Source: Hindu American Foundation
[hinduamericanfoundation.org/media_press_release_california_hearing.htm]
FREMONT, CA (March 4, 2007) - The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) recently won its lawsuit against the California State Board of Education (SBE) on the grounds that illegal procedures were being used in the adoption of instructional materials, namely sixth grade social studies textbooks, for use in California public schools. The court found that the regulations used currently by the SBE were not in compliance with the requirements set forth in the California Administrative Procedures Act (APA). The purpose of the APA is to ensure that agency regulations are clear, necessary, legally valid and available to the public. Despite the SBE conducting its textbook adoption process illegally, the judge however did not order the SBE to reopen the textbook adoption process for sixth grade social studies textbooks.
HAF would like to bring to the notice of its members that the SBE is having a hearing on the new regulations that will be used in future adoption of not only instructional material, but curriculum frameworks and evaluation criteria. The SBE states that “the purpose of the regulations is to establish a clear, transparent process for the adoption of curriculum frameworks, evaluation criteria and instructional materials for kindergarten through grade eight in California.” In the new regulations, many of the closed-door procedures used by the SBE to the detriment of California students in the textbook adoption process in 2006 will be prohibited.
Details of the March 13, 2007 public hearing in Sacramento and proposed changes to the regulation can be found at the SBE website under “Instructional Materials” at http://www.cde.ca.gov/re/lr/rr/.
HAF will be submitting its recommendations on the proposed guidelines to ensure that all Californians, Hindu and non-Hindu, are treated fairly and equitably in the textbook adoption process. If members of the community have comments on the proposed regulations, they are invited to submit them to us through the “Contact” section of our website www.HAFsite.org