BILL ANALYSIS
AB 518
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 15, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Julia Brownley, Chair
AB 518 (Mendoza) - As Introduced: February 24, 2009
SUBJECT : Public School Performance Accountability Program.
SUMMARY : Requires a school assistance and intervention team
(SAIT) and a district assistance and intervention team (DAIT) to
possess a high degree of knowledge, skills, and expertise in
meeting the curriculum and instructional needs of prescribed
pupil groups; requires SAITs and school districts conducting a
self assessment, to use procedures and tools developed
specifically for the improvement of language and content
instruction for those pupil subgroups; requires SAITs and school
districts conducting a self assessment, in developing
recommendations, to ensure that pupils have access to all core
subjects and include parental involvement; and, requires SAITs
and DAITs to provide recommendations to improve the programs and
move the school or district out of program improvement.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires that a school assistance and intervention team
contracting with a school, and a district assistance and
intervention team contracting with a local education agency,
in which one or more numerically significant pupil subgroups
did not meet adequate yearly progress or API growth targets to
include members who possess a high degree of knowledge,
skills, and expertise in meeting the curriculum and
instructional needs of the pupil subgroups including, but not
limited to, knowledge, skills, and expertise specific to
first- and second-language English acquisition, English
development, and instructional strategies specific to the
pupil subgroup.
2)Defines a "high degree of knowledge, skills, and expertise" to
mean a certification or advanced degree relating to the pupil
subgroup and either of the following:
a) At least five years of experience working directly with
pupil subgroups.
b) Experience as a provider of professional development,
demonstrated through having written or published articles
on instruction and programs for pupil subgroups.
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3)Requires a school assistance and intervention team providing
support and expertise to schools in which one or more of the
numerically significant pupil subgroups have failed to meet
the adequate yearly progress and API growth targets to use
procedures and tools developed specifically for the
improvement of language and content instruction for those
pupil subgroups; and, specifies priority shall be given to
using existing tools that are appropriate for these pupil
subgroups.
4)Requires a school assistance and intervention team, in
developing recommendations for corrective actions, to ensure
that pupils have access to all core subjects including, but
not limited to, reading, language arts, and mathematics;
specifies a school assistance and intervention team also shall
ensure parental involvement pursuant to the federal No Child
Left Behind Act of 2001; and, specifies if alternative
programs are the reason for program involvement status, the
school assistance and intervention team and district
assistance and intervention team shall provide recommendations
to improve these programs and move the school or district out
of program improvement.
5)Specifies if the local educational agency's status as a
program improvement school resulted from the failure of one or
more pupil subgroups to meet adequate yearly progress and API
growth targets, the department shall provide self-assessment
materials and criteria specifically for language and content
instruction; specifies procedures and tools specifically for
the improvement of language and content instruction for those
pupil subgroups shall be developed, used, and provided by the
department; and, requires priority to be given to using
existing tools that are appropriate for these pupil subgroups.
6)Requires that the recommendations resulting from the
self-assessment ensure that pupils have access to all core
subjects, including, but not limited to, reading, language
arts, and mathematics; requires that the recommendations also
ensure parental involvement pursuant to the Federal No Child
Left Behind Act of 2001; and specifies if alternative programs
are the reason for program improvement status, the school and
district assistance and intervention team shall provide
recommendations to improve these programs and move the school
or district out of program improvement.
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7)Requires, not later than January 31, 2011, the Superintendent
to include all of the following within the standards and
criteria to be applied by a district assistance and
intervention team in carrying out its duties:
a) Governance.
b) Alignment of curriculum, instruction, and assessments to
state standards.
c) Human resources.
d) Data systems and achievement monitoring.
e) Professional development.
f) Parental involvement pursuant to the Federal No Child
Left Behind Act of 2001.
g) Community involvement.
h) Access to core subjects, including, but not limited to,
reading, language arts, and mathematics. If alternative
programs are the reason for program improvement status, the
school assistance and intervention teams and district
assistance and intervention teams shall provide
recommendations to improve these programs and move the
school or school district out of program improvement.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that SAIT members should possess a high degree of
knowledge and skills in the areas of school leadership,
curriculum, and instruction aligned to state academic content
and performance standards, classroom management and
discipline, academic assessment, parent-school relations, and
evaluation and research based reform strategies and have
proven successful expertise specific to the challenges
inherent in state-monitored schools.
2)Requires the Superintendent to, once every two years,
establish a list of approved school assistance and
intervention teams with which a school district may contract.
The list shall be based on criteria recommended by the
Superintendent and adopted by the state board. After the
two-year approval period expires, a team may reapply for
approval by demonstrating the effectiveness of the work of the
team in state-monitored schools.
3)Establishes the Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools
Program and the High Priority Schools Grant Program, in which
schools that failed to meet their Academic Performance Index
(API) growth targets in the previous school year relative to
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all other public elementary, middle, or high schools, are
invited by the Superintendent of Public Instruction to
participate. If a participating school has not met its growth
targets each year and has failed to show significant growth as
determined by the state board, it is deemed a state-monitored
school. The Superintendent, in consultation with the state
board, is authorized to take specified action with respect to
the operation of a state-monitored school including but not
limited to, requiring the school district enter into a
contract with a school assistance and intervention team.
4)Specifies that a local educational agency that has been
identified for corrective action under the Federal No Child
Left Behind Act of 2001 is subject to one or more sanctions as
recommended by the Superintendent and approved by the state
board, including, but not limited to, the requirement that a
local educational agency contract with a district assistance
and intervention team to aid a local educational agency.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : This bill requires school assistance and
intervention teams (SAIT) and district assistance intervention
teams (DAIT) to include members who possess a high degree of
knowledge, skills, and expertise in meeting the curriculum and
instructional needs of specified pupil subgroups, including
English language learners. The bill would also require a SAIT
to use procedures and tools developed specifically for
improvement in language and content instruction for schools in
which pupil subgroups have failed to meet Adequate Yearly
Progress (AYP) or its Academic Performance Index (API) target.
The bill would further require SAIT corrective action plans to
ensure that pupils have access to all core subjects and prohibit
a SAIT or DAIT from eliminating primary language programs.
This bill would define having a "high degree of knowledge" as
possessing certification or an advanced degree relating to
subgroup populations and either five years of experience working
directly with pupil subgroups or experience as a provider of
professional development, demonstrated through having written or
published articles on instruction and specified pupil subgroups.
Increasing SAIT & DAIT Qualifications . The bill significantly
increases the qualifications of SAIT and DAIT team members. Are
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their enough qualified people statewide to serve the ever
growing number of schools and districts requiring a SAIT or
DAIT? Opponents could argue that there is some concern that it
may be difficult to find enough teams that meet all of the
bill's specifications as the number of program in need of
support continue to grow.
Background on SAIT . Current law provides as an option the
assignment of a SAIT to aid a school deemed in need of program
improvement due to a repeated failure to meet academic
performance targets under state and federal accountability
programs. School districts may also be determined to be in need
of program improvement for failure to meet academic
accountability targets, and these districts may be assigned a
DAIT. Failure for a school or district may be related to the
consistent poor performance of one or more pupil subgroups
defined in law to include socioeconomically disadvantaged
pupils, English language learners, pupils with disabilities, and
ethnic subgroups.
According to CDE, schools participating in the Immediate
Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program (II/USP) or High
Priority Schools Grant Program (HPSGP) must meet their program's
definition of significant growth, based on the results of the
Schoolwide Academic Performance Index (API), or the school is
deemed state-monitored. Each school participating in either the
II/USP or HPSGP must meet its program's definition of
significant growth each year until the school exits the program.
Education Code sections 52055.5, 52055.51, and 52055.650
require the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the
approval of the State Board of Education, to impose various
sanctions on state-monitored schools. Districts with schools
identified and deemed as state-monitored receive funding to
assist in the improvement of student achievement. One option is
to require the district to enter into a contract with a School
Assistance and Intervention Team (SAIT). Funding is provided to
contract with a School Assistance and Intervention Team (SAIT)
who will identify critical areas to improve student achievement.
The purpose of a SAIT is to investigate and provide intensive
support and monitoring to assist state-monitored schools in
improving student learning.
Existing law states that SAIT teams should possess a high degree
of knowledge and skills in the areas of school leadership,
curriculum, and instruction aligned to state academic content
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and performance standards, classroom management and discipline,
academic assessment, parent-school relations, and evaluation and
research based reform strategies and have proven successful
expertise specific to the challenges inherent in state-monitored
schools. This bill would add additional skill and knowledge
requirements for both SAIT and DAIT teams.
Background on DAIT . Currently, 97 districts have been deemed in
need of program improvement and nearly all are expected to be
assigned a DAIT team. These figures are expected to grow over
time as more local education agencies fail to keep up with the
rising standards of the No Child Left Behind Act.
According to CDE, California Education Code Section 52055.57
allows the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the
approval of the State Board of Education, to require a local
educational agency in Program Improvement Year 3 to contract
with a District Assistance and Intervention Team (DAIT). A DAIT
is a team of county office of education (COE) or other
organizational leaders who provide targeted technical assistance
and support to Program Improvement (PI) districts in Corrective
Action (Year 3 of PI). The team works with the district to
examine current practices at both the district and school
levels; evaluate the effectiveness of those practices; identify
and prioritize the district's major areas of need; develop and
implement actions that target those needs; and, ultimately, help
the district exit PI status.
According to the author, CDE data from 2006-07 reveal that
English Learners and students with disabilities are the two
significant subgroups of the 97 districts that did not meet
their NCLB target. Additionally, school and district assistance
teams have often recommended inappropriate interventions for
these students including the elimination of successful
instructional programs designed for English learners. Therefore
there is a need to specifically require that members of district
or school assistance and intervention teams have a high degree
of knowledge, skills and expertise, as specified, in meeting the
curriculum and instructional needs of English learners and
students with disabilities.
According to a survey conducted in 2007 by the sponsor of this
bill, Californians Together, among schools and districts in
program improvement (PI) status, "81.8% reported that inadequate
progress of English Learners was a determining factor in their
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schools/districts being placed into PI status. Of those whose
Program Improvement plans include contracts with supplemental
educational service providers (SES), only 12.6% reported they
were provided with curriculum specific to the needs of English
Learners. 13.2% responded affirmatively to their SES providers
having expertise and knowledge about meeting the needs of
English Learners. Less than half reported that
district-mandated interventions include a designated and
specific English language development focus (42.5%).
Committee Amendments : The sponsor of the bill has indicated
that the inclusion of all the DAIT team standards was not the
way the bill was intended to be drafted. Staff recommends the
section in the bill related to DAIT team standards be deleted
and that the language related to DAIT teams being required, in
developing recommendations for corrective actions, to ensure
that pupils have access to all core subjects, include parental
and community involvement, and to provide recommendations to
improve these programs and move the school or district out of
program improvement, and that they use tools specifically
developed for the improvement of language and content
instruction, be included in another subdivision. Staff
recommends the bill also be amended to specify that the new
requirements for SAIT and DAIT teams become operative for teams
created after January 1, 2010.
Previous legislation . The introduced version of AB 518
(Mendoza) is substantially similar to AB 2531 (Mendoza) from
2008. According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, AB 2531
had "Costs in the hundreds of thousands to reassess and reassign
teams." The bill was held on the Senate Appropriations Suspense
file.
AB 1071 (Chu), Chapter 192, Statutes of 2005, increased the
appropriation for Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools
Program (II/USP) by $4,048,050 for State monitored schools to
receive local assistance from SAIT teams.
AB 1758 (Umberg), Chapter 19, Statutes of 2005, established exit
criteria for the High Priority School Grant (HP) Program and set
funding rates for school assistance and intervention teams.
AB 953 (Coto), Chapter 513, Statutes of 2005, made changes to
the State program to support local educational agencies and
schools in Program Improvement under the Federal No Child Left
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Behind Act of 2001.
AB 1987 (Steinberg), Chapter 757, Statutes of 2004, specified
that schools participating in the HP program that received a
planning grant from the Immediate Intervention for
Underperforming Schools Program the fiscal year (FY) 2001-02
fiscal year are eligible to receive funding from the HP program
in FYs 2002-03, 2003-04, and 2004-05.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Communities United Institute
Californians Together
Public Advocates
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Chelsea Kelley / ED. / (916) 319-2087