99220
. The Regents of the University of California are requested to
jointly develop with the Trustees of California State University and
the independent colleges and universities, the California Reading
Professional Development Institutes, to be administered by the
university, in partnership with the California State University and
with private, independent universities in California, in accordance
with all of the following criteria:
(a) (1) In June 1999, the University of California and its
institutes' partners shall commence instruction for 6,000
participants who either provide direct instruction in reading to
pupils in kindergarten or in grade 1, 2, or 3, or who supervise
beginning teachers of reading. Commencing in July 2000, the
institutes shall provide instruction for an additional 14,000
participants who either provide direct instruction in reading to
pupils, including special education pupils, in prekindergarten,
kindergarten or in grade 1, 2, or 3, or supervise beginning teachers
of reading. Of the 14,000 new positions, at least 2,000 shall be
reserved for prekindergarten teachers who teach in state preschool
programs located in the attendance area of high-priority schools in
order to link prekindergarten literacy development and reading
readiness to the state's reading goals for pupils enrolled in
kindergarten and grades 1 to 3, inclusive. If there are not enough
applicants to fill the 2,000 positions, the remaining positions may
be filled by teachers of pupils enrolled in kindergarten or any of
grades 1 to 3, inclusive.
(2) Ongoing support for second-year participants shall include a
second-year institute focusing on the use of instructional materials,
leveraging of school district resources, and the development of
teacher leadership within the school district to improve pupil
achievement in reading.
(b) (1) The institutes shall provide instruction for school teams
from each participating school. These school teams may include both
beginning and experienced teachers and the schoolsite administrator,
with the majority of the team composed of beginning teachers.
(2) Criteria and priority for selection of participating school
teams shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, all of the
following:
(A) Schools whose pupils' reading scores are at or below the 40th
percentile on the reading portion of the achievement test authorized
by Section 60640.
(B) Schools with a high number of beginning and noncredentialed
teachers.
(C) Schools with high poverty levels, as determined by the
percentage of pupils eligible for free or reduced price meals.
(D) Schools with a full complement of team members as outlined
above.
(E) School teams committed to participate in the Elementary School
Intensive Reading Program established pursuant to Article 1
(commencing with Section 53025) of Chapter 16 of Part 28 for a
minimum of three years.
(F) Schools that have adopted standards-based materials approved
by the State Board of Education.
(3) In any fiscal year, if funding is inadequate to accommodate
the participation of all eligible school teams, first priority shall
be given to schools meeting the criteria set forth in subparagraph
(B) of paragraph (2).
(c) (1) The institutes shall provide instruction in the teaching
of reading in a manner consistent with the standard for a
comprehensive reading instruction program that is research-based, as
described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (4) of
subdivision (b) of Section 44259, and shall include all of the
following components:
(A) The study of organized, systematic, explicit skills including
phonemic awareness, direct, systematic explicit phonics, and decoding
skills.
(B) A strong literature, language and comprehension component with
a balance of oral and written language.
(C) Ongoing diagnostic techniques that inform teaching and
assessment.
(D) Early intervention techniques.
(2) Instruction provided pursuant to this section shall be
consistent with state-adopted academic content standards and with the
curriculum framework on reading/language arts adopted by the State
Board of Education.
(3) Instruction provided pursuant to this section shall acquaint
teachers with the value in the diagnostic nature of standardized
tests.
(d) (1) Each participant who satisfactorily completes an institute
authorized by this section shall receive a stipend, commensurate
with the duration of the institute, of not less than one thousand
dollars ($1,000) nor more than two thousand dollars ($2,000), as
determined by the University of California.
(2) A participant in an institute authorized by this section who
satisfactorily completes additional institute activities or
leadership and mentoring responsibilities in his or her school in
subsequent years in accordance with institute guidelines shall
receive a stipend, commensurate with the participant's
responsibilities, of not less than five hundred dollars ($500) and
not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000), as determined by the
University of California. It is the intent of the Legislature that
stipends paid to participants under this paragraph average
approximately one thousand dollars ($1,000) per stipend recipient per
year.
(e) In order to provide maximum access, the institutes shall be
offered through multiple university and college campuses that are
widely distributed throughout the state or in a regionally accredited
program offered through instructor-led, interactive online courses.
In order to maximize access to teachers and administrators who may be
precluded from participating in an onsite institute due to
geographical, physical, or time constraints, each institute shall be
required to accommodate at least 5 percent of the participants
through state-approved instructor-led, interactive online courses.
Instruction at the institutes shall consist of an intensive,
sustained training period of no less than 40 hours nor more than 120
hours during the summer or during an intersession break or an
equivalent instructor-led, online course, and shall be supplemented,
during the following school year, with no fewer than 80 additional
hours nor more than 120 additional hours of instruction and
schoolsite meetings, held on at least a monthly basis, to focus on
the academic progress of that school's pupils in reading.
(f) It is the intent of the Legislature that a local education
agency or postsecondary institution that offers an accredited program
of professional preparation consider providing partial and
proportional credit toward satisfaction of reading course
requirements to an enrolled candidate who satisfactorily completes a
California Reading Professional Development Institute program if the
institute has been certified by the Commission on Teacher
Credentialing as meeting reading preparation standards.
(g) This section does not prohibit a participant from attending an
institute authorized by this section in more than one academic year.
(h) "Beginning teachers," for purposes of this article, are
teachers with three or fewer years of teaching experience.