Arizona Senate Passes Parental Transparency Bill

The bill gives parents the right to see all materials being taught to their children.

QUICK FACTS:

• The Arizona Senate has passed a bill that would allow parents to have access to all school materials being taught to their children, according to Just The News.
• Included in the bill is the requirement that schools list specific learning materials used at each institution on their websites.
• The bill is sponsored by Sen. Nancy Barto (R-Phoenix), who said that she believes parents have the right right to know what their kids are learning in school.
• The Arizona Independent reported that the bill has been the victim of misinformation and received pushback from both Arizona teacher’s union activists and the Democratic caucus.

NOW: SB1211 Academic Transparency passes the AZ senate! Now headed to the House. This bill let’s parents know what’s being taught in their kid’s classroom @GoldwaterInst @NancyBarto pic.twitter.com/Or3xi1AYta

— Jenna Bentley (@JennaMBentley) March 14, 2022

STATEMENTS FROM LAWMAKERS ON THE BILL:

• Sen. Paul Boyer, R-Glendale, spoke in favor of the bill on the Senate floor, saying it wouldn’t take much for the schools to make happen.
• “I do see a huge benefit of this. Teachers regularly submit lesson plans. They do, every week. All this bill calls for is to post that on a Google Doc or a Word doc for any parent that wants to see it, to see it. It’s also another benefit for teachers.”
• He said the bill helps schools see what their teachers are doing right and what they’re doing wrong. He also said it could improve the quality of education.
• “If, say, hypothetically, I’m in a ‘D’ or ‘F’ school, it would be nice to know…what are the ‘A’ schools doing?” he said. “Maybe, just maybe, I could figure out what the ‘A’ schools are doing and I could do that in my classroom.”
• Sen. Nancy Barto, R-Phoenix, the bill’s sponsor, said, “The heart of this bill is getting to all of the materials being available to parents because they need access.”
• “They need to know what is being presented to their children,” she added.

BACKGROUND:

• The bill, SB 1211, passed the senate 16-13 vote along party lines with Republicans in favor of the conservative-backed bill and Democrats opposing.
• The bill now heads to the Arizona House of Representatives, which has a 31-29 Republican majority.