 21st century skills, as
specified, are developed and that assistance is provided when
they are not developed.
Finally, the provisions of this bill will become inoperable
January 1, 2020.
Staff Comments: Though not expressly stated, the appropriation
included in this bill is likely to be counted towards the
Proposition 98 minimum guarantee as it would be General Fund
revenues appropriated for school districts consistent with
Section 8 of Article XVI of the California Constitution.
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