Florida Senate - 2016                              CS for SB 468
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Education Pre-K - 12; and Senators Ring and
       Brandes
       
       
       
       
       581-01804-16                                           2016468c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to computer coding instruction;
    3         amending s. 1007.2616, F.S.; requiring high schools to
    4         offer computer coding courses; requiring the
    5         Commissioner of Education to identify the computer
    6         coding courses that satisfy two credits of foreign
    7         language instruction under certain circumstances;
    8         requiring Florida College System institutions and
    9         state universities to recognize the credits as foreign
   10         language credits; requiring the inclusion of certain
   11         computer coding courses in the Course Code Directory;
   12         requiring each district school board to submit a plan
   13         for a computer coding curriculum to the commissioner
   14         and the Legislature by a specified date; providing an
   15         effective date.
   16          
   17  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   18  
   19         Section 1. Present subsection (4) of section 1007.2616,
   20  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (5), and a new
   21  subsection (4) is added to that section, to read:
   22         1007.2616 Computer science and technology instruction.—
   23         (4) High schools must provide students opportunities to
   24  take computer coding courses of sufficient rigor, as identified
   25  by the commissioner, such that two credits in such courses and
   26  the earning of a related industry certification satisfies two
   27  credits of sequential foreign language instruction. Florida
   28  College System institutions and state universities must
   29  recognize the credits as foreign language credits. Computer
   30  coding courses identified by the commissioner and computer
   31  coding courses taken to earn the related industry certification
   32  shall be included in the Course Code Directory.
   33         Section 2. Each district school board shall develop a plan
   34  for a computer coding curriculum and must submit its plan to the
   35  Commissioner of Education, the President of the Senate, and the
   36  Speaker of the House of Representatives by January 1, 2017.
   37         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.