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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the creation of an instructional materials web portal |
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by the commissioner of education. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Chapter 31, Education Code, is amended by adding |
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Subchapter B-2 to read as follows: |
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SUBCHAPTER B-2. INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS WEB PORTAL |
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Sec. 31.081. INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS WEB PORTAL. (a) The |
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commissioner shall develop and maintain a web portal to assist |
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school districts and open-enrollment charter schools in selecting |
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instructional materials under Section 31.101. |
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(b) The web portal must include general information such as |
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price, computer system requirements, and any other relevant |
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specifications for each instructional material: |
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(1) on the instructional materials list, including the |
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list adopted under Section 31.0231; or |
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(2) submitted by a publisher for inclusion in the web |
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portal. |
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(c) The commissioner by rule shall establish the procedure |
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by which a publisher may submit instructional materials for |
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inclusion in the web portal. |
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(d) The commissioner shall use a competitive process to |
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contract for the development of the web portal. |
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Sec. 31.082. QUALITY OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS SUBMITTED |
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BY PUBLISHER. (a) The commissioner shall contract with a private |
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entity to conduct an independent analysis of each instructional |
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material submitted by a publisher for inclusion in the web portal |
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developed under Section 31.081. The analysis must: |
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(1) evaluate the quality of the material; and |
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(2) determine the extent to which the material covers |
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the essential knowledge and skills identified under Section 28.002 |
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for the subject and grade level for which the material is intended |
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to be used, including an identification of: |
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(A) each of the essential knowledge and skills |
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for the subject and grade level or levels covered by the material; |
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and |
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(B) the percentage of the essential knowledge and |
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skills for the subject and grade level or levels covered by the |
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material. |
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(b) The commissioner shall include in the web portal |
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developed under Section 31.081 the results of each analysis |
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conducted under Subsection (a). |
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Sec. 31.083. INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS REPOSITORY. (a) In |
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this section, "open educational resource" means a teaching, |
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learning, or research resource that is in the public domain or has |
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been released under an intellectual property license that permits |
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the free use and repurposing of the resource by any person. The |
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term may include full course curricula, course materials, modules, |
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textbooks, streaming videos, tests, software, and any other tools, |
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materials, or techniques used to support access to knowledge. |
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(b) The commissioner shall include in the web portal |
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developed under Section 31.081 a repository of open educational |
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resources and other electronic instructional materials that school |
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districts and open-enrollment charter schools may access at no |
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cost, including state-developed open-source instructional |
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materials purchased under Subchapter B-1. |
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(c) A publisher may submit instructional materials for |
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inclusion in the repository. |
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Sec. 31.084. RULES. The commissioner may adopt rules as |
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necessary to implement this subchapter. |
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SECTION 2. Section 31.004(b), Education Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(b) To determine whether each student has instructional |
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materials that cover all elements of the essential knowledge and |
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skills as required by Subsection (a), a school district or |
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open-enrollment charter school may consider: |
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(1) instructional materials adopted by the State Board |
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of Education; |
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(2) materials adopted or purchased by the commissioner |
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under Section 31.0231 or Subchapter B-1; |
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(3) open-source instructional materials submitted by |
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eligible institutions and adopted by the State Board of Education |
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under Section 31.0241; |
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(4) open-source instructional materials made |
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available by other public schools; [and] |
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(5) instructional materials developed or purchased by |
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the school district or open-enrollment charter school; and |
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(6) open educational resources and other electronic |
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instructional materials included in the repository under Section |
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31.083. |
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SECTION 3. Not later than September 1, 2018, the |
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commissioner of education shall develop the web portal required |
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under Subchapter B-2, Chapter 31, Education Code, as added by this |
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Act. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |