June 2017 Committee on Instruction Item 3

Consideration of Removal of Certain Products from the
List of Adopted Instructional Materials

June 23, 2017

COMMITTEE ON INSTRUCTION: ACTION
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION: ACTION

SUMMARY: This item provides an opportunity for the State Board of Education (SBOE) to consider removing specific products from the list of adopted instructional materials because the accessibility requirements for those products have not been met.

STATUTORY AUTHORITY: Texas Education Code (TEC), §31.022 and §31.028.

TEC, §31.022, requires the SBOE to adopt rules to provide for a full and complete investigation of instructional materials for each subject in the foundation curriculum and for each subject in the enrichment curriculum.

TEC, §31.028, requires publishers of adopted instructional materials to provide computerized files necessary for the production of instructional materials for use by students with disabilities.

PREVIOUS BOARD ACTION: The SBOE adopted instructional materials submitted in response to Proclamation 2017 in November 2016.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND SIGNIFICANT ISSUES: The SBOE issued Proclamation 2017, which included the requirement for publishers to provide files necessary for production of materials for students with print disabilities, in April 2015. The SBOE amended Proclamation 2017 in September 2015 to include a requirement that publishers of electronic materials provide unbiased evidence that their materials are fully accessible to students with disabilities.

FISCAL IMPACT: None.

PUBLIC AND STUDENT BENEFIT: Benefits include the availability of fully accessible instructional materials aligned to revised standards in the year in which new and revised standards are implemented.

PROCEDURAL AND REPORTING IMPLICATIONS: None.

PUBLIC COMMENTS: None.

OTHER COMMENTS AND RELATED ISSUES: None.

MOTION TO BE CONSIDERED: The State Board of Education:

Remove products that do not meet accessibility requirements from the list of adopted instructional materials as shown in the separate exhibit.

Staff Members Responsible:
Monica Martinez, Associate Commissioner
Standards and Support Services

Kelly Callaway, Senior Director
Instructional Materials

Attachment:
Statutory Citations (PDF, 25KB)

Separate Exhibit:
List of Proclamation 2017 Products Not Meeting Accessibility Requirements