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AB-2303 State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy and State Seal of Biliteracy.(2013-2014)



Current Version: 07/02/14 - Amended Senate         Compare Versions information image


AB2303:v94#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  July 02, 2014
Amended  IN  Senate  June 18, 2014
Amended  IN  Assembly  May 23, 2014
Amended  IN  Assembly  May 01, 2014
Amended  IN  Assembly  April 23, 2014

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2013–2014 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 2303

Introduced by Assembly Member Bloom

February 21, 2014

An act to amend Section 51461 of, and to add Article 11 (commencing with Section 33460) to Chapter 3 of Part 20 of Division 2 of Title 2 of, the Education Code, relating to biliteracy education.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2303, as amended, Bloom. State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy and State Seal of Biliteracy.
Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to award a State Seal of Biliteracy. Existing law provides that the State Seal of Biliteracy certifies attainment of a high level of proficiency by a graduating high school pupil in one or more languages, in addition to English, and certifies that the graduate meets specified criteria, including, but not limited to, passing the California Standards Test in English language arts administered in grade 11 at the proficient level or above. Existing law also requires a pupil in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, whose primary language is other than English, to meet these same requirements and to also attain the early advanced proficiency level on the English language development test in order to qualify for the State Seal of Biliteracy.
This bill, to qualify for the State Seal of Biliteracy and if the California Standards Test in English language arts is not approved, would require a graduate to pass a Measurement of Academic Performance and Progress assessment that is aligned to English language arts administered in grade 11 at the proficient level or above. The bill also, to qualify for the State Seal of Biliteracy and if a state-adopted assessment has not been fully implemented, would require a graduate to score at level that demonstrates English language arts proficiency on an assessment selected by the governing board of a school district that is aligned to the English language arts standards adopted by the State Board of Education for grade 11. Biliteracy, would instead require a graduate to have passed a state-adopted, standards-aligned test in English language arts administered in grade 11 at the proficient level or above, except that for the 2014–15 school year, to have passed the most recently available state-adopted, standards-aligned English language arts test for that graduate at the proficient level or above.
This bill also would establish the State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy to be administered annually by the State Department of Education beginning January 1, 2016, to recognize school districts and county offices of education that voluntarily demonstrate excellence in providing and supporting multiple opportunities for pupils to attain high achievement and linguistic biliteracy in grades 1 to 12, inclusive, through biliteracy programs, as specified. The bill would require this program to be implemented only to the extent moneys are available to the department for purposes of the program from any source.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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


SECTION 1.

  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) In 2012, California became the first state in the nation to award a State Seal of Biliteracy, pursuant to Article 6 (commencing with Section 51460) of Chapter 3 of Part 28 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Education Code, to graduating seniors with demonstrated proficiency in two or more languages.
(2) This groundbreaking step was acknowledgment of the economic and social value of multilingualism, the realities of a global century, and of the high level of academic achievement associated with attainment of literacy in multiple languages.
(3) In the context of the rollout of new common core standards, the State Seal of Biliteracy also rounded out the very notion of college and career readiness for this diverse and global 21st century world.
(4) Ten thousand Seals of Biliteracy were awarded in the first year for proficiency in 29 languages, including American Sign Language.
(5) By June 2013, the number had more than doubled with 170 school districts, 19 charter schools, and six county offices of education providing 21,655 awards to graduating seniors.
(6) Across the nation, other states were inspired to follow California’s lead. In 2013, New York and Illinois adopted State Seals of Biliteracy, and three additional states have pending legislation.
(7) In addition to the establishment of the State Seal of Biliteracy, other major changes recognizing the benefits of biliteracy have occurred, including all of the following:
(A) Increased numbers of two-way immersion programs in our public education system.
(B) Adoption in 2009 of California’s first World Language Content Standards providing direction for the state’s world language programs and the acknowledgment for the need for developing “global competency.”
(C) Inclusion of the recommendation to “ensure English literacy and biliteracy through a statewide campaign to better prepare parents and students to support literacy” in the Blueprint for Great Schools developed by the Transition Advisory Team of the Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson in 2011.
(8) These changes have led to an increased awareness and acknowledgment of the benefits of multilingual proficiency and result in the desire for additional opportunities to obtain multilingual proficiency. However, these efforts are not enough.
(9) It is clear that increasing the number of graduating pupils with multilingual skills is critical for the economic and societal needs of our state.
(10) California needs people with biliteracy skills and cross-cultural competencies to work in and fuel our economy, to strengthen our social cohesion, and to enrich the quality of life in our communities.
(11) Pathways toward the global competency and linguistic skills of pupils need to be established. These pathways can address a shortfall in needed skills in our communities and economy. It is a recognition of the vibrancy and value of cultural diversity, and it helps address the achievement gap for our English learners.
(12) California, the most ethnically and linguistically diverse state in the nation and the birthplace of the State Seal of Biliteracy, is the place to break new ground in the creation of comprehensive, articulated, and powerful pathways to biliteracy.
(13) A powerful first step in establishing these pathways is to provide state recognition to school districts and county offices of education that establish and maintain comprehensive, articulated pathways to biliteracy that include multiple entry points, provide a continuum of language development in prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and lead to the attainment of the State Seal of Biliteracy.
(b) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to do both of the following:
(1) Establish state recognition to school districts and county offices of education that provide multiple programs moving pupils through a language learning continuum of study that is well articulated and comprehensive for the purpose of attaining biliteracy by its pupils.
(2) Identify multiple pathways to biliteracy that school districts and county offices of education may utilize in developing their comprehensive multiple pathways biliteracy programs.

SEC. 2.

 Article 11 (commencing with Section 33460) is added to Chapter 3 of Part 20 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the Education Code, to read:
Article  11. State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy

33460.
 For purposes of this article, “biliteracy” means the ability to express oneself with clarity and cogency, to read and write cogently, and to compute and think critically in two or more languages. It includes the ability to function in and across language communities. For English learners, this includes the development of academic proficiency in the pupil’s primary language as well as in English.

33461.
 (a) The State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy is hereby established to be administered annually by the department beginning January 1, 2016, to recognize school districts and county offices of education demonstrating excellence in providing and supporting multiple opportunities for pupils to attain high achievement and linguistic biliteracy in grades 1 to 12, inclusive, through biliteracy programs. On or before December 31, 2015, the department shall plan and design the program. Beginning January 1, 2016, and each year thereafter, the department shall disseminate and review applications for recognition under the program. Beginning November 1, 2016, and each year thereafter, the department shall provide recognition, pursuant to the program, to approved school districts and county offices of education.
(b) The department shall use appropriate state and federal moneys to implement this article.
(c) The program established pursuant to this section shall be a voluntary program. Neither a school district nor a county office of education shall be required to participate.

33462.
 (a) The department shall recognize the governing board of a school district or a county office of education under the State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy if the school district or county office of education meets any of the following criteria:
(1) Has established and maintained for pupils in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, for at least two years, a well-articulated State Seal of Biliteracy program meeting the requirements established in Section 51461 and has established and maintained multiple pathways to biliteracy pursuant to Section 33463.
(2) Has established and maintained for pupils in prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 through 8, inclusive, a system of benchmarking progress and recognition of pupil participation and progress along a continuum toward high-level proficiency in two or more languages. This may include the creation of pathway awards aligned to milestones and critical developmental points along the pathway towards biliteracy, culminating in the awarding of the State Seal of Biliteracy at graduation from high school. Critical development points include, but are not limited to, the completion of preschool, third grade, elementary school, and middle school.
(3) Has met the criteria of paragraphs (1) and (2) for pupils in prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 12, inclusive.
(b) In addition to the requirements of subdivision (a), a school district or county office of education also shall meet all of the following criteria:
(1) Has a well-articulated plan for pupils in prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, that describes the language programs that comprise a coherent set of language development opportunities. The plan shall include consideration of all of the following:
(A) Integration of English learner services with world language programs.
(B) The amount of time allotted to language study, sequencing, and articulation.
(C) Inclusion of multiple entry points into language learning.
(D) Equitable access to language learning.
(E) Inclusion of a developmental window from 4 to 8 years of age, inclusive, for language learning in which pupils are able to develop native-like proficiency in multiple languages.
(F) Consideration of language priorities where the governing board of a school district or a county office of education has to carefully consider a balance between a desire to offer multiple languages and the realities of investment and space within school schedules to accommodate the sequence of courses involved in building to high levels of proficiency.
(2) Has supported quality implementation, including qualified language teachers; a retention, recruitment, and professional development system that results in identifying and hiring teachers with needed skills; collaboration and planning time for teachers to align and articulate the language curriculum across grade levels and schools; and provided teachers with professional development support to effectively implement research-based language strategies and methodologies.
(3) Has created a districtwide, communitywide, countywide, and school culture that celebrates language and cultural diversity in the pursuit of biliteracy as a needed 21st century skill.
(4) Does not have any outstanding English learner compliance findings from the most recent federal and state program monitoring.

33463.
 For purposes of demonstrating whether a school district or a county office of education qualifies for the State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy, the governing board of a school district or a county office of education may implement any comprehensive program for the study of world languages that includes, but is not limited to, any of the following:
(a) “FLEX” (Foreign Language experience, exposure, enrichment, or exploratory) may be implemented for a regular schoolday or an extended schoolday for prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 8, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Has classes that meet only once or twice a week.
(2) Has classes that are introductory and provide exposure.
(3) May be delivered during school or after school.
(4) Introduces pupils to one or more languages and cultures other than their own in order to motivate them to pursue further language study.
(5) Has varied objectives depending on the specific program, length of instruction, and type of instruction.
(b) “FLES” (Foreign Language in Elementary Schools) may be implemented as a period within a schoolday or an extended schoolday for kindergarten and grades 1 to 6, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Are less intensive than immersion.
(2) Teaches the target language for designated periods of time, but varies a great deal in the amount of time devoted to foreign language learning.
(3) Follows the natural sequence of language learning to understand, speak, read, and write.
(4) Does not include academic study through the language, but focuses on language study itself.
(5) Has proficiency goals and pupil outcomes that vary according to the amount and type of instruction.
(6) Provides initial instruction and exposure to a second language.
(7) Usually meets daily.
(8) Begins in kindergarten and continues through grade 6, but may begin in grade 2, grade 3, or grade 4.
(c) “Transitional Bilingual” may be implemented as a whole schoolday program for prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 3, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Are for English learners.
(2) Provides academic instruction and initial literacy development in the home language along with English language development, with increasing amounts of the English language leading to full transition to the English language by the end of grade 3.
(3) Provides that the goal is not biliteracy but a transition to English.
(d) “Developmental Bilingual” may be implemented as a whole schoolday program for prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 5, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Has a program for English learners using both the English language and their first language for academic instruction and develops literacy skills in both languages.
(2) Includes an additive approach that continues through grade 5 and an attainment of threshold literacy skills in both languages.
(3) Has the goal of biliteracy.
(e) “Immersion” may be implemented as a whole schoolday program or a summer enrichment program for prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Provides that the target language is used for all academic instruction with the exception of language arts in English.
(2) Maintains a ratio of target language use to English language use as high as 80 percent to 20 percent throughout kindergarten and grades 1 to 6, inclusive.
(f) “Two-Way Immersion” (Dual Language) may be implemented as a whole schoolday program for prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Integrates native English language speakers and speakers of another language by providing instruction in both languages for all pupils.
(2) Promotes bilingualism and biliteracy, grade-level academic achievement, and positive cross-cultural attitudes and behaviors in all pupils.
(3) Has classes made up of roughly equal numbers of native speakers of English and native speakers of the target language.
(4) Has each language roughly one-half of the time for academic instruction in the 50/50 Two-Way Immersion model.
(5) Has the target language used for 90 percent of instruction in the early years, usually tapering to 50 percent by grade 4 in the 90/10 Two-Way Immersion model. At the secondary level, pupils continue to study academic content in the target language for at least two periods a day.
(6) Typically begins in kindergarten or grade 1 and lasts at least through grade 5, and preferably through grades 9 to 12, inclusive.
(g) “Native Speakers Courses” may be implemented as a period offered during a schoolday or after school for grades 6 to 12, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Designed to develop literacy, academic language, and proficient skills in a language other than English for native speakers of that language.
(2) Designed for pupils from homes in which the target language is spoken and for pupils who speak or understand the target language to some extent.
(3) Has the intent of these courses being to build on existing skills of pupils and help them develop full academic proficiency.
(4) Requires Advanced Placement language courses.
(h) “Heritage Language” may be implemented as a period offered during a schoolday or after school for kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Are additive programs that enable English-language-dominant pupils from language minority families to reclaim their heritage language and receive an education that incorporates a culturally responsive curriculum in school.
(2) Requires Advanced Placement language courses.
(i) “World Language Classes” may be implemented as a period offered during a schoolday or after school for grades 6 to 12, inclusive, and includes all of the following:
(1) Begins in middle school or high school.
(2) Has the curriculum aligned with the A to G requirements of the University of California.
(3) Requires the study of the same world language for two years in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, to meet the freshman admissions requirements for the University of California and the California State University.
(4) Requires Advanced Placement language classes.
(j) “Study Abroad, International Student Exchange Program” for grades 6 to 12, inclusive, includes both of the following:
(1) Provides world language pupils with opportunities to travel, live, and study for a short time in another nation.
(2) Includes trips sponsored by language clubs or language courses for a few weeks or full semester, or live-abroad placement programs.

SEC. 3.

 Section 51461 of the Education Code is amended to read:

51461.
 (a) The State Seal of Biliteracy certifies attainment of a high level of proficiency by a graduating high school pupil in one or more languages, in addition to English, and certifies that the graduate meets all of the following criteria:
(1) Completion of all English language arts requirements for graduation with an overall grade point average of 2.0 or above in those classes.

(2)Passing the California Standards Test in English language arts administered in grade 11 at the proficient level or above.

(A)For purposes of this paragraph, if the California Standards Test in English language arts is not approved, then both of the following shall apply:

(i)The governing board of the school district shall administer an assessment that is aligned to English language arts, as established pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 60640, in grade 11.

(ii)The graduate shall pass the assessment at the proficient level or above.

(B)For purposes of this paragraph, if a state-adopted assessment has not been fully implemented, both of the following shall apply:

(i)The governing board of the school district shall select an assessment to be used that is aligned to the English language arts standards adopted by the state board for grade 11.

(ii)The graduate shall score at a level that demonstrates English language arts proficiency.

(2) (A) Passing a state-adopted, standards-aligned test in English language arts administered in grade 11 at the proficient level or above.
(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), for the 2014–15 school year, passing the most recently available state-adopted, standards-aligned test in English language arts for that graduate at the proficient level or above.
(3) Proficiency in one or more languages other than English, demonstrated through one of the following methods:
(A) Passing a foreign language Advanced Placement examination with a score of 3 or higher or an International Baccalaureate examination with a score of 4 or higher.
(B) Successful completion of a four-year high school course of study in a foreign language, and attaining an overall grade point average of 3.0 or above in that course of study.
(C) If no Advanced Placement examination or off-the-shelf language test exists and the school district can certify to the Superintendent that the test meets the rigor of a four-year high school course of study in that foreign language, passing a school district language examination that, at a minimum, assesses speaking, reading, and writing in a language other than English at the proficient level or higher. If a school district offers a language examination in a language in which an Advanced Placement examination or off-the-shelf language test exists, the school district language examination shall be approved by the Superintendent for the purpose of determining proficiency in a language other than English.
(D) Passing the SAT II foreign language examination with a score of 600 or higher.
(b) If the primary language of a pupil in any of grades 9 to 12, inclusive, is other than English, he or she shall do both of the following in order to qualify for the State Seal of Biliteracy:
(1) Attain the early advanced proficiency level on the English language development test. For purposes of this paragraph, a participating school district may administer the English language development test an additional time as necessary.
(2) Meet the requirements of subdivision (a).
(c) For languages in which an Advanced Placement test is not available, the Superintendent may provide a listing of equivalent summative tests that school districts may use in place of an Advanced Placement test for purposes of subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (a). A school district may provide the Superintendent with a list of equivalent summative tests that the district uses in place of an Advanced Placement test for purposes of subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (a). The Superintendent may use lists received from school districts in developing his or her list of equivalent summative tests.
(d) For purposes of this article, “foreign language” means a language other than English, and includes American Sign Language.

SEC. 4.

 The State Recognition Program of Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy (Article 11 (commencing with Section 33460) of Chapter 3 of Part 20 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the Education Code) shall be implemented only to the extent moneys are available to the State Department of Education for purposes of the program from any source, including, but not limited to, state moneys, federal moneys, and other nonstate funding sources.