STATEWIDE–The Senate Education Committee voted on Wednesday to take out many provisions of House Bill 1134, a bill that examines how teachers discuss social justice and racism in the classroom.
The new version removes language that would have allowed parents to sue school districts and included a pathway to revoke an educator’s teaching license. It also cut down the list of banned “divisive concepts” from eight tenants to three.
The amendment will allow schools to create curriculum review committees, but will not require them — the original bill would have done so. It requires school districts to use a learning management system and give parents access to it, but it no longer requires teachers to post a year’s worth of lesson plans and materials online. It no longer allows parents to broadly opt out of lessons and materials.
Supporters of the bill said the goal is to have more parental input, but critics say it is both unnecessary and puts an unfair strain on teachers.
Senators in the committee said they would hear testimony, but not vote on the bill as planned. The committee may bring up the bill for further discussion next week.
If the bill passes the full Senate, it would have to go back to the House because of all of the changes.
