Florida Senate - 2010                             CS for SB 1342
       
       
       
       By the Committee on Education Pre-K - 12; and Senator Smith
       
       
       
       
       581-05281-10                                          20101342c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to career and education planning;
    3         amending s. 1003.4156, F.S.; revising the general
    4         requirements for middle grades promotion to require
    5         that a course in career and education planning explore
    6         the National Career Clusters; providing an effective
    7         date.
    8  
    9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   10  
   11         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
   12  1003.4156, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   13         1003.4156 General requirements for middle grades
   14  promotion.—
   15         (1) Beginning with students entering grade 6 in the 2006
   16  2007 school year, promotion from a school composed of middle
   17  grades 6, 7, and 8 requires that:
   18         (a) The student must successfully complete academic courses
   19  as follows:
   20         1. Three middle school or higher courses in English. These
   21  courses shall emphasize literature, composition, and technical
   22  text.
   23         2. Three middle school or higher courses in mathematics.
   24  Each middle school must offer at least one high school level
   25  mathematics course for which students may earn high school
   26  credit.
   27         3. Three middle school or higher courses in social studies,
   28  one semester of which must include the study of state and
   29  federal government and civics education.
   30         4. Three middle school or higher courses in science.
   31         5. One course in career and education planning to be
   32  completed in 7th or 8th grade. The course may be taught by any
   33  member of the instructional staff; must include career
   34  exploration aligned to the National Career Clusters supported by
   35  Florida’s Career Clusters Initiative; must include career
   36  exploration using CHOICES for the 21st Century or a comparable
   37  cost-effective program; must include educational planning using
   38  the online student advising system known as Florida Academic
   39  Counseling and Tracking for Students at the Internet website
   40  FACTS.org; and shall result in the completion of a personalized
   41  academic and career plan.
   42  
   43  Each school must hold a parent meeting either in the evening or
   44  on a weekend to inform parents about the course curriculum and
   45  activities. Each student shall complete an electronic personal
   46  education plan that must be signed by the student; the student’s
   47  instructor, guidance counselor, or academic advisor; and the
   48  student’s parent. By January 1, 2007, the Department of
   49  Education shall develop course frameworks and professional
   50  development materials for the career exploration and education
   51  planning course. The course may be implemented as a stand-alone
   52  course or integrated into another course or courses. The
   53  Commissioner of Education shall collect longitudinal high school
   54  course enrollment data by student ethnicity in order to analyze
   55  course-taking patterns.
   56         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.