House File 611 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE
BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
(SUCCESSOR TO HSB 87)
Passed House, Date Passed Senate, Date
Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays
Approved
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to human growth and development and health
2 education under the educational standards, requiring school
3 districts to provide curricular information to agencies and
4 organizations upon request, and providing related duties for
5 the director of the department of education.
6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
7 TLSB 1954HV 82
8 kh/gg/14
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. Section 256.9, subsection 54, Code 2007, is
1 2 amended to read as follows:
1 3 54. a. Develop and make available to school districts,
1 4 examples of age=appropriate and research=based materials and
1 5 lists of resources which parents may use to teach their
1 6 children to recognize unwanted physical and verbal sexual
1 7 advances, to not make unwanted physical and verbal sexual
1 8 advances, to effectively reject unwanted sexual advances, that
1 9 it is wrong to take advantage of or exploit another person,
1 10 about the dangers of sexual exploitation by means of the
1 11 internet including specific strategies to help students
1 12 protect themselves and their personally identifiable
1 13 information from such exploitation, and about counseling,
1 14 medical, and legal resources available to survivors of sexual
1 15 abuse and sexual assault, including resources for escaping
1 16 violent relationships. The materials and resources shall
1 17 cover verbal, physical, and visual sexual harassment,
1 18 including nonconsensual sexual advances, and nonconsensual
1 19 physical sexual contact. In developing the materials and
1 20 resource list, the director shall consult with entities that
1 21 shall include, but not be limited to, the departments of human
1 22 services, public health, and public safety, education
1 23 stakeholders, and parent=teacher organizations. School
1 24 districts shall provide age=appropriate and research=based
1 25 materials and a list of available community and web=based
1 26 resources to parents at registration and shall also include
1 27 the age=appropriate and research=based materials and resource
1 28 list in the student handbook. School districts are encouraged
1 29 to work with their communities to provide voluntary parent
1 30 education sessions to provide parents with the skills and
1 31 appropriate strategies to teach their children as described in
1 32 this subsection. School districts shall incorporate the
1 33 age=appropriate and research=based materials into relevant
1 34 curricula and shall reinforce the importance of preventive
1 35 measures when reasonable with parents and students.
2 1 b. Make available scientifically based research studies in
2 2 the area of health and wellness literacy for use by school
2 3 districts and nonpublic schools in educating students. The
2 4 content shall include but not be limited to research on
2 5 instructional materials and teaching strategies that have
2 6 proven effective in teaching students the knowledge and skills
2 7 included in paragraph "a" and section 256.11. School
2 8 districts are encouraged to incorporate as much of this
2 9 material as practical.
2 10 Sec. 2. Section 256.11, subsections 3 and 4, Code 2007,
2 11 are amended to read as follows:
2 12 3. The following areas shall be taught in grades one
2 13 through six: English=language arts, social studies,
2 14 mathematics, science, health, age=appropriate and
2 15 research=based human growth and development, physical
2 16 education, traffic safety, music, and visual art. The health
2 17 curriculum shall include the characteristics of communicable
2 18 diseases including acquired immune deficiency syndrome. The
2 19 state board as part of accreditation standards shall adopt
2 20 curriculum definitions for implementing the elementary
2 21 program.
2 22 4. The following shall be taught in grades seven and
2 23 eight: English=language arts; social studies; mathematics;
2 24 science; health; age=appropriate and research=based human
2 25 growth and development, family, consumer, career, and
2 26 technology education; physical education; music; and visual
2 27 art. The health curriculum shall include age=appropriate and
2 28 research=based information regarding the characteristics of
2 29 sexually transmitted diseases, including HPV and the
2 30 availability of a vaccine to prevent HPV, and acquired immune
2 31 deficiency syndrome. The state board as part of accreditation
2 32 standards shall adopt curriculum definitions for implementing
2 33 the program in grades seven and eight. However, this
2 34 subsection shall not apply to the teaching of family,
2 35 consumer, career, and technology education in nonpublic
3 1 schools. For purposes of this section, "age appropriate",
3 2 "HPV", and "research=based" mean the same as defined in
3 3 section 279.50.
3 4 Sec. 3. Section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph j, Code
3 5 2007, is amended to read as follows:
3 6 j. One unit of health education which shall include
3 7 personal health; food and nutrition; environmental health;
3 8 safety and survival skills; consumer health; family life;
3 9 age=appropriate and research=based human growth and
3 10 development; substance abuse and nonuse; emotional and social
3 11 health; health resources; and prevention and control of
3 12 disease, including age=appropriate and research=based
3 13 information regarding sexually transmitted diseases, including
3 14 HPV and the availability of a vaccine to prevent HPV, and
3 15 acquired immune deficiency syndrome.
3 16 Sec. 4. Section 279.50, Code 2007, is amended to read as
3 17 follows:
3 18 279.50 HUMAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT INSTRUCTION.
3 19 1. Each school board shall provide instruction in
3 20 kindergarten which gives attention to experiences relating to
3 21 life skills and human growth and development as required in
3 22 section 256.11. School districts shall use research provided
3 23 in section 256.9, subsection 54, paragraph "b", to evaluate
3 24 and upgrade their instructional materials and teaching
3 25 strategies for human growth and development.
3 26 2. Each school board shall provide age=appropriate and
3 27 research=based instruction in human growth and development
3 28 including instruction regarding human sexuality, self=esteem,
3 29 stress management, interpersonal relationships, domestic
3 30 abuse, HPV and the availability of a vaccine to prevent HPV,
3 31 and acquired immune deficiency syndrome as required in section
3 32 256.11, in grades one through twelve.
3 33 3. Each school board shall annually provide to a parent or
3 34 guardian of any pupil enrolled in the school district,
3 35 information about the human growth and development curriculum
4 1 used in the pupil's grade level and the procedure for
4 2 inspecting the instructional materials prior to their use in
4 3 the classroom.
4 4 4. Each school district shall, upon request by an agency
4 5 or organization collecting information for statistical
4 6 purposes, provide information about the human growth and
4 7 development curriculum used in each grade level and the
4 8 procedure for inspecting the instructional materials prior to
4 9 their use in the classroom.
4 10 5. A pupil shall not be required to take instruction in
4 11 human growth and development if the pupil's parent or guardian
4 12 files with the appropriate principal a written request that
4 13 the pupil be excused from the instruction. Notification that
4 14 the written request may be made shall be included in the
4 15 information provided by the school district.
4 16 6. Each school board or community college which offers
4 17 general adult education classes or courses shall periodically
4 18 offer an instructional program in parenting skills and in
4 19 human growth and development for parents, guardians,
4 20 prospective biological and adoptive parents, and foster
4 21 parents.
4 22 2. 7. Each area education agency shall periodically offer
4 23 a staff development program for teachers who provide
4 24 instruction in human growth and development.
4 25 3. 8. The department of education shall identify and
4 26 disseminate information about early intervention programs for
4 27 students who are at the greatest risk of suffering from the
4 28 problem of dropping out of school, substance abuse, adolescent
4 29 pregnancy, or suicide.
4 30 9. For purposes of this section and sections 256.9 and
4 31 256.11, unless the context otherwise requires:
4 32 a. "Age=appropriate" means topics, messages, and teaching
4 33 methods suitable to particular ages or age groups of children
4 34 and adolescents, based on developing cognitive, emotional, and
4 35 behavioral capacity typical for the age or age group.
5 1 b. "HIV" means HIV as defined in section 141A.1.
5 2 c. "HPV" means human papilloma virus as defined by the
5 3 centers for disease control and prevention of the United
5 4 States department of health and human services.
5 5 d. "Research=based" means all of the following:
5 6 (1) Complete information that is verified or supported by
5 7 the weight of research conducted in compliance with accepted
5 8 scientific methods; recognized as medically accurate and
5 9 objective by leading professional organizations and agencies
5 10 with relevant expertise in the field, such as the American
5 11 college of obstetricians and gynecologists, the American
5 12 public health association, the American academy of pediatrics,
5 13 and the national association of school nurses; and published
5 14 in peer=reviewed journals where appropriate.
5 15 (2) Information that is free of racial, ethnic, sexual
5 16 orientation, and gender biases.
5 17 EXPLANATION
5 18 This bill requires that the educational program which
5 19 school districts and accredited nonpublic schools provide
5 20 include, in the human growth and development areas and the
5 21 health curriculum or health education unit, age=appropriate
5 22 and research=based information. The director of the
5 23 department of education is directed to make available
5 24 scientifically based research studies in the area of health
5 25 and wellness literacy to school districts and accredited
5 26 nonpublic schools. In the materials the director must develop
5 27 and make available to school districts, the director must
5 28 include materials about the dangers of sexual exploitation by
5 29 means of the internet.
5 30 Beginning in grade seven, schools must include
5 31 age=appropriate and research=based information regarding
5 32 sexually transmitted diseases including the human papilloma
5 33 virus and the availability of a vaccine to prevent the virus.
5 34 Each school district must use the research provided by the
5 35 department to evaluate and upgrade their instructional
6 1 materials and teaching strategies for human growth and
6 2 development. Each school district also must, upon request
6 3 from agencies or organizations collecting information for
6 4 statistical purposes, provide information about the human
6 5 growth and development curriculum used and the procedure for
6 6 inspecting the materials used prior to their use in the
6 7 classroom.
6 8 "Research=based" means, under the bill, information
6 9 verified by the weight of research conducted in compliance
6 10 with accepted scientific methods; recognized as medically
6 11 accurate and objective by leading professional organizations
6 12 such as the American college of obstetricians and
6 13 gynecologists, the American academy of pediatrics, and the
6 14 national association of school nurses; and published in
6 15 peer=reviewed journals. The information must be free of
6 16 racial, ethnic, sexual orientation, and gender biases.
6 17 LSB 1954HV 82
6 18 kh:nh/gg/14