Bill Text: NY A01689 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires instruction in civic education for grades 5 through 12 including instruction on the NYS constitution; federal, state and local government; civic literacy; methods of public participation; and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 22-6)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to education [A01689 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A01689-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1689

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 17, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. SIMON, MAGNARELLI, LUPARDO, KELLES -- Multi-Spon-
          sored  by  --  M.    of  A.  COOK, CRUZ, DeSTEFANO, DICKENS, DINOWITZ,
          EPSTEIN, GLICK, JEAN-PIERRE, McMAHON, REYES, SAYEGH, SMULLEN, WOERNER,
          ZEBROWSKI -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education

        AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring civic educa-
          tion courses for grades five through twelve

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 817 to
     2  read as follows:
     3    §  817.  Instruction  in  civic  education.  1. The commissioner shall
     4  establish a curriculum for instruction in civic education in all schools
     5  providing instruction to students in grades five through  twelve.  Local
     6  boards  of education and the chancellor of the board of education of the
     7  city of New York may adopt their own curriculum upon the approval of the
     8  commissioner.
     9    2. Such instruction shall  include,  but  shall  not  be  limited  to,
    10  instruction on the New York state constitution; federal, state and local
    11  government;  civic  literacy;  methods  of public participation; and the
    12  rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Such curriculum  shall  have
    13  an  experiential,  simulation, and project-based approach, including but
    14  not limited to, mock trials; moot court; opportunities to  identify  and
    15  debate  issues relative to power, economic status and the common good in
    16  democracy, advocacy, and community organizing; simulation based legisla-
    17  tive hearings; and other role playing exercises that engage students  in
    18  the  democratic  process  and  that  teach them how to be informed civic
    19  actors in their communities.
    20    3. The boards of education and trustees  of  the  several  cities  and
    21  school  districts  of the state shall require instruction to be given in
    22  such course, by the teachers employed in the school therein.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01970-01-3
        A. 1689                             2

     1    4. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and  regulations  outlining
     2  the  training of teachers providing such civic education instruction and
     3  materials to be provided for such instruction. The board of education or
     4  trustees of every school district shall provide appropriate training and
     5  curriculum materials, as promulgated by the commissioner, to such teach-
     6  ers.
     7    § 2. This act shall take effect two years after it shall have become a
     8  law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any
     9  rule  or  regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its
    10  effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such
    11  effective date.