STAND. COM. REP. NO.44-02

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2002

RE: H.B. No. 1876

H.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.B. No. 1876 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to prohibit the Department of Education (DOE) from requiring or allowing a teacher without knowledge or competence in a particular subject area to teach that subject.

The Hawaii State Teachers Association and several individuals submitted testimony in support of this bill. DOE, the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board, and an individual submitted testimony in support of the intent of this bill.

Your Committee finds that many DOE teachers are often required to teach outside their area of training or expertise. Students deserve to have a qualified teacher in every classroom, and the current situation makes it difficult to ensure that they are receiving the best education possible. However, your Committee also notes that DOE is faced with a difficult teacher shortage, which is expected to increase in the near future.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this bill by changing the effective date to July 1, 2004, to allow DOE time to address its teacher shortage and ensure that only qualified teachers are allowed to teach in that subject area.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1876, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1876, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Labor and Public Employment.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Education,

 

____________________________

KEN ITO, Chair