School curriculum: American history and government: high school graduation course requirements: high school exit examination.

Existing law requires the adopted course of study for grades 1 to 6, inclusive, and grades 7 to 12, inclusive, to include courses in the social sciences for the purpose of, among other things, providing pupils with a foundation for understanding the history, resources, development, and government of California and the United States of America. This bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education to devise a curriculum for enhancing pupil knowledge of our history and form of government and for increasing civic participation. The bill would require the Superintendent and the state board to require that high school students demonstrate proficiency in their knowledge of our history, government, and legal system, as it developed over time and in comparison to the history, forms of government, and legal systems of other countries. Existing law requires each pupil completing grade 12 to satisfy certain requirements as a condition of receiving a diploma of graduation from high school. These requirements include the successful passage of the high school exit examination and the completion of designated coursework in grades 9 to 12, inclusive. The coursework requirements include the completion of 3 courses, each course having a duration of one year, in social studies, including United States history and geography, world history, culture, and geography, a one-semester course in American government and civics, and a one-semester course in economics. Commencing with the 2019–20 school year, this bill would increase this American government and civics course requirement to a one-year course. By increasing this course requirement to one year, the bill would impose additional duties on school districts and would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the approval of the State Board of Education, to develop a high school exit examination in English language arts and mathematics in accordance with state academic content standards. Existing law requires, commencing with the 2003–04 school year and each school year thereafter, each pupil completing grade 12 to successfully pass the high school exit examination as a condition of receiving a diploma of graduation or as a condition of graduation from high school. Existing law requires that each pupil take the high school exit examination in grade 10 beginning in the 2001–02 school year and allows each pupil to take the examination during each subsequent administration, until each section of the examination has been passed. This bill would require the Superintendent, with the approval of the state board, to develop an additional section to be included in the high school exit examination that tests United States history and government in accordance with the statewide academically rigorous content standards for history-social science adopted by the state board, as specified. The bill would require the Superintendent to subject the United States history and government section to specified field testing and review requirements before adoption by the state board. The bill would require the state board, by January 1, 2017, to adopt a United States history and government section developed by the Superintendent for inclusion in the high school exit examination. The bill would require, commencing with the 2020–21 school year and each school year thereafter, each pupil completing grade 12 to, in addition to successfully passing the English language arts and mathematics sections of the high school exit examination, to successfully pass the United States history and government section adopted by the state board. The bill would require, commencing with the 2018–19 school year, each pupil to take the high school exit examination, including the United States history and government section, in grade 10 and would allow each pupil to take the examination during each subsequent administration, until each section of the examination has been passed. The bill would make conforming changes and other nonsubstantive changes. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.