HOUSE BILL No. 4196


     January 30, 1997, Introduced by Reps. Scott, Varga, Wallace, Hanley, Schermesser, Hale, Murphy, Martinez, Vaughn and Brater and referred to the Committee on Education.


        A bill to amend 1976 PA 451, entitled

   "The revised school code,"

   by amending sections 1153 and 1155 (MCL 380.1153 and 380.1155)

   and by adding sections 1154, 1156, and 1158.

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 1         Sec. 1153.  (1) THE BOARD OF A SCHOOL DISTRICT HAVING AN

 2    ENROLLMENT OF 20 OR MORE CHILDREN OF LIMITED ENGLISH-SPEAKING

 3    ABILITY IN A LANGUAGE CLASSIFICATION IN GRADES K TO 12 SHALL

 4    ESTABLISH AND OPERATE A BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM FOR THOSE

 5    CHILDREN.

 6         (2)  (1)  The board of a school district may establish and

 7    operate a bilingual instruction program IN A LANGUAGE

 8    CLASSIFICATION for children of limited English-speaking ability

 9    IF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT HAS FEWER THAN 20 CHILDREN OF LIMITED

10    ENGLISH-SPEAKING ABILITY.


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 1         (3) CHILDREN ENROLLED IN A BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM

 2    OPERATED UNDER THIS SECTION MAY BE PLACED IN CLASSES WITH OTHER

 3    CHILDREN OF APPROXIMATELY THE SAME AGE AND GRADE LEVEL.  IF CHIL-

 4    DREN OF DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS OR GRADE LEVELS ARE COMBINED, THE

 5    BOARD SHALL INSURE THAT THE INSTRUCTION GIVEN EACH CHILD IS

 6    APPROPRIATE TO THE CHILD'S LEVEL OF EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT.

 7         (4)  (2)  A child of limited English-speaking ability resid-

 8    ing in a district that does not have an appropriate bilingual

 9    instruction program or that is not required to have a bilingual

10    instruction program may enroll in a bilingual instruction program

11    in another school district.  TUITION FOR THE CHILD SHALL BE PAID,

12    AND TRANSPORTATION SHALL BE PROVIDED, BY THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IN

13    WHICH THE CHILD RESIDES.

14         (5)  (3)  IF FEWER THAN 20 CHILDREN OF LIMITED

15    ENGLISH-SPEAKING ABILITY IN A LANGUAGE CLASSIFICATION ARE

16    ENROLLED IN A SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL BOARD

17    SHALL DETERMINE WHETHER THE TOTAL NUMBER OF THESE CHILDREN RESID-

18    ING IN ITS CONSTITUENT DISTRICTS THAT DO NOT OPERATE BILINGUAL

19    INSTRUCTION PROGRAMS WARRANTS THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN INTERMEDI-

20    ATE BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION-SUPPORT PROGRAM. An intermediate school

21    district  may operate or contract  OPERATING OR CONTRACTING for

22    the operation of a bilingual program or service  , and  may carry

23    children enrolled in the program in membership in the same manner

24    as a local school district and be entitled to its proportionate

25    share of state funds available for the program.  Membership shall

26    be calculated under rules promulgated by the state board.  The

27    intermediate school board shall consider:



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 1         (a) Whether the cost of operating an intermediate bilingual

 2    instruction-support program is justified by the number of chil-

 3    dren at each grade level who would benefit from its

 4    establishment.

 5         (b) Whether alternative methods of providing a bilingual

 6    instruction-support program, such as visiting teachers or

 7    part-time instruction, can be provided.

 8          (4) The state shall continue to fund programs of bilingual

 9     instruction described in this section at least at the level that

10     instruction is funded in the 1995-1996 state fiscal year. 

11         SEC. 1154.  THE BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM OPERATED BY A

12    SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL BE A FULL-TIME PROGRAM OF BILINGUAL

13    INSTRUCTION IN:

14         (A) THE COURSES AND SUBJECTS REQUIRED BY THIS ACT.

15         (B) THE COURSES AND SUBJECTS REQUIRED BY THE BOARD FOR COM-

16    PLETION OF THE GRADE LEVEL IN WHICH THE CHILD IS ENROLLED.

17         Sec. 1155.  (1)  Prior to  BEFORE the placement of a child

18    of limited English-speaking ability in a bilingual instruction

19    program, the board of the local school district in which the

20    child resides shall notify, by registered mail, the child's par-

21    ents or legal guardian that the child is being enrolled in a

22    bilingual instruction program.  The notice shall contain a

23    simple, nontechnical description of the purposes, method, and

24    content of the program and shall inform the parents or guardian

25    that they have the right to visit bilingual instruction classes

26    in which their child is enrolled.





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 1         (2) The notice shall be written in English and in the native

 2    language of the child of limited English-speaking ability.

 3         (3) The notice shall inform the parents or guardian that

 4    they have the absolute right to refuse the placement or to with-

 5    draw their child from the program by giving written notice to the

 6    board of the local school district in which the child resides.

 7         (4) A CHILD OF LIMITED ENGLISH-SPEAKING ABILITY RESIDING IN

 8    A SCHOOL DISTRICT OPERATING OR PARTICIPATING IN A BILINGUAL

 9    INSTRUCTION PROGRAM PURSUANT TO SECTION 1153 SHALL BE ENROLLED IN

10    THE BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM FOR 3 YEARS OR UNTIL THE CHILD

11    ACHIEVES A LEVEL OF PROFICIENCY IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE SKILLS SUFFI-

12    CIENT TO RECEIVE AN EQUAL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY IN THE REGULAR

13    SCHOOL PROGRAM, WHICHEVER OCCURS FIRST.  A CHILD OF LIMITED

14    ENGLISH-SPEAKING ABILITY SHALL NOT BE TRANSFERRED OUT OF A BILIN-

15    GUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM PRIOR TO THE CHILD'S THIRD YEAR OF

16    ENROLLMENT UNLESS THE PARENTS OR GUARDIAN OF THE CHILD APPROVES

17    THE TRANSFER IN WRITING OR UNLESS THE CHILD SUCCESSFULLY COM-

18    PLETES AN EXAMINATION WHICH, IN THE DETERMINATION OF THE STATE

19    BOARD, REFLECTS A LEVEL OF PROFICIENCY IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE SKILLS

20    APPROPRIATE TO THE CHILD'S GRADE LEVEL.

21         SEC. 1156.  THE BOARD OF A SCHOOL DISTRICT OPERATING A

22    BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM PURSUANT TO SECTION 1153 SHALL

23    ESTABLISH AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO ASSIST THE BOARD IN EVALUATING

24    AND PLANNING THE BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM.  THE ADVISORY

25    COMMITTEE SHALL BE COMPRISED OF REPRESENTATIVES OF PARENTS OF

26    CHILDREN ENROLLED IN THE PROGRAM, BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION TEACHERS

27    AND COUNSELORS, AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY.  A MAJORITY OF THE



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 1    MEMBERS OF THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE SHALL BE PARENTS OF CHILDREN

 2    ENROLLED IN THE BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM.

 3         SEC. 1158.  THE STATE BOARD SHALL DO ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

 4         (A) ADVISE AND ASSIST SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN COMPLYING WITH AND

 5    IMPLEMENTING SECTIONS 1152 TO 1158.

 6         (B) STUDY, REVIEW, AND EVALUATE TEXTBOOKS AND INSTRUCTIONAL

 7    MATERIALS, RESOURCES, AND MEDIA FOR USE IN BILINGUAL INSTRUC-

 8    TIONAL PROGRAMS.

 9         (C) COMPILE DATA RELATIVE TO THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF

10    BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION AND PEDAGOGY.

11         (D) ENCOURAGE EXPERIMENTATION AND INNOVATION IN BILINGUAL

12    EDUCATION.

13         (E) RECOMMEND CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING

14    MECHANISMS.

15         (F) MAKE AN ANNUAL REPORT RELATIVE TO BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION

16    PROGRAMS TO THE LEGISLATURE AND THE GOVERNOR.

























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