Bill Text: FL S1680 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced


Bill Title: Parental or Guardian Involvement/Public Schools

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-05-07 - Indefinitely postponed and withdrawn from consideration [S1680 Detail]

Download: Florida-2011-S1680-Introduced.html
       Florida Senate - 2011                                    SB 1680
       
       
       
       By Senator Storms
       
       
       
       
       10-01565A-11                                          20111680__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to parental or guardian involvement
    3         and accountability in public schools; creating s.
    4         1008.347, F.S.; providing a purpose and principles
    5         concerning parental or guardian involvement; providing
    6         strategies that a parent or guardian may use to
    7         support and improve student achievement; requiring
    8         that teachers and schools develop information or use
    9         existing information to share with parents or
   10         guardians; specifying the type of information to be
   11         shared; requiring that prekindergarten through grade 3
   12         teachers monitor and assess the quality of parent or
   13         guardian involvement for each student; requiring that
   14         the teacher mail an evaluation of parental or guardian
   15         involvement under certain circumstances; requiring
   16         that the State Board of Education adopt rules
   17         establishing an appeals process; requiring
   18         implementation beginning with the 2012-2013 school
   19         year; providing an effective date.
   20  
   21  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   22  
   23         Section 1. Section 1008.347, Florida Statutes, is created
   24  to read:
   25         1008.347 Parental or guardian involvement and
   26  accountability in public schools.—
   27         (1) PURPOSE.—Although the school environment has a great
   28  impact on a child’s well-being and academic success, parents or
   29  guardians and the home environment form the foundation of a
   30  child’s present and future life. Without proper parental or
   31  guardian involvement in all aspects of a child’s life, the
   32  child’s prospects for becoming a well-equipped and useful member
   33  of society are greatly diminished. The purpose of this section
   34  is to facilitate the provision of information and tools to
   35  parents or guardians of prekindergarten through grade 12
   36  students which enable them to have a positive impact on their
   37  child’s educational success and to set standards for parental or
   38  guardian accountability.
   39         (2) PRINCIPLES.—
   40         (a) Parental or guardian involvement is most effective when
   41  it is comprehensive, well planned, and continues throughout the
   42  school year.
   43         (b) Parental or guardian involvement should be
   44  developmental, with a preventive rather than remedial approach,
   45  and should be an integral part of a strategy to improve student
   46  achievement.
   47         (c) Parents or guardians do not need to be formally
   48  educated in order to provide the support and assistance
   49  necessary to improve the academic performance of their child.
   50         (d) At-risk children have the most to gain from parental or
   51  guardian involvement.
   52         (3) STRATEGIES.—Strategies that parents or guardians may
   53  employ to support the learning of their children and improve
   54  student achievement include, but are not limited to:
   55         (a) Attending parent-teacher or guardian-teacher
   56  conferences during which the student’s strengths and weaknesses
   57  are discussed and goals for the student are collaboratively set.
   58         (b) Maintaining correspondence with the child’s teachers
   59  through submission of signed forms and signed homework
   60  assignment sheets and responding to formal requests for
   61  conferences.
   62         (c) Establishing a home environment that supports the child
   63  as a student.
   64         (d) Contacting the teacher if a problem or issue arises
   65  regarding homework, absences or makeup assignments, or a
   66  situation in the home that may disturb the student’s
   67  performance.
   68         (e) Facilitating the student’s performance in school by
   69  monitoring homework completion and test preparation and helping
   70  with curriculum-related activities.
   71         (f) Providing for the student’s on-time attendance at
   72  school, preventing frequent absences from school, and providing
   73  needed school supplies.
   74         (4) SHARED INFORMATION.—Teachers and schools shall develop
   75  information packets, forms, or videos, or shall use existing
   76  information packets, forms, or videos, in order to share
   77  information with each parent or guardian, and the parent or
   78  guarding shall provide written acknowledgement of receiving the
   79  information. The shared information may be presented in the
   80  parent or guardian guide to successful student achievement or in
   81  the checklist of parental or guardian actions, as required under
   82  s. 1002.23, both of which provide expectations of parents or
   83  guardians with respect to:
   84         (a) Requirements for school attendance.
   85         (b) A child’s physical readiness for school, which
   86  includes, but is not limited to: necessary school supplies,
   87  which may be obtained through various organizations if needed;
   88  meals, which may be obtained through a school’s free or reduced
   89  priced meal program if qualified; and immunizations and medical
   90  care.
   91         (c) A child’s academic work, including time set aside for
   92  daily homework and reading, nightly check of homework completion
   93  and preparation for tests, early preparation of assigned school
   94  projects, signatures on required forms, and check of contents of
   95  the school backpack.
   96         (5) ACCOUNTABILITY.—
   97         (a) In order to help parents or guardians establish a home
   98  environment that supports the child as a student, each teacher
   99  shall monitor and assess the quality of the involvement of the
  100  parent or guardian of each student in his or her class. A report
  101  shall be sent by mail to each parent or guardian of a
  102  prekindergarten through grade 3 student which contains the
  103  teacher’s evaluation of parental or guardian involvement as
  104  “satisfactory,” “needs improvement,” or “unsatisfactory” on each
  105  of the following criteria:
  106         1. Parental or guardian response to requests for
  107  conferences or communication.
  108         2. The student’s completion of homework and preparation for
  109  tests.
  110         3. The student’s physical preparation for school, which has
  111  an effect on mental preparation.
  112         4. The frequency of the student’s absence and tardiness.
  113         (b) The report shall be mailed to a student’s parent or
  114  guardian only if one of the following occurs during any academic
  115  quarter:
  116         1. Five unexcused absences or 10 unexcused tardy
  117  attendances for the student; or
  118         2. Five requests for communication between the student’s
  119  teacher and the parent or guardian have passed without any
  120  communication occurring.
  121         (6) APPEALS PROCESS; RULES.—The State Board of Education
  122  shall adopt rules establishing an appeals process by which the
  123  principal, the teacher, and the parent or guardian meet and
  124  discuss how the involvement grade was determined. The meeting
  125  must also include a discussion on the steps needed to improve
  126  the involvement grade and improve the environment and elements
  127  that affect student learning and achievement.
  128         (7) IMPLEMENTATION.—This section shall be implemented
  129  beginning with the 2012-2013 school year.
  130         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.

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