Education bill targets social-emotional learning and teaching of cultural competency
During Wednesday’s Senate Education and Career Development Committee meeting, senators from both sides of the aisle proposed amendments to the now approximately 135-page education legislation House Bill 1002.
Only the amendments called by Republicans prevailed.
Social-emotional learning
He said this amendment is in line with the bill’s overall purpose, which is to decrease regulations on Hoosier schools and educators.
SEL is the term neuroscientists use to describe the way children obtain skills like responsible decision making, self- and social awareness, and relationship management.
Currently, Indiana has seven SEL competencies: sensory motor integration, insight, regulation, collaboration, connection, critical thinking, and mindset—only regulation, collaboration and connection are required to be taught.
“Teachers are not therapists, nor should they be treated as such,” he said. “Trained, licensed mental health professionals are better equipped to handle the social, emotional aspects of a student’s life.”
Sen. J.D. Ford, D-Indianapolis, said he could not support Byrne’s amendment because SEL helps students improve their academic performance and mental health and build strong relationships.
Sen. Fady Qaddoura, D-Indianapolis, said Bryne’s amendment implied that teachers should ignore the social and emotional needs of their students, which may not allow them to reach their full potential.
Byrne’s response was that teachers taught sufficiently before SEL was codified into Indiana law, and that since it has been required, students have been worse off emotionally.
“This type of training is not helping,” Byrne said. “And again, we see our test scores and everything else falling down. I think what this is doing is just deregulation, going back to what we used to do, when teachers had more time to work on academics.”
“If you don’t see teachers fulfilling that role, do you see other professionals in the school system that can fill that role?” Qaddoura asked Byrne, after reminding him of the importance of emotional intelligence, especially when students enter the workforce.
Byrne said it is up to a child’s parents to equip them with those skills.
Sen. Andrea Hunley, D-Indianapolis, said the General Assembly’s repeal of SEL teaching and training does not mean teachers should stop doing it. She added that knowledge of students’ diverse cultural experiences, which ties into SEL, is still important.
“I want to be really clear to anyone who’s listening to testimony today that just because we strike this out of the bill and say it’s no longer the policy of the state of Indiana doesn’t mean that it’s not best practice,” Hunley said.
Curricular materials
Sen. Linda Rodgers, R-Granger, proposed and passed Amendment 29, which would allow the governing body of a public school or the organizer of a charter school to decide which fees are reasonable to charge families for school supplies that are not curricular materials.
During the 2023 legislative session, the state budget allocated $160 million to cover textbook and curriculum fees for parents of school children. Rodgers said since then, schools have been confused about what they are allowed to charge parents for. Her amendment aims to clarify this.
Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, said she would like to speak with her school corporations before supporting it.
“This seems substantive,” she said. “We have not had an opportunity to really discuss this or hear what impact it is going to (have).”
Qaddoura was concerned that the amendment might create more fees for families.
“I want to be on the side of the parents that we fought for in the last 20 years to get to the point that we can alleviate the pain for families to pay hundreds of dollars,” he said. “I feel that now this is a reversal.”
Hunley said the amendment will not fix the fact that the original budget did not allocate enough money to cover curricular costs. Like Yoder, Hunley wanted to discuss the issue more thoroughly because she did not think the amendment was clear about which material school corporations might begin charging parents for.
“We just have to make sure that our parents are being protected about what types of costs are being passed on,” Hunley said. “We need this to be as specific and as clear as possible. … It’s also about making sure that as a state, we are doing our part to ensure that school districts aren’t in a bind where they have to pass costs onto families.”
Secretary of education requirements
During previous meetings, the Education and Career Development Committee debated the necessary requirements for the governor-appointed state secretary of education. Earlier this month, the committee learned the secretary never has to be a Hoosier to hold office.
This inspired Yoder to author Amendment 26, which would require the secretary of education to reside in Indiana once they are appointed.
Her amendment failed, only receiving votes from fellow Democrats on the committee.
Committee Chair Sen. Jeff Raatz, R-Centerville, said as a sponsor of the bill, he could not support Yoder’s amendment because it goes against the author’s intent of deregulation.
“I don’t even understand how this is a deregulation issue,” Yoder said. “I think it’s a respect-for-Hoosiers issue.”
Yoder pointed out that, earlier in session, the Senate agreed Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals (PTABOA) members must live in Indiana. She said the secretary of education should meet that requirement as well.
“Why would we let the secretary of education work remotely from another state or another country?” she asked the committee. “They are going to receive payment by Hoosiers.”
On the House floor in January, representatives attempted to increase the prerequisites for the person appointed to be secretary of education, like requiring two years of administrative educational experience. This attempt failed, leaving it up to the governor to pick the person they think will do the job best.
On Wednesday, Ford proposed an amendment that would require the individual to have a bachelor’s degree. It failed, also only receiving votes from his fellow Democratic senators.
“All I’m asking to do is just say, ‘Hey, if you’re going to be the secretary of education, which is one of the largest state agencies, lots of state dollars in our budget, the least we could do is have that person possess a bachelor’s degree,’” Ford said.
