Amended in Assembly June 10, 2014

Amended in Senate May 27, 2014

Amended in Senate April 30, 2014

Amended in Senate April 10, 2014

Senate Bill No. 1057

Introduced by Senator Corbett

February 18, 2014

An act to add Section 60605.84 to the Education Code, relating to pupil curriculum.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1057, as amended, Corbett. Pupil curriculum: history-social science content standards.

Existing law required the State Board of Education, not later than November 1, 1998, to adopt statewide academically rigorous content standards in the core curriculum area of history-social science.

This bill would require the state board, on or before July 30, 2018, to adopt, reject, or modify history-social science content standards in accordance with specified procedures. The bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to convene a group of history-social science experts, as specified, and, with input from the group, would require the Superintendent, on or before March 30, 2018, to recommend history-social science content standards to the state board. The bill would require the Superintendent and the state board, by October 1, 2018, to report certain information begin insert on the implementation of those standards end insert to the Governor and appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature. The bill would express legislative findings and declarations relating to history-social science content standards.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(a) In contrast to other subject areas, the state’s 16-year-old
history-social science content standards were developed in 1998
and have failed to keep up with modern research and scholarship.

(b) There is nothing in current law that requires history-social
science content standards to be reviewed and updated.

(c) California has long been home to many diverse cultures. As
this diversity has grown, there is a greater need than ever before
for understanding the foundational ideas and philosophy of our
country and the world.

(d) California’s current kindergarten to grade 12, inclusive,
history-social science textbooks contain outdated and inaccurate
information, and reflect negatively on members of several groups,
in violation of existing law. Hinduism, for instance, is portrayed
in an inequitable manner, and Hindus are depicted negatively and
as implicitly inferior to other religious groups.

(e) Existing law prohibits the State Board of Education from
adopting any instructional materials for use in schools that contain
any matter reflecting adversely upon persons on the basis of race
or ethnicity, gender, religion, disability, nationality, or sexual
orientation.

(f) The history-social science content standards therefore must
be rectified to address concerns of accuracy, rigorous scholarship,
equality, diversity, religious and cultural sensitivity, and adherence
to existing law. Furthermore, the standards should be updated to
ensure that they are consistent with changes to other subjects in
California’s education system.

(g) It is the intent of the Legislature that the revised kindergarten
to grade 12, inclusive, history-social science content standards
must be equitable in their coverage and depiction of any world
religion, ethnicity, race, culture, nationality, gender, sexual
orientation, or disability status and that no group must be portrayed
negatively or as inferior based on any of these characteristics.

(h) It is the intent of the Legislature that the process to update
the kindergarten to grade 12, inclusive, history-social science
content standards be fair, transparent, and inclusive.

(i) It is the intent of the Legislature that the expert group created
pursuant to Senate Bill 1057 of the 2013-14 Regular Session must
begin delete be a body that reflects end delete begin insert take into consideration end insert the diversity of the
state, including groups or individuals who represent the
perspectives of all major religions, ethnicities, races, cultures,
genders, sexual orientations, and disability begin delete statuses. end delete begin insert statuses when
revising the history-social science content standards. end insert

(j) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish a schedule and
process for the review and revision, as necessary, of the state’s
history-social science content standards.

SEC. 2.  

Section 60605.84 is added to the Education Code, immediately following Section 60605.8, to read:

60605.84.  

(a) The state board shall adopt history-social science
content standards pursuant to the following requirements:

(1) The Superintendent, in consultation with the state board,
shall convene a group of history-social science experts. The
Superintendent shall ensure that the members of the group include,
but are not limited to, individuals who are elementary and
secondary history-social science teachers, schoolsite principals,
school district or county office of education administrators, and
university begin delete professors. end delete begin insert professors. A majority of the group of experts
convened pursuant to this paragraph shall be individuals employed
as history-social science teachers. end insert

(2) The group of experts convened pursuant to paragraph (1)
shall make a good faith effort to solicit and take into consideration
input from scholars of all major religious, ethnic, racial, and
cultural groups and individuals who represent the perspectives of
all major religious, ethnic, racial, and cultural groups, genders,
sexual orientations, and disability statuses.

(3) The Superintendent shall consider for inclusion in the
history-social science content standards all topics that are required
to be considered for inclusion pursuant to the provisions of this
code.

(4) The Superintendent, with input from the group convened
pursuant to paragraph (1), shall recommend history-social science
content standards for adoption to the state board.

(5) The Superintendent shall hold a minimum of two public
meetings pursuant to the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act (Article
9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code) in order for the
public to provide input on the history-social science content
standards that would be recommended pursuant to paragraph begin delete (1). end delete
begin insert (4). end insert

(6) The Superintendent shall present the recommended
history-social science content standards to the state board on or
before March 30, 2018.

(7) On or before July 30, 2018, the state board shall adopt, reject,
or modify the history-social science content standards presented
by the Superintendent.

(8) If the state board modifies the history-social science content
standards presented by the Superintendent, the state board shall
provide written reasons for its modifications in a public meeting.
The state board shall adopt its modifications to the history-social
science content standards at a subsequent public meeting held no
later than July 30, 2018. The public meetings required by this
paragraph shall be held pursuant to the Bagley-Keene Open
Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of
Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code).

(b) (1) On or before October 1, 2018, the Superintendent and
the state board shall present to the Governor and the appropriate
policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature a schedule and
implementation plan for integrating the history-social science
content standards adopted pursuant to this section into the state
educational system.

(2) The requirement for submitting the report required pursuant
to this subdivision is inoperative on October 1, 2022, pursuant to
Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.