Senate Bill 1542

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    Florida Senate - 1999                                  SB 1542

    By Senator Dawson-White





    30-1284-99                                          See HB 471

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to minority history; amending

  3         s. 233.061, F.S.; revising provisions relating

  4         to authorized instruction regarding the history

  5         of African Americans; amending s. 233.09, F.S.,

  6         relating to duties of state instructional

  7         materials committees; requiring instructional

  8         materials recommended for adoption to include

  9         historical data related to the contributions of

10         African Americans, Hispanics, and women;

11         amending s. 233.34, F.S.; prohibiting funds

12         from the instructional materials allocation

13         from being used for the purchase of

14         instructional materials not on the

15         state-adopted list which do not include

16         historical data related to the contributions of

17         African Americans, Hispanics, and women;

18         providing an effective date.

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20  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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22         Section 1.  Paragraph (g) of subsection (2) of section

23  233.061, Florida Statutes, 1998 Supplement, is amended to

24  read:

25         233.061  Required instruction.--

26         (2)  Members of the instructional staff of the public

27  schools, subject to the rules and regulations of the

28  commissioner, the state board, and the school board, shall

29  teach efficiently and faithfully, using the books and

30  materials required, following the prescribed courses of study,

31  and employing approved methods of instruction, the following:

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 1999                                  SB 1542
    30-1284-99                                          See HB 471




  1         (g)  The history of African Americans, including the

  2  history of African culture prior to the European

  3  implementation peoples before the political conflicts that led

  4  to the development of slavery, the passage to America, the

  5  dehumanizing effects of the enslavement experience, abolition,

  6  and the unique contributions of African Americans to society.

  7  Curriculum relating to the history of African Americans must

  8  be designed to lead to an investigation of human behavior, the

  9  negative consequences resulting from racial hatred, encourage

10  tolerance of different races and cultures, and to promote

11  racial equity and pride.

12         Section 2.  Paragraph (d) of subsection (4) of section

13  233.09, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

14         233.09  Duties of each state instructional materials

15  committee.--The duties of each state instructional materials

16  committee shall be:

17         (4)  EVALUATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS.--To

18  evaluate carefully all instructional materials submitted, to

19  ascertain which instructional materials, if any, submitted for

20  consideration best implement the selection criteria developed

21  by the Commissioner of Education and those curricular

22  objectives included within applicable performance standards

23  provided for in s. 229.565.

24         (d)  When recommending instructional materials for use

25  in the schools, each committee shall require, when appropriate

26  to the comprehension of pupils, that materials for social

27  science, history, or civics classes contain the Declaration of

28  Independence and the Constitution of the United States.

29  Effective July 1, 2002 and thereafter, instructional materials

30  recommended for adoption for subjects including, but not

31  limited to, science, math, history, and health must include

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 1999                                  SB 1542
    30-1284-99                                          See HB 471




  1  historical data related to the contributions of African

  2  Americans, Hispanics, and women. No instructional materials

  3  shall be recommended by any committee for use in the schools

  4  which contain any matter reflecting unfairly upon persons

  5  because of their race, color, creed, national origin,

  6  ancestry, gender, or occupation.

  7         Section 3.  Subsection (2) of section 233.34, Florida

  8  Statutes, is amended to read:

  9         233.34  Use of instructional materials allocation;

10  instructional materials, library books, and reference books;

11  repair of books.--

12         (2)  Each school district shall use the annual

13  allocation for the purchase of instructional materials

14  included on the state-adopted list.  No less than 50 percent

15  of the annual allocation shall be used to purchase items which

16  will be used to provide instruction to students at the level

17  or levels for which the materials are designed.  However, up

18  to 50 percent of the annual allocation may be used for the

19  purchase of instructional materials, including library and

20  reference books and nonprint materials, not included on the

21  state-adopted list and for the repair and renovation of

22  textbooks and library books. However, such funds may not be

23  used for the purchase of instructional materials for subjects

24  including, but not limited to, science, math, history, and

25  health which do not include historical data related to the

26  contributions of African Americans, Hispanics, and women.

27  Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, school

28  districts may use 100 percent of that portion of the annual

29  allocation which is designated by the district for the

30  purchase of instructional materials for kindergarten, and 75

31  percent of that portion of the annual allocation which is

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 1999                                  SB 1542
    30-1284-99                                          See HB 471




  1  designated for the purchase of instructional materials for

  2  first grade, to purchase materials not on the state-adopted

  3  list.

  4         Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 1999.

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  7                          HOUSE SUMMARY

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      Revises provisions relating to authorized instruction
  9    regarding the history of African Americans. Requires
      instructional materials recommended for adoption to
10    include historical data related to the contributions of
      African Americans, Hispanics, and women. Prohibits funds
11    from the instructional materials allocation from being
      used for the purchase of instructional materials not on
12    the state-adopted list which do not include historical
      data related to the contributions of African Americans,
13    Hispanics, and women.

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