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1 | AN ACT concerning education.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 10. The School Code is amended by changing Section | ||||||
5 | 2-3.135 as follows: | ||||||
6 | (105 ILCS 5/2-3.135)
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7 | (Section scheduled to be repealed on August 31, 2010) | ||||||
8 | Sec. 2-3.135. Technology immersion pilot project.
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9 | (a) The State Board of Education shall by rule establish a
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10 | technology immersion pilot project to provide a wireless laptop | ||||||
11 | computer to each student, teacher, and relevant administrator | ||||||
12 | in a participating school and
implement the use of software, | ||||||
13 | on-line courses, and other appropriate
learning technologies | ||||||
14 | that have been shown to improve academic
achievement and the | ||||||
15 | progress measures listed in subsection (f) of this
Section.
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16 | (b) The pilot project shall be for a period of at least 6
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17 | years. The
State Board shall establish a procedure and develop | ||||||
18 | criteria for the
administration of the pilot project. In | ||||||
19 | administering the pilot
project, the State Board shall:
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20 | (1) select participating school districts or schools;
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21 | (2) define the conditions for the distribution and use
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22 | of laptop computers and other technologies;
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23 | (3) purchase and distribute laptop computers and
other |
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1 | technologies;
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2 | (4) enter into contracts as necessary to implement the
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3 | pilot project;
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4 | (5) monitor local pilot project implementation; and
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5 | (6) conduct a final evaluation of the pilot project.
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6 | (c) The Technology Immersion Pilot Project Fund is created | ||||||
7 | as a
special fund in the State treasury. All money in the | ||||||
8 | Technology
Immersion Pilot Project Fund shall be used, subject | ||||||
9 | to appropriation, by
the State Board for the pilot project. To | ||||||
10 | implement the pilot project, the
State Board may use any funds | ||||||
11 | appropriated by the General Assembly
for the purposes of the | ||||||
12 | pilot project as well as any gift, grant, or donation
given for | ||||||
13 | the pilot project. The State Board may solicit and accept a | ||||||
14 | gift,
grant, or donation of any kind from any source, including | ||||||
15 | from a
foundation, private entity, governmental entity, or | ||||||
16 | institution
of higher education, for the implementation of the | ||||||
17 | pilot project. Funds
for the pilot project may not be used for | ||||||
18 | the construction of a building or
other facility.
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19 | The State Board shall use pilot project funds for the | ||||||
20 | following:
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21 | (1) the purchase of wireless laptop computers
so that | ||||||
22 | each student, teacher, and relevant administrator in a | ||||||
23 | participating classroom has a wireless
laptop computer for | ||||||
24 | use at school and at home;
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25 | (2) the purchase of other equipment, including
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26 | additional computer hardware and software;
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1 | (3) the hiring of technical support staff for school
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2 | districts or schools participating in the pilot project; | ||||||
3 | and
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4 | (4) the purchase of technology-based learning
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5 | materials and resources.
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6 | The State Board may not allocate more than $10 million for | ||||||
7 | the pilot project.
The pilot project may be implemented only if | ||||||
8 | sufficient
funds are available under this Section for that | ||||||
9 | purpose.
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10 | (d) A school district may apply to the State Board for the
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11 | establishment of a technology immersion pilot project for the | ||||||
12 | entire
district or for a particular school or group of schools | ||||||
13 | in the district.
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14 | The State Board shall select 7 school districts to | ||||||
15 | participate in the pilot project. One school district shall be | ||||||
16 | located in the City of Chicago, 3 school districts shall be | ||||||
17 | located in the area that makes up the counties of DuPage, Kane, | ||||||
18 | Lake, McHenry, Will, and that portion of Cook County that is | ||||||
19 | located outside of the City of Chicago, and 3 school districts | ||||||
20 | shall be located in the remainder of the State.
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21 | The State Board shall select the participating districts | ||||||
22 | and
schools for the pilot project based on each district's or | ||||||
23 | school's
need for the pilot project. In selecting participants, | ||||||
24 | the State Board
shall consider the following criteria:
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25 | (1) whether the district or school has limited access
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26 | to educational resources that could be improved through the |
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1 | use of
wireless laptop computers and other technologies;
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2 | (2) whether the district or school has the following
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3 | problems and whether those problems can be mitigated | ||||||
4 | through
the use of wireless laptop computers and other
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5 | technologies:
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6 | (A) documented teacher shortages in critical
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7 | areas;
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8 | (B) limited access to advanced placement
courses;
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9 | (C) low rates of satisfactory performance on
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10 | assessment instruments under Section 2-3.64 of this | ||||||
11 | Code;
and
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12 | (D) high dropout rates;
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13 | (3) the district's or school's readiness to
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14 | incorporate technology into its classrooms;
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15 | (4) the possibility of obtaining a trained technology
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16 | support staff and high-speed Internet services for the | ||||||
17 | district or
school; and
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18 | (5) the methods the district or school will use to
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19 | measure the progress of the pilot project in the district | ||||||
20 | or school
in accordance with subsection (f) of this | ||||||
21 | Section.
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22 | The State Board shall if possible select at least 9 schools | ||||||
23 | to
participate in the pilot project, with at least 3 from the | ||||||
24 | school district located in the City of Chicago and one from | ||||||
25 | each of the other school districts selected.
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26 | (e) Each participating school district or school shall |
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1 | establish a
technology immersion committee to assist in | ||||||
2 | developing and
implementing the technology immersion pilot | ||||||
3 | project.
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4 | The school board of a participating
district or of a | ||||||
5 | district in which a participating school is
located shall | ||||||
6 | appoint individuals to the committee. The committee may be
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7 | composed of the following:
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8 | (1) educators;
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9 | (2) district-level administrators;
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10 | (3) community leaders;
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11 | (4) parents of students who attend a participating
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12 | school; and
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13 | (5) any other individual the school board finds | ||||||
14 | appropriate.
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15 | The committee shall develop an academic improvement plan | ||||||
16 | that
details how the pilot project should be implemented in the
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17 | participating district or school. In developing the academic
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18 | improvement plan, the committee shall consider (i) the | ||||||
19 | educational
problems in the district or school that could be | ||||||
20 | mitigated through the
implementation of the pilot project and | ||||||
21 | (ii) the technological and
nontechnological resources that are | ||||||
22 | necessary to ensure the successful
implementation of the pilot | ||||||
23 | project.
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24 | The committee shall recommend to the school board how
the | ||||||
25 | pilot project funds should be used to implement the academic
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26 | improvement plan. The committee may recommend annually any
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1 | necessary changes in the academic improvement plan to the | ||||||
2 | school
board. The State Board must approve the academic | ||||||
3 | improvement plan
or any changes in the academic improvement | ||||||
4 | plan before disbursing
pilot project funds to the school board.
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5 | (f) The school board of each school district participating | ||||||
6 | in the pilot
project shall send an annual progress report to | ||||||
7 | the State Board no later
than August 1 of each year that the | ||||||
8 | district is participating in the pilot
project. The report must | ||||||
9 | state in detail the type of plan being used in the
district or | ||||||
10 | school and the effect of the pilot project on the district or
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11 | school, including the following:
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12 | (1) the academic progress of students who are
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13 | participating in the pilot project, as measured by | ||||||
14 | performance on
assessment instruments;
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15 | (2) if applicable, a comparison of student progress in
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16 | a school or classroom that is participating in the pilot | ||||||
17 | project as
compared with student progress in the schools or | ||||||
18 | classrooms in
the district that are not participating in | ||||||
19 | the pilot project;
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20 | (3) any elements of the pilot project that contribute
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21 | to improved student performance on assessment instruments
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22 | administered under Section 2-3.64 of this Code or any other
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23 | assessment instrument required by the State Board;
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24 | (4) any cost savings and improved efficiency relating
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25 | to school personnel and the maintenance of facilities;
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26 | (5) any effect on student dropout and attendance
rates;
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1 | (6) any effect on student enrollment in higher
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2 | education;
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3 | (7) any effect on teacher performance and retention;
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4 | (8) any improvement in communications among students,
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5 | teachers, parents, and administrators;
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6 | (9) any improvement in parental involvement in the
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7 | education of the parent's child;
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8 | (10) any effect on community involvement and support
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9 | for the district or school; and
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10 | (11) any increased student proficiency in technologies | ||||||
11 | that
will help prepare the student for becoming a member of | ||||||
12 | the
workforce.
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13 | (g) Each student participating in the pilot project may | ||||||
14 | retain the
wireless laptop computer provided under the pilot | ||||||
15 | project as long
as the student is enrolled in a school in a | ||||||
16 | participating school district.
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17 | (h) After the expiration of the 6-year pilot project, the
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18 | State Board shall review the pilot project based on the annual | ||||||
19 | reports the
State Board receives from the school board of | ||||||
20 | participating school
districts.
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21 | (i) This Section is repealed on August 31, 2010.
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22 | (Source: P.A. 95-387, eff. 8-30-07.)
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23 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
24 | becoming law.
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