[ilbegone]

California State Board of Education http://www.cde.ca.gov/BE/

Biographies of Board members http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/ms/mm/

Policies & Education Principles
From the California State Board of Education.
Last date entered 2004 http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/ms/po/

This seems to be disregarded, particularly with the "dual immersion" crap.

Educational Programs and Services for English Learners

The State Board of Education recognizes that the size and diversity of the population of English learners is constantly increasing...

Based upon federal law, Education Code Section 300 et. seq. and the funding provisions of Education Code Section 62002, the State Board of Education urges all school districts to teach English learners to listen, speak, read, and write in the English language and provide those students with an opportunity to learn, including access to a challenging core curriculum...

Specifically, the technical assistance provided by the Department shall focus on the teaching of English learners to read and write in English...

Compliance standards shall specifically ensure that English learners are taught to read and write in English...

Federal Law. The 1974 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Lau v. Nichols 414 U.S. 563 (1974) as codified in the Equal Education Opportunities Act and other federal laws require that each educational agency "take appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede equal participation by its students in its instructional programs." Federal law does not require primary language instruction or any other specific methodology. "Appropriate action" is determined using the three part analysis developed in Castaneda v. Pickard (5th cir. 1981) 648 F.2d 989 as follows:
Use sound theory . The educational theory upon which instruction is based must be recognized as sound by at least some experts in the field.
Provide adequate support . The school system must provide the procedures, resources, and personnel necessary to apply the theory in the classroom. The resulting program must be implemented effectively.
Achieve results . After a reasonable period of time, application of the program must actually overcome English language barriers confronting the students and must not leave them with substantive academic deficits...

State Law. The specific programmatic provisions of California's "bilingual education" program became inoperative on June 30, 1987...

Immigrant Children (hereafter Section 300, et. seq.). Education Code Section 300 clearly states that the purpose of the new law is to teach English as rapidly and effectively as possible to English learners in California public schools. The State Board of Education finds that this policy illustrates how these three components of substantive law may be harmonized to create a single system governing programs for English learners that emphasizes the rapid, effective, and efficient acquisition of English literacy, specifically including the ability to read and write in the English language...

Goals and Principles Not Binding on School Districts

In keeping with Education Code Section 33308.5, the State Board of Education makes clear that the guidance provided above is advisory in nature and only the requirements of federal law, Education Code Section 300 et seq. and the funding provision of Education Code Section 62002 (and, where applicable, court decisions) are binding upon school districts as they develop and implement educational programs and services for English learners.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/ms/po/policy98-04-oct1998.asp