A new set of California education laws have been proposed throughout 2024, many of which have passed and are beginning to go into effect. Many of these new laws focus on updating curriculum as well as protecting students’ well-beings and identities at school.
Some of the laws impacting school curriculum include Assembly Bill (AB) 2865, signed in September of 2024 by California’s governor Gavin Newsom. It requires school districts to expand students’ knowledge on the short and long-term harms of excessive alcohol use.
“It’s more helpful to give students realistic information about what’s going to happen than to just scare them,” Wellness Hub Specialist Caley Keene said. “So I think providing more in-depth drug and substance use education is really important.”
Additionally, there are changes to the current social science curriculum, including AB 1805 and 1821. The passing of AB 1805 incorporates Mendez v. Westminster School District of Orange County, a case concerning the constitutionality of separate schools for Mexican- American students.
AB 1821 asks the Instruction Quality Commission to discuss with California tribes the history of Indigenous members during the Gold Rush and Spanish colonization. The goal of these bills is to create an understanding of historically discriminated groups.
Many laws going into effect are designed to protect minority students. For LGBTQ+ students, schools are unable to notify parents or guardians if their child identifies as a different gender than what is provided on their files.
While principal Andy Boone believes that the bill has good intentions, he worries about the school’s responsibilty to withhold information from parents.
“I love that we’re protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ students, and I believe protecting those rights is really important,” Boone said. “[However], I worry about the school’s responsibility… Any time we limit information that we can share with parents, in this case with all the right intention to protect privacy, I worry about that disconnection between what the parent may think and what’s real.”
In addition to protecting minority students, some of the proposed laws aim to prioritize students’ mental health. The Healthy Homework Act passed by Newsom in September of 2024 requires a reduced homework load to focus on students’ physical and mental well-being, as well as their overall development.
AB 1825, or the California Freedom to Read Act, also signed by Newsom in September of 2024, will prohibit those in charge of publicly funded libraries from banning books based on themes within them. It will also prohibit the firing of librarians for refusing to remove any banned books.
“I think the more we understand one another, the more that we’re authentically curious about one another, the more we find ways to celebrate one another, I think it only enhances the academic experience, including other classes that we take,” Boone said.
