BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1831
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 21, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Julia Brownley, Chair
AB 1831 (Solorio) - As Amended: April 13, 2010
SUBJECT : After School Education and Safety Program
SUMMARY : Requires an application for After School Education and
Safety (ASES) program funding to include in the program plan a
description of how the program will support English learners
(ELs). Specifically, this bill :
1)Makes declarations and findings as follows:
a) California public elementary and secondary schools
enroll 1.5 million ELs who make up 24% of the total
enrollment in the state's public elementary and secondary
schools; in some districts, such as Los Angeles Unified
School District and the Santa Ana Unified School District,
ELs comprise 32% and 56%, respectively, of the student
populations;
b) ELs lag behind English speakers in academic achievement
in language arts, mathematics, standardized tests, high
school graduation rates, and college enrollment;
researchers attribute this achievement gap, in part, to not
enough instructional time;
c) Proposition 49 resulted in a significant increase in
funding for after school programs;
d) Research on EL performance in after school programs
shows that these programs significantly increase language
acquisition rates for English learners and decrease the
time it takes these pupils to redesignate into mainstream
English classrooms;
e) It is important that ELs have an equitable opportunity
to participate in after school programs funded by
Proposition 49 because providing them with quality after
school programs will increase their ability to learn
English more promptly, increase their success in school,
enhance their career opportunities, and improve
California's competitiveness in the world; and,
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f) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to amend
the After School Education and Safety Program Act to
additionally ensure that ELs are afforded equal access to
after school programs by reserving 24% of the overall
funding for after school programs that serve these pupils.
2)Specifies that when an applicant submits an application to
establish a program and when a grantee reviews its after
school program plan, the applicant or grantee shall include in
the program plan a description of the manner in which the
program will support English language development and
acquisition for ELs if ELs will or do comprise 25% or more of
the pupils enrolled in the program. Requires the plan to
include, but not be limited to, both of the following:
a) Strategies that increase knowledge and usage of the
English language through the four domains of language
acquisition: listening, speaking, reading, and writing;
and,
b) Methods for training and professional development of
staff that are designed to support English language
development and acquisition for ELs.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes the ASES program through the 2002 voter approved
initiative, Proposition 49, which funds the establishment of
local after school education and enrichment programs, which
are created through partnerships between schools and local
community resources to provide literacy, academic enrichment
and safe constructive alternatives for students in
kindergarten through ninth grade. (Education Code (EC) 8482)
2)Requires grantees to review their after school program plans
every three years, including, but not limited to, all of the
following:
a) Program goals. A grantee may specify any new program
goals that will apply to the following three years during
the grant renewal process;
b) Program content, including the elements identified in EC
8482.3(c);
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c) Outcome measures selected from those identified in
subdivision (a) of Section 8484 that the grantee will use
for the next three years;
d) Any other information requested by the California
Department of Education (CDE);
e) If the program goals or outcome measures change as a
result of this review, the grantee shall notify the CDE in
a manner prescribed by the CDE; and,
f) The grantee shall maintain documentation of the after
school program plan for a minimum of five years. (EC
8482.3)
3)Requires the CDE to monitor the review as part of its onsite
monitoring process. (EC 8482.3)
4)Requires the CDE to consider specified factors in selecting
schools to participate in the program, including the
percentage of pupils eligible for free and reduced lunch and
other indicators of need for the program, including, but not
limited to, socioeconomic status, the percentage of ELs at the
school, and the availability of programs in the community.
(EC 8483.3)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : ELs comprise a significant portion of California's
public school population. About 1.5 million of the state's 6.3
million pupils were identified as ELs during the 2008-09 school
year, making up 24.2% of the state's total public school
enrollment and speaking over 50 different languages. ELs begin
school at a considerable disadvantage relative to their native
English speaking peers, as they enter school with different
levels of English fluency and must overcome the overwhelming
task of learning the academic curriculum and a new language
concurrently.
CDE data shows that in 2009, only 34% of ELs performed
proficient or advanced in the 4th grade English language arts
California Standards Test compared to 69% of English-only pupils
that performed at those levels. In 4th grade math, 47% of ELs
and 70% of English-only pupils performed proficient or advanced.
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California continues to grapple with the challenge of closing
the achievement gap that separates ELs from native English
speakers and meeting the educational needs of this population of
students.
ASES program. The ASES program, passed by voters as Proposition
49 in 2002, provides almost $550 million for before and after
school programs for 400,000 students in kindergarten through
grade 9. In 2009-10, 371 grants were awarded predominantly to
districts and county offices of education, with some grants
going to local governments and nonprofit organizations working
in partnership with local educational agencies (LEAs). After
school programs must commence right after school and at least
until 6 p.m. for 15 hours per week. There are two program
requirements as follows:
1)An educational and literacy component in which tutoring and
homework assistance is provided to help students meet state
standards in one or more of the following core academic
subjects: reading/language arts, math, history and social
studies, or science.
2)An educational enrichment component that reinforce and
complement the school's academic program and may include, but
is not limited to, positive youth development strategies,
recreation and prevention strategies. Such activities may
include but is not limited to visual and performing arts,
music, career technical education, recreation, physical
fitness and prevention activities, and other youth development
activities based on student needs and interests.
ASES program plan . The application for ASES program funding
requires the development of a program plan. According to the
CDE, the purpose of the program plan is to create an operational
design of an after school program within the framework of the
requirements defined in existing law. The program plan is
considered a "living" document that is periodically reviewed and
adjusted to reflect the needs of the community and to provide
continuous improvement in the development of an effective after
school program. The program plan is expected to be developed
and reviewed through a collaborative process that includes
parents, youth, community organizations, governmental agencies,
after school partners, staff, and working with a subcontractor
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if applicable. The program plan must include descriptions of
the program goals, program content, collaboration and
partnerships, staffing needs, program administration and outcome
measures and evaluation. Existing law requires the program plan
to be reviewed every three years and maintained for a minimum of
five years.
This bill requires the program plan to include a component on
how the program will support the English language development
and acquisition of EL students, including strategies that
increase the knowledge and usage of the English language through
listening, speaking, reading, and writing; and the training that
will be provided to ensure that staff has the skills and
knowledge to support English language development and
acquisition for ELs, if 25% of the program will be comprised of
EL students. The author chose a 25% threshold because ELs
comprise almost 25% of pupil enrollment in the state. However,
other provisions of law utilize a lower threshold. For example,
existing law requires schools to send any notification, reports,
statements or records (e.g., information regarding testing,
health, attendance, suspension and expulsion, English Learner
Programs, etc.) in a primary language if 15% or more of the
pupils enrolled in the school speak that primary language at
home. Staff recommends lowering the threshold to 15% to ensure
that programs are able to adequately support EL students.
Research has shown that EL students need more time speaking and
that practice is the key to language acquisition. An October
2008 study by Stanford University's John W. Gardner Center for
Youth and Their Communities titled "The Effect of After School
Program Participation on English Language Acquisition," found
that participation in after school program activities had a
positive affect on English language development. Using data
from an elementary school and a large after school program
provider located in Redwood City and the unincorporated area of
North Fair Oaks in San Mateo County, the study found that gains
were made by EL students in the listening and speaking portions
of the California English Language Development Test (CELDT).
Researchers attribute the gain to programs that encourage
communication in English.
An Education Week article titled "Gaining a Voice After School",
explains that because speaking time is short during the school
day, after school programs can help fill the gap. The article
states, "With some basic professional development, after-school
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staff members can readily use techniques that stimulate and
stretch language production, build vocabulary, model appropriate
speech, and expand listening comprehension. Good after-school
programming motivates children to use their English to
participate in games, activities, and projects. Supportive
adult and peer relationships that develop without the pressure
of grades and tests help children feel safe using their emerging
English, and allow them to take risks going further with new
vocabulary and constructions."
A report provided by the author titled "Maximizing After School
Opportunities for English Learners" recommends professional
development be provided to after school program staff and
incorporating well researched strategies that support ELs during
the school day in traditional aspects of after school programs
(homework assistance, academics, and enrichment).
This bill is consistent with study recommendations and will
ensure that after school programs that enroll EL students have a
plan in place to implement strategies and training suggested by
researchers.
Existing law authorizes the CDE to use up to 1.5% of the ASES
funds for administration, evaluation and providing technical
assistance. Staff recommends requiring technical assistance
funds be provided for training and professional development in
order to assist after school staff in acquiring the skills and
strategies necessary to support EL students.
Technical amendment . Staff recommends amending the resolve
clause in the findings and declarations section to reflect the
current version of the bill.
Arguments in Support . The author states, "California's
competitiveness and well-being depend on an educated and
productively engaged populace. Many English learner students
require both regular classroom time and after school programs to
catch up and join the mainstream school classes. Without a
greater participation by after school programs in quality
academic assistance services to English learners, too many
California students will be unable to fully participate in
educational programs and unable to help move California's
economy forward."
Related legislation . AB 2705 (Hall), pending in the Assembly
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Appropriations Committee, requires specified time requirements
for moderate to vigorous physical activity for pupils in
physical education courses and pupils participating in the ASES
program.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages
Californians Together
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Sophia Kwong Kim / ED. / (916) 319-2087