California proposal calls for diversity in all K-12 textbooks, prevents Florida-style bans

Months after Florida schools began removing books from shelves, a new California bill could mean millions of students statewide would read only from textbooks and instructional materials that reflect the Golden State’s many groups.

Authored by Assemblyman Corey Jackson, D-Riverside, if signed into law Assembly Bill 1078 would prohibit the California Board of Education from approving K-12 textbooks and curriculum that doesn’t reflect the diverse state.

The bill states textbooks should include underrepresented groups including people from different races, ethnicities, genders and sexual orientations.

Jackson said the current curriculum used by schools often erases Black, brown, Asian and LGBTQ+ voices and other perspectives.

“When students are exposed to a narrow range of experiences, they may struggle to relate to the material, which causes them to disengage from learning, or even develop biases that limit them from engaging with people from different backgrounds,” Jackson said.

“The more they see their own culture reflected in material, the more they enjoy it and get curious about it. The more curious they are, the more interested they are in the learning instruction.”

The bill will also prevent school districts from banning curriculum, textbooks and additional material. School districts would need state approval before doing so.

Jackson said the proposal could push other states to introduce similar bills.

The bill follows the ongoing debate in Florida, where some school teachers were ordered to remove books from their classrooms to determine whether they were appropriate for children.

Florida has the second highest number of book bans in the U.S. following Texas, according to a 2022 PEN America report. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is also moving to ban classes like AP African American Studies and there has been growing controversy over subjects like critical race theory.

Florida approved legislation that would empower school boards and train school staff to determine if instructional materials were appropriate. Schools can remove books that are considered inappropriate for a grade level, or sex education books they believe are pornographic.

“When the state board education approves various textbooks, we should not be shielding students from science, from reality and from what they will see in the world,” Jackson said. “And in many cases these books and materials have been around for decades.”

Opposition to bill

Some California parents said they are concerned about the bill, and said they think it’s in response to increased parent involvement at school board meetings, push back against progressive California school boards and politics, particularity around sex education.

Roseville City school board member Jonathan Zachreson said the bill would strip away local control. He also said poor curriculum could easily be added and state bureaucracy would make it difficult to remove.

“I trust my local school boards more than the state in setting curriculum,” Zachreson said. “Because of that, I oppose any bill that would strip away this local control and put it in the hands of the state.”

Assemblyman Joe Patterson, R-Rocklin, called the bill a veto power over changes and removal of instructional material.

“This is a slap in the face to parents who voted for a new direction in school districts across the state,” he wrote on Twitter, adding that local control “is part of our DNA.”

This story was originally published March 3, 2023 at 5:00 AM.