This bill requires all public schools in New York to include lessons about gambling risks in health education classes for every grade level, from elementary through high school. It mandates that teachers certified in health education integrate age-appropriate instruction on gambling's dangers alongside existing lessons about alcohol, tobacco, and drug misuse. Schools must teach these topics as part of required health courses, with students demonstrating knowledge through tests or projects. The law applies directly to all public K-12 schools and their health curricula, without creating new standalone classes.
This bill sets new standards for STEM education assessment in New York State. It requires the education commissioner to establish specific guidelines for when STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) is introduced before college, what qualifies as a valid STEM curriculum, and how student and teacher progress in these subjects will be evaluated. The bill mandates that all K-12 teachers teaching science and math must have access to new training programs under these standards, and school districts must implement the required curriculum. These changes directly affect public school students, science/math teachers, and school administrators in primary and secondary education.
Establishes the "education equity act" which provides language assistance to parents or guardians who have children enrolled in public school and whose primary language is not English; defines terms; creates an annual language assistance plan to assess language needs in the district; requires the department of education to establish web pages detailing the rights of parents to translation services in each covered language; requires annual reports by each school district to the local board of education.
Requires that public schools provide instruction on climate change, including but not limited to identifying the causes and impacts of climate change on individuals, environments and communities, and learning to evaluate solutions.
Requires the department of education to establish professional development programs in culturally responsive instruction and provide access to those programs on its website.
Requires instruction in civic education for grades 5 through 12 including instruction on the NYS constitution; federal, state and local government; civic literacy; methods of public participation; and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
This bill requires all public elementary schools to include cursive writing instruction in their curriculum, ensuring students can produce legible cursive documents by the end of fifth grade. It directly affects public school students in grades K-5 and their educators, mandating that cursive writing become part of the standard course of study. The key provision specifies that schools must provide this instruction to meet the readability goal by fifth grade, with implementation beginning in the next school year after enactment. The bill focuses solely on adding this requirement to existing education standards, without altering other curriculum elements or funding.
Authorizes the commissioner of education to implement a purple star schools program to recognize schools and school districts which demonstrate a commitment to assisting military-connected students and their families.
This bill requires all public secondary schools in the state to include humane education about animal treatment, protection, and ecological roles in their curriculum. It specifically mandates instruction on kindness toward animals, respect for animal welfare laws, and managing animal overpopulation. Schools must verify compliance with these requirements, and the state education commissioner will maintain public records of this verification. Schools failing to provide this instruction risk losing public funding for those grades.
Requires the commissioner of education to develop guidelines to encourage those in high school to participate in apprenticeships and to raise awareness in apprenticeship opportunities.
