Bill Text: IL SB0156 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Amends the School Code. Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, requires school boards to report, on their school district's website, a list of the learning materials and activities to be used for student instruction during the school year. Requires that the report also include any procedures that are in effect at each school for the documentation, review, or approval of the learning materials and activities used for student instruction. Specifies the minimum information that must be included in the report. Allows a school district to update the report on an ongoing basis, but requires the report to be updated by January 1 and August 1 of each year. Allows a school district to utilize collaborative online document or spreadsheet software to update or make additions to the report. Sets forth other requirements. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-08 - Added as Co-Sponsor Sen. Tom Bennett [SB0156 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SB0156-Introduced.html


103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB0156

Introduced 1/25/2023, by Sen. Neil Anderson

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
105 ILCS 5/10-20.85 new
105 ILCS 5/34-18.82 new

Amends the School Code. Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, requires school boards to report, on their school district's website, a list of the learning materials and activities to be used for student instruction during the school year. Requires that the report also include any procedures that are in effect at each school for the documentation, review, or approval of the learning materials and activities used for student instruction. Specifies the minimum information that must be included in the report. Allows a school district to update the report on an ongoing basis, but requires the report to be updated by January 1 and August 1 of each year. Allows a school district to utilize collaborative online document or spreadsheet software to update or make additions to the report. Sets forth other requirements. Effective immediately.
LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

SB0156LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
1 AN ACT concerning education.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. This Act may be referred to as the School
5Materials and Activities Report for Transparency Law.
6 Section 5. The School Code is amended by adding Sections
710-20.85 and 34-18.82 as follows:
8 (105 ILCS 5/10-20.85 new)
9 Sec. 10-20.85. Learning materials and activities report.
10 (a) In this Section:
11 "Activities" includes, but is not limited to, student
12assemblies, guest lectures, educational events facilitated by
13a school's administration or staff, or educational events
14conducted by outside individuals or organizations.
15"Activities" does not include student presentations.
16 "Learning materials" includes, but is not limited to, any
17of the following:
18 (1) Instructional material that consists of content
19 that conveys to a student through a medium or a
20 combination of media the essential knowledge, information,
21 and skills pertaining to a subject included in a public
22 school curriculum. In this paragraph (1), "instructional

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1 material" includes a book or books; workbooks;
2 supplementary materials; a combination of a book or books,
3 workbooks, and supplementary materials; computer software,
4 magnetic media, DVDs, CD-ROMs, computer courseware, online
5 services, or an electronic medium; or other means of
6 conveying information to a student or otherwise
7 contributing to the learning process through electronic
8 means, including through open education resource
9 instructional material as described in paragraph (2) of
10 this definition.
11 (2) Open education resource instructional material
12 that consists of teaching, learning, and research
13 resources that reside in the public domain or have been
14 released under an intellectual property license and allows
15 for the free use, reuse, modification, and sharing of
16 resources with others. In this paragraph (2), "open
17 education resource instructional material" includes full
18 courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming
19 videos, tests or exams, software, or any other tools,
20 materials, or techniques used to support access to
21 knowledge and also includes State-developed open education
22 resource instructional material.
23 (3) Teaching aids.
24 (4) Any other material for student instruction in
25 which a student has the option to select the material.
26 "Used for student instruction" means assigned, provided,

SB0156- 3 -LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
1or otherwise presented to a school's students in (i) any
2course for which students receive academic credit or (ii) any
3educational capacity in which participation of the student
4body is required by the school or in which a majority of the
5students in a particular grade level participate.
6 (b) Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, the school
7board of each school district shall report for each of the
8district's schools the following information in a prominent
9location on the district's website:
10 (1) A list of the learning materials and activities
11 that are to be used for student instruction during the
12 school year. The list of learning materials and activities
13 shall be organized, at a minimum, by grade level and
14 subject area.
15 (2) Any procedures that are in effect at each school
16 for the documentation, review, or approval by the school's
17 administrators, principal, or teachers of the learning
18 materials and activities used for student instruction.
19 (c) Under this Section, a school board shall provide
20updated information on the district's website by January 1 and
21August 1 of each year and more frequently as the school board
22deems appropriate. A school board is required to report only
23the information that is necessary to identify the specific
24learning materials and activities used for student instruction
25at each school. The information reported must include the
26title and the author, the name of the organization, or the

SB0156- 4 -LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
1Internet address, as appropriate, associated with each of the
2learning materials or activities. Nothing in this Section may
3be construed to require either of the following:
4 (1) The publication of a digital reproduction of
5 learning materials on a school district's website.
6 (2) A separate listing of the individual components of
7 learning materials produced as a single volume; however,
8 if the volume contains works by multiple authors, the
9 listing shall provide either a table of contents or an
10 Internet address that discloses the discrete works and
11 authors contained within the volume.
12 (d) Under this Section, a school district may, but is not
13required to:
14 (1) update the report and post the updated report on
15 the district's website on an ongoing basis during the
16 school year, provided that an updated report is completed
17 by January 1 and August 1; and
18 (2) utilize collaborative online document or
19 spreadsheet software that allows multiple authorized users
20 to update or make additions to the report on an ongoing
21 basis, provided that a link to the report is publicly
22 accessible on the district's website.
23 (e) Each school district's report under this Section shall
24remain publicly available on the school district's website at
25least until the next report for the year is completed and made
26publicly available on the district's website.

SB0156- 5 -LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
1 (105 ILCS 5/34-18.82 new)
2 Sec. 34-18.82. Learning materials and activities report.
3 (a) In this Section:
4 "Activities" includes, but is not limited to, student
5assemblies, guest lectures, educational events facilitated by
6a school's administration or staff, or educational events
7conducted by outside individuals or organizations.
8"Activities" does not include student presentations.
9 "Learning materials" includes, but is not limited to, any
10of the following:
11 (1) Instructional material that consists of content
12 that conveys to a student through a medium or a
13 combination of media the essential knowledge, information,
14 and skills pertaining to a subject included in a public
15 school curriculum. In this paragraph (1), "instructional
16 material" includes a book or books; workbooks;
17 supplementary materials; a combination of a book or books,
18 workbooks, and supplementary materials; computer software,
19 magnetic media, DVDs, CD-ROMs, computer courseware, online
20 services, or an electronic medium; or other means of
21 conveying information to a student or otherwise
22 contributing to the learning process through electronic
23 means, including through open education resource
24 instructional material as described in paragraph (2) of
25 this definition.

SB0156- 6 -LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
1 (2) Open education resource instructional material
2 that consists of teaching, learning, and research
3 resources that reside in the public domain or have been
4 released under an intellectual property license and allows
5 for the free use, reuse, modification, and sharing of
6 resources with others. In this paragraph (2), "open
7 education resource instructional material" includes full
8 courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming
9 videos, tests or exams, software, or any other tools,
10 materials, or techniques used to support access to
11 knowledge and also includes State-developed open education
12 resource instructional material.
13 (3) Teaching aids.
14 (4) Any other material for student instruction in
15 which a student has the option to select the material.
16 "Used for student instruction" means assigned, provided,
17or otherwise presented to a school's students in (i) any
18course for which students receive academic credit or (ii) any
19educational capacity in which participation of the student
20body is required by the school or in which a majority of the
21students in a particular grade level participate.
22 (b) Beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, the board
23shall report for each of the school district's schools the
24following information in a prominent location on the
25district's website:
26 (1) A list of the learning materials and activities

SB0156- 7 -LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
1 that are to be used for student instruction during the
2 school year. The list of learning materials and activities
3 shall be organized, at a minimum, by grade level and
4 subject area.
5 (2) Any procedures that are in effect at each school
6 for the documentation, review, or approval by each
7 school's administrators, principal, or teachers of the
8 learning materials and activities used for student
9 instruction.
10 (c) Under this Section, the board shall provide updated
11information on the district's website by January 1 and August
121 of each year and more frequently as the board deems
13appropriate. The board is required to report only the
14information that is necessary to identify the specific
15learning materials and activities used for student instruction
16at each school. The information reported must include the
17title and the author, the name of the organization, or the
18Internet address, as appropriate, associated with each of the
19learning materials or activities. Nothing in this Section may
20be construed to require either of the following:
21 (1) The publication of a digital reproduction of
22 learning materials on the school district's website.
23 (2) A separate listing of the individual components of
24 learning materials produced as a single volume; however,
25 if the volume contains works by multiple authors, the
26 listing shall provide either a table of contents or an

SB0156- 8 -LRB103 25130 RJT 51467 b
1 Internet address that discloses the discrete works and
2 authors contained within the volume.
3 (d) Under this Section, the school district may, but is
4not required to:
5 (1) update the report and post the updated report on
6 the district's website on an ongoing basis during the
7 school year, provided that an updated report is completed
8 by January 1 and August 1; and
9 (2) utilize collaborative online document or
10 spreadsheet software that allows multiple authorized users
11 to update or make additions to the report on an ongoing
12 basis, provided that a link to the report is publicly
13 accessible on the district's website.
14 (e) Each report under this Section shall remain publicly
15available on the school district's website at least until the
16next report for the year is completed and made publicly
17available on the district's website.
18 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
19becoming law.
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