March 5

FOUND IT –

51004. The Legislature hereby recognizes that it is the policy of
the people of the State of California to provide an educational
opportunity to the end that every pupil leaving school shall have the
opportunity to be prepared to enter the world of work; that every
pupil who graduates from any state-supported educational institution
should have sufficient marketable skills for legitimate remunerative
employment; that every qualified and eligible adult citizen shall be
afforded an educational opportunity to become suitably employed in
some remunerative field of employment; and that these opportunities
are a right to be enjoyed without regard to economic status or the
characteristics listed in Section 220.

(from)

EDUCATION CODE
SECTION 51000-51009

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=edc&group=50001-51000&file=51000-51009

The entire section is below, which entitles every qualified and eligible adult citizen shall be afforded an educational opportunity through the state supported colleges, community colleges, technical schools, and university system in order to become suitably employed in some remunerative field of employment; and that these opportunities are a right to be enjoyed without regard to economic status (etc.) to each and every citizen of the state of California. (period).

My Note – this section includes a high school education and colleges supported by the state which specifically prepare citizens with skills adequate to current employment that includes computer literacy, literacy and the skills of comprehension, technology literacy, mathematics, sciences, writing and English use skills, along with the types of thinking skills required by today’s highly competitive business atmosphere, among other things. Includes economic and
financial literacy considering the way the market is today. And somewhere, the law has a clause that says if for some reason, the state cannot or will not do that for adult students through the state college and university system, then it is required to pay the cost of private tuitions for those students at private or non-state schools, colleges and/or universities. I’ll keep looking – it is still there somewhere. But the section means, that the state cannot remove the funding – they can’t raise tuitions and fees – that is economic exclusion of citizens. It isn’t a question of whether the state of California will cover the appropriate levels of funding for the schools, high schools, colleges and universities – the law says that it is required at an appropriate level without increasing costs to students or their families. The only real choice is for the state to choose how to cover those funds and they can’t continue stealing them from the poor people, elderly, handicapped, disabled and disadvantaged because those are mandated funds. Sooner or later, somebody’s going to call them on that one too and take it to court.

– cricketdiane

(The full section – )
EDUCATION CODE
SECTION 51000-51009

51000. This chapter may be known as the George Miller, Jr.,
Education Act of 1968.

51002. The Legislature hereby recognizes that, because of the
common needs and interests of the citizens of this state and the
nation, there is a need to establish a common state curriculum for
the public schools, but that, because of economic, geographic,
physical, political and social diversity, there is a need for the
development of educational programs at the local level, with the
guidance of competent and experienced educators and citizens.
Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to set broad minimum
standards and guidelines for educational programs, and to encourage
local districts to develop programs that will best fit the needs and
interests of the pupils, pursuant to stated philosophy, goals, and
objectives.

51003. It is the intent of the Legislature that explicit, rigorous
statewide academic standards be adopted for all pupils enrolled in
public schools.

51004. The Legislature hereby recognizes that it is the policy of
the people of the State of California to provide an educational
opportunity to the end that every pupil leaving school shall have the
opportunity to be prepared to enter the world of work; that every
pupil who graduates from any state-supported educational institution
should have sufficient marketable skills for legitimate remunerative
employment; that every qualified and eligible adult citizen shall be
afforded an educational opportunity to become suitably employed in
some remunerative field of employment; and that these opportunities
are a right to be enjoyed without regard to economic status or the
characteristics listed in Section 220.
The Legislature further recognizes that all pupils need to be
provided with opportunities to explore and make career choices and to
seek appropriate instruction and training to support those choices.
The Legislature therefore finds that fairs as community resource and
youth leadership activities are integral to assisting and guiding
pupils in making choices and therefore encourage the further
expansion of cooperative activities between schools, youth leadership
activities, and community resources. Among community resources of
particular significance in providing information on various career
opportunities are vocational and occupational exhibits,
demonstrations and activities conducted at fairs.

51005. In order to carry out the intent of Section 51004, the
Department of Education shall annually encourage school districts to
plan programs and activities which utilize the resources of fairs and
youth leadership activities as an integral part of the vocational
instructional program and career decisionmaking.

51006. The Legislature finds that the increasing integration of
computers and computer technology into our economy has profound
implications for our society, and equally important implications for
state educational policy.
The Legislature also finds that the methods of distribution of
computer resources in the public schools will have a substantial
effect upon the state’s ability to meet the economic, political, and
social challenges of the new technological era. Without adequate and
early exposure to a basic computer education and computer resources,
many students may be placed at a significant disadvantage in their
opportunities to secure success in academics and the job market in
the future. As females compose 51 percent of the student population
in the state’s public elementary and secondary schools, and ethnic
minorities constitute over one-third of that population, it is
imperative that California adopt a policy to ensure equitable access
to technological education programs.

51007. (a) It is the policy of the State of California that all
students enrolled in the state’s public elementary and secondary
schools, regardless of race, creed, color, national origin, gender,
physical disability, geographic location, or socioeconomic
background, shall have equitable access to educational programs
designed to strengthen technological skills, including, but not
limited to, computer education programs.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that state appropriations
for educational programs designed to strengthen technological skills,
including, but not limited to, computer education programs, shall
have the goal of ensuring equitable access to those programs for all
students.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that this section shall
not be construed to preclude funding of programs designed to serve
certain categories of students as part of the state’s efforts to
target areas of high need.

51008. The State Board of Education shall ensure that the state
curriculum and framework, where appropriate, include instruction on
Cesar Chavez and the history of the farm labor movement in the United
States, and that the state criteria for selecting textbooks include
information to guide the selection of textbooks that contain sections
that highlight the life and contributions of Cesar Chavez and the
history of the farm labor movement in the United States.

51009. The first week of April is hereby deemed to be Labor History
Week throughout the public schools, and school districts are
encouraged to commemorate this week with appropriate educational
exercises that make pupils aware of the role the labor movement has
played in shaping California and the United States.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=edc&group=50001-51000&file=51000-51009

It is the law – they cannot deplete the economic resources of school systems including the state colleges and universities because of the law expressed above. And, the exclusion of students by unreasonable tuitions and / or unreasonable fees, exorbitant book costs, lab costs, activities fees, registration fees or in fact, any other kind of fees is against the law in the state of California. Creating an economic bias against the majority of California citizens by raising tuitions at state schools to $10,000 or more a year is illegal. It will take a class action suit or other legal measure against the decision-makers who made these choices. They broke the law when they did it.

– my note, cricketdiane

(And no, they can’t change the law next week or next year in order to fix it – they are still liable for the time during which it was in place up to and including right now.)

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(This section is very interesting too – it means that the Legislature recognizes a highly skilled, technologically savvy marketplace strong in math and science – it requires them to provide a definition of education for all students which includes this level and skill sets in order to have marketable job skills as required by the above law – and therefore they are responsible for providing them.)
52951. The Legislature finds and declares as follows:
(a) California is a national and international leader in
scientific and technological development. California employs 45
percent of the nation’s computer specialists and 21 percent of its
engineers. The economic growth of California and the nation will
depend in a large part upon its ability to remain competitive with
other states and with foreign nations. Maintaining our preeminence
will be dependent upon persons who have a solid foundation in
science.
(b) There is growing concern about science illiteracy within the
state’s adult population. A National Science Foundation Report shows
that less than half of all high school juniors and one-third of high
school seniors take a science course. As a result, American high
school students receive only one-half to one-third the exposure to
science as their counterparts in other developed countries, such as
Japan, West Germany, East Germany, and the Soviet Union.
(c) California has an insufficient number of teachers trained in
science and mathematics. There were 1,400 positions filled by
teachers not trained in science or mathematics in 1985, and there is
a projected shortage of 2,000 to 2,500 positions being filled by
teachers not trained in science and mathematics in 1986.
(d) Due to the higher entry level salaries provided by the private
sector for college graduates trained in science and mathematics, the
growing shortage of qualified science and mathematics teachers will
continue.
(e) There are exemplary programs in California that upgrade the
training of science teachers and train science teachers.
(f) Complex problems must be overcome if science education is to
advance students to a level of competence appropriate for an
increasingly technological society. The decline in science
achievement of students in schools, colleges, and universities in
California affects all students, but is particularly acute for women
students, minority students, and students from lower income groups.
The problems related to this situation include, but are not limited
to, all of the following:
(1) A lack of understanding of the fundamental principles of
science and their implications for everyday life.
(2) Inadequate mastery of knowledge of science by students and
many teachers, resulting in poor comprehension of college coursework
and high attrition rates for those students who have these
deficiencies.
(3) A tendency among girls and young women to avoid taking science
courses in high school, which limits their choice of educational
options, and screens them out of future careers in science,
engineering, and other science-related professions.
(4) Lack of science instruction at the elementary school level to
enable all students, including female, minority, and low-income
students, to develop skills and attitudes which will enable and
encourage them to pursue science successfully in later grades.
(5) A critical shortage of qualified teachers, with significant
numbers of science teachers leaving the classroom for nonteaching
jobs, and few students training to take their places.
(6) Lack of teachers’ training in the use of laboratory equipment
and procedures, as well as the lack of laboratory-based facilities in
schools, thereby reducing the opportunity for students to receive
“hands-on” science instruction.
(7) Staffing of more than 25 percent of science classes by
teachers not certified to teach science.
(g) While some colleges and universities are improving courses in
the teaching of science, this will not fully address the problem,
since the number of new teacher candidates is relatively small.
Therefore, the Legislature recognizes the need to assist existing
teachers in gaining the knowledge necessary to improve science
education for all students.
(h) The science problem is shared by all segments and levels of
California education, and the problem can best be addressed by
cooperatively planned and funded efforts.
(i) Appropriate models for cooperative, intersegmental approaches
to solving the science problem should address the findings of state
and national science associations, including, but not limited to, the
National Science Foundation and National Association of Science
Teachers. The comprehensive approach will give special attention to
providing in-service training of classroom teachers, defining more
clearly those standards of science knowledge required at each school
level, and developing curricula and instructional strategies to meet
these standards. Whenever possible, existing resources shall be
pooled to support this comprehensive program. Models for the program
may include the California Writing Project; the California
Mathematics Project; the EQUALS Project; the MESA Project; the
University of California at Irvine’s Summer Science Institute; the
Lawrence Hall of Science’s Programs for Schools; and the Lawrence
Livermore Laboratory’s Science Education Center, Summer Science
Institute, and Lesson In-service Science Workshop for Elementary and
Middle School Teachers.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=edc&group=52001-53000&file=52950-52951

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