BILL NUMBER: AB 598 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 830
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 10, 1999
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 8, 1999
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 9, 1999
PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 7, 1999
AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 2, 1999
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 20, 1999
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 15, 1999
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 14, 1999
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 25, 1999
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Members Soto and Lempert
FEBRUARY 19, 1999
An act to amend Section 51872 of, and to add Sections 51870, 51871.3, 51871.4, and 51871.5 to, the Education Code, relating to education technology.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 598, Soto. Education technology: Commission on Technology in Learning.
(1) Existing law, the Digital High School Education Technology Grant Act of 1997, provides one-time installation grants and ongoing technology support and staff training grants to school districts and county offices of education for projects at high schools.
Existing law establishes the California Technology Assistance Project to administer a regionalized network of technical assistance to schools and school districts on the implementation of education technology. The California Technology Assistance Project is composed of regional consortia that work collaboratively with school districts and county offices of education in order to meet locally defined technology-based needs, as identified in the certified technology plans for their client school districts.
This bill would establish the Commission on Technology in Learning to make policy recommendations to the State Board of Education in areas that include statewide planning for education technology, including a statewide master plan for use of education technology in the elementary and secondary instructional program, dissemination of technology resources, and development of guidelines for ongoing comprehensive statewide evaluation of all technology, telecommunications, and distance learning programs that directly and indirectly affect California education in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. The bill would provide for the appointment of members of the commission.
The bill would express the intent of the Legislature that the current practice of developing education technology plans for each funding program should be replaced with a comprehensive local planning process that will enable school districts to apply for grants on an ongoing basis and assist in utilizing available education technology program and would require a school district to have a technology plan as a precondition of receiving any technology grant administered by the State Department of Education.
(2) Existing law requires the State Department of Education to
assist the State Board of Education on education technology plans,
practices, programs, and activities, provide statewide coordination
and evaluation of technology programs and resources, and advance
the use of technology in the curriculum and in the administration
of
elementary and secondary schools.
This bill would require the department to provide staff support to the Commission for Technology in Learning.
(3) Under the bill the commission would terminate and would have no further duties on January 1, 2003.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature to establish a
Commission on Technology in Learning to provide policy recommendations
to the State Board of Education in areas related to technology
planning, dissemination, and evaluation, which would carefully
consider input from state, regional, and local interests. The
Legislature finds and declares that a Commission on Technology
in Learning would provide an appropriate venue for public input
and dialogue in the decision making process.
SEC. 2. Section 51870 is added to the Education Code, to read:
51870. For the purposes of this article, the following terms have
the following meanings, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) "Commission" means the Commission on Technology in Learning
established by Section 51871.3.
(b) "Technology" means technology-based materials, equipment,
systems, and networks.
SEC. 3. Section 51871.3 is added to the Education Code, to read:
51871.3. The Commission on Technology in Learning is hereby established
to make policy recommendations to the State Board of Education
in areas including, but not necessarily limited to, all of the
following:
(a) Statewide planning for technology, including a statewide master
plan for use of education technology in California's elementary
and secondary instructional program which, at a minimum, includes
all of the following:
(1) A process for annually updating the plan according to changing
educational needs and emerging technological developments.
(2) The use of multiple technologies.
(3) The coordination of technology programs with other appropriate
state education programs including programs for blind and disabled
pupils.
(4) The integration of technology to assure alignment with state
and federal education initiatives where appropriate.
(5) The active involvement of business and industry.
(6) A comprehensive evaluation process that is aligned with the
state's overall educational program evaluation system.
(7) Provisions for working with the California Technology Assistance
Project and other agencies, as appropriate, to implement policies
of the State Board of Education and programs of the State Department
of Education to aid in the use of technology in the delivery of
instruction.
(8) Strategies for seeking and leveraging public and private funding.
(9) Consideration of the role of education technology to supplement
California's learning improvement objectives.
(10) An evaluation of the distribution of existing technology
resources and recommendations on ensuring access for all pupils.
(11) Comprehensive discussion of the effectiveness of using technology
as a learning tool and the appropriate uses of technology in the
delivery of instruction.
(12) It is the intent of the Legislature that the statewide master
plan for use of education technology be incorporated into any
future comprehensive kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive,
statewide education master plan.
(b) Dissemination of technology resources, including all of the
following:
(1) The development, identification, and access to information
about programs, products, and practices that meet established
technical criteria and state adopted content standards.
(2) The development of guidelines for the regional and statewide
dissemination of information and services through the California
Technology Assistance Project.
(c) The development of guidelines to aid in the ongoing comprehensive
statewide evaluation of technology, telecommunications, and distance
learning programs that directly and indirectly affect California
education in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive.
SEC. 4. Section 51871.4 is added to the Education Code, to read:
51871.4. (a) The Commission on Technology in Learning shall consist
of 14 members who shall be appointed as follows:
(1) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall appoint two
representatives in accordance with the following:
(A) One of the representatives shall be from a county office of
education.
(B) One of the representatives shall be a public member from an
organization representing California school boards.
(2) The Governor shall appoint one practicing public school administrator
from an organization representing California administrators, one
business representative with experience in applications of technology,
one practicing public school elementary teacher from an organization
representing California teachers, one library media specialist
from an association representing library media specialists, one
public member with expertise in the application of technology,
and one practicing public school secondary teacher from an organization
representing technology-using educators. The Governor, in consultation
with the President of the University of California, the Chancellor
of the California State University, and the Chancellor of the
California Community Colleges, shall appoint two additional members
representing public postsecondary institutions.
(3) The Senate Committee on Rules shall appoint one business representative
with experience in applications of technology and one practicing
public school administrator with expertise in technology infrastructure.
(4) The Speaker of the Assembly shall appoint one business representative
with experience in applications of technology and one practicing
public school elementary teacher from an organization representing
California teachers.
(5) The President of the State Board of Education shall appoint
a nonvoting liaison to the Commission on Technology in Learning.
The Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission
shall appoint a nonvoting liaison to the Commission on Technology
in Learning. The Executive Director of the California Postsecondary
Education Commission shall appoint a nonvoting liaison to the
Commission on Technology in Learning.
(b) No private business entity shall have more than one of its
officers or employees serving as a member of the commission. In
making the appointments, the Governor, the President pro Tempore
of the Senate, and the Speaker of the Assembly shall consult and
cooperate so that not more than one representative of any single
private business entity is serving on the commission at any time.
(c) Members shall be knowledgeable about applications of technology
in an educational setting and shall be selected based on documentation
of that experience.
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature that the members of the
commission broadly represent the unique perspectives of all of
the stakeholders in a collaborative process.
(e) Members shall serve without compensation, except that members
shall be reimbursed for necessary reasonable expenses incurred
for attending meetings of the commission.
(f) It is the intent of the Legislature that the members will
be subject to the conflict-of-interest provisions of the Political
Reform Act of 1974, as set forth in Title 9 (commencing with Section
81000) of the Government Code.
(g) Meetings of the Commission on Technology in Learning shall
be open to the public and shall be conducted in accordance with
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).
SEC. 5. Section 51871.5 is added to the Education Code, to read:
51871.5. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that education
technology planning be accomplished in the most comprehensive
manner possible. To that end, the current practice of developing
education technology plans for each funding program should be
replaced with a comprehensive local planning process that will
enable school
districts to apply for grants on an ongoing basis and assist in
utilizing available education technology program.
(b) By October 1, 2000, the commission, in conjunction with the
Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission,
shall recommend guidelines and criteria to the State Board of
Education for assisting school districts in the preparation of
three- to five-year technology plans for the integration of technology
into the school curriculum. At a minimum, the technology plans
shall be integrated, where allowed by law, with School Improvement
Plans and Title I Plans and include a staff development and technical
support component.
(c) On or after January 1, 2002, a school district shall have
a technology plan as a precondition of receiving any technology
grant administered by the State Department of Education. This
requirement may be waived by the State Board of Education if it
is determined that the applicant school district made a good faith
effort to develop a local technology plan, but for reasons beyond
its control, the district cannot develop the plan before receipt
of the technology grant.
(d) The State Department of Education shall maintain a record
of school districts that have three- to five-year education technology
plans and shall make that information available to any interested
public agencies.
SEC. 6. Section 51872 of the Education Code is amended to read:
51872. (a) The State Department of Education shall administer
this article. The duties of the State Department of Education
shall include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following:
(1) Assisting the State Board of Education on education technology
plans, policies, programs, and activities.
(2) Providing support staff to the Commission on Technology in
Learning to make recommendations to the State Board of Education.
(3) Providing for the statewide coordination, planning, and evaluation
of education technology programs and resources.
(4) Advancing the use of technology in the curriculum and in the
administration of elementary and secondary schools.
(b) Funding to support the activities described in subdivision
(a), including educational technology services which are more
efficiently and effectively delivered at a statewide level, shall
be provided to the State Department of Education through the annual
Budget Act. Based upon recommendations from the California Technology
Assistance Project and other interested parties, the State
Board of Education shall fund school districts and county offices
of education to provide centralized statewide educational technology
services that address locally defined needs but that are more
efficiently and effectively provided on a statewide basis.
SEC. 7. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Commission
on Technology in Learning established pursuant to Section 51871.3
of the Education Code shall terminate and shall have no further
duties on January 1, 2003, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2003, deletes or extends that date.
SEC. 8. It is the intent of the Legislature that the Commission
on Technology in Learning established pursuant to Section 51871.3
of the Education Code commence meeting on or after April 2, 2000,
unless the commission is authorized by the Governor's Y-2000 Executive
Committee to meet before that date.
