Proposed WA Bill Would Cut Student’s Classtime by 4 Hours A Week
At a time when critics and legislators are saying efforts need to be made to 'make up' the lost learning from COVID in WA state for public school students, now comes a proposed bill that would cut students' classtime from 390 to 26 hours.
Proposed bill would create instructional hours
According to The Center Square and information from the bill, SB (Senate Bill) 5054 would allow up to four hours a week for teachers to pursue qualified learning and educational opportunities.
It appears the bill would allow non-certified instructors to fill those four hours, which critics, including Liv Finne of the Washington Policy Center, say could actually end up hurting students learning especially if these instructors are not qualified to fully teach the materials.
According to The Center Square, and the bill SB 5054 would:
"...promote and facilitate effective and collaborative professional learning by establishing a school calendar that provides up to four hours each week for certificated instructional staff to engage in professional learning communities during the school day.”
What does the bill define as a professional nearning community?
“a group of educators within a school or school district that meets regularly to share expertise, reflect on their practice, and work collaboratively to enhance their knowledge and skills to teach and support students’ academic, social and emotional learning and growth.”
It has been noted that private schools (non-public) would still retain their original 30 hours a week with certified teachers. According to legislative reports, the bill was passed out of the Senate Early Learning K-12 Committee and will now go to the Senate Rules Committee for further examination.
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