BILL ANALYSIS
AB 836
Page A
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 836 (Torlakson)
As Amended April 29, 2009
Majority vote
EDUCATION 7-1 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Brownley, Ammiano, |Ayes:|De Leon, Ammiano, Charles |
| |Arambula, Carter, Eng, | |Calderon, Davis, Fuentes, |
| |Solorio, Torlakson | |Hall, John A. Perez, Price, |
| | | |Skinner, Solorio, |
| | | |Torlakson, Krekorian |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+----------------------------|
|Nays:|Miller |Nays:|Nielsen, Duvall, Harkey, |
| | | |Miller, |
| | | |Audra Strickland |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction
(SPI) to establish and convene a task force for education
technology for purposes of making preliminary recommendations on
technology literacy model standards and recommendations for a
comprehensive statewide plan to increase and enhance the level
of technology used to deliver instruction in California public
schools. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the task force consist of no more than 15 education
technology experts, including, but not limited to, parents,
current credentialed teachers, administrators, school board
members, researchers, and industry representatives, and
specifies that the taskforce shall include representation from
a large, a medium-sized, and a small school district.
2)Stipulates that the task force shall make preliminary
recommendations to the SPI on technology literacy model
standards on or before May 30, 2010; specifies that the SPI
shall recommend technology literacy model standards to the
State Board of Education (SBE) on or before June 20, 2010;
and, requires the SBE to adopt technology literacy model
content standards, pursuant to the recommendations of the SPI,
on or before July 30, 2010.
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3)Requires the task force to address the following issues as
part of its recommendations which are required to be presented
to the SBE and the Legislature on or before September 1, 2010:
a) Professional development based on a study of existing
industry models for professional development in technology
and existing school professional development programs;
b) Electronic learning resources and instructional
materials based on a study of trends in long-term
compatibility of resources and hardware and best practices
in the use of electronic resources;
c) Hardware, with an emphasis on long-term compatibility
between hardware and software systems and intersystem
compatibility;
d) Telecommunications infrastructure based on a study of
industry standards for wireless interoperability and
recommend adoption of a schools' standard for
telecommunications infrastructure; and,
e) Funding based on an assessment of various funding models
and make recommendations on methods of providing reasonable
levels of funding for technology in schools on a continuing
basis.
4)Requires the SBE to adopt a comprehensive statewide plan to
increase and enhance the level of technology used to deliver
instruction in California public schools, pursuant to the
recommendations of the task force, on or before January 1,
2012.
5)Specifies that the operations of the task force shall be
funded by private donations and authorizes the California
Department of Education (CDE) to accept private donations to
support the expenses incurred in operating the task force.
6)Defines "technology literacy" as the understanding of what
technology is, how it is created, how it shapes society, and
how it is shaped by society.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, General Fund (GF) administrative cost pressure,
AB 836
Page C
between $200,000 and $300,000, to establish the task force to
develop a statewide technology plan and model technology
literacy standards.
COMMENTS : As a condition of receiving education technology
funding, districts are required to develop or update a
technology plan to reflect a district's plan on using technology
to improve student achievement and to improve the capacity of
all teachers in schools served by the district to integrate
technology effectively into curricula and instruction. The
components of the plan include curriculum; professional
development; infrastructure, hardware, technical support and
software; funding and budget; and monitoring and evaluation in
such a way as to keep student achievement emphasized in the
district plan.
Additionally, existing federal law, the No Child Left Behind Act
of 2001, requires each state to maintain a statewide technology
plan for the purpose of ensuring that technology use is
consistent with the state's strategies for improving student
academic achievement through the use of technology in
classrooms, including improving the capacity of teachers to
integrate technology into curricula and instruction. In May
2005, the SBE approved the NCLB State Technology Plan, which
addresses the federal requirements of NCLB. The plan includes
California's strategies for improving student academic
achievement through the use of technology and efforts to
leverage statewide education technology services, regional
services, grant administration, monitoring, and outreach efforts
so that all efforts focus on promoting research-based proven
practices.
The Commission on Technology in Learning (CTL) was established
by AB 598 (Soto), Chapter 830, Statutes of 1999, as an advisory
body to the SBE to develop a report that made recommendations to
ensure that technology is systemically integrated into all
levels of education. The CTL developed a document titled the
"Education Technology Master Plan," that provides a vision for
the state on how to effectively use and support educational
technology to improve student achievement, close the gaps in
access to educational technology, and move California schools to
at least parity with or exceed the level of technology
integration in other states. On May 7, 2003, the SBE accepted
this report as "Recommendations of the Commission on Technology
AB 836
Page D
in Learning" but not as a technology "master plan" for the
state. The SBE decided that the document "could be used by CDE
and SBE staff as a guide in preparing any technology plan that
may be determined to be needed for federal funding purposes
(with that plan then being considered by the State Board in the
future if necessary)."<1> An argument could be made that
another state technology plan may be duplicative of plans that
are already required pursuant to NCLB and to receive technology
grants.
According to information provided by the author, the National
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is currently drafting
a framework and test items for a 2012 test on technology
literacy to measure pupils' knowledge and skills in
understanding technology and technological tools. The National
Assessment Governing Board will begin randomly testing students
across the country in the 2011-2012 school year, but it is not
certain as to what grade will be tested. This technological
literacy assessment will be the country's first nationwide
assessment of pupils' technology literacy, however there is no
clear or widely-known definition of technology literacy. This
bill provides a definition for technology literacy and requires
the development of model standards in preparation for that
assessment. The National Assessment Governing Board awarded
WestEd a contract to develop the 2012 NAEP Technological
Literacy Framework that will include test specifications for the
2012 NAEP assessment. This framework is scheduled to be
approved in late 2009 by the National Assessment Governing
Board.
This bill emphasizes the interest in increasing the use of
technology in schools. The challenge for the state has been the
fiscal climate which leaves limited resources for technical
equipment, maintenance, support and training to increase access
to technology in the classroom. This bill will create a plan
that will deliver recommendations for the expansion of the use
of technology in schools.
The author states, "While there is widespread consensus on the
benefits of education technology and its important role in
providing students with a high-quality education, California
lags far behind most states in high-tech learning. In many
contexts, California is considered a high-tech state with
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<1> State Board of Education Meeting Minutes, May 7, 2003.
AB 836
Page E
low-tech learning environments for its students."
Previous legislation: SB 1330 (Torlakson) of 2008 requires the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to convene a task
force for the purpose of developing recommendations for a
comprehensive statewide plan to increase and enhance the level
of technology used to deliver instruction in California public
schools. SB 1330 was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger with the
following message:
"This bill is unnecessary since current law does not prohibit
the Superintendent of Public Instruction from convening an
internal advisory committee to update the statewide education
technology plan with approval of the State Board of Education.
Increasing and enhancing technology in our schools is important,
but the provisions in this can be accomplished without
legislation."
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Avi?a / ED. / (916) 319-2087
FN: 0001142