House Education met this morning to consider Senate Bill 704.
Senate Bill 704 creates a new section of code. It requires each classroom teacher to comply with any request by a parent, grandparents, or guardian to inspect any instructional material and books om the classroom, that are available to students to read. The bill requires the teacher to demonstrate how the supplementary instructional material relates to the content standards adopted by the State BOE. The bill requires the classroom teacher to include any book or books students will be required to read on a class syllabus. The bill requires the syllabus to be available to the parent, grandparent, or guardian upon request. If a teacher does not comply with this section, then the parent, grandparent, or guardian may file a complaint to the county superintendent. And then the state superintendent if the complaint is not resolved in the county in seven days.
The bill brought several questions before the committee for both the State BOE and committee counsel. Below are answers to some of the questions asked.
Parents, grandparents, or guardians would have to schedule a meeting to inspect materials. Parents, grandparents, and guardians can only review instructional materials for their child, not another child, who may have different materials. Public education materials can already be provided at the request of guardians. Teachers have been posting the resource items on some learning management systems.
The board representative stated the bill codifies at the state level federal law.
The bill is reactive in the sense that the parent must request to see the materials for a syllabus to be sent to them.
The board will record the number of complaints and report the number to the state superintendent each year. Complaints could be curriculum does not align to standards or teachers failed to comply with providing material. If the complaints are founded, they could be part of the review.
The bill does not have a timeframe for the syllabus to be amended if it would change from the beginning of the year.
Syllabi are currently only required in advanced placement courses. A syllabus is not defined in the bill. Therefore, a syllabus could just be a list of books and materials used during the course.
The board representative was not aware of any teacher or parent who had requested this bill.
During the amendment stage, the word “grandparent” was replaced with “custodian.”
An amendment was offered to give 10 days for a county superintendent to resolve a complaint. The amendment was rejected. An amendment changes the word “may” to “shall” to require a parent/custodian to schedule a teacher if he/she has a complaint. The amendment was rejected.
The committee adjourned for session. The bill will be back on the agenda during the next meeting.
