22 Pa. Code § 4.4 - General policies
(a) It
is the policy of the Board that the local curriculum be designed by school
entities to achieve the academic standards under §
4.12 (relating to academic
standards) and any additional academic standards as determined by the school
entity .
(b) It is the policy of the
Board that local school entities have the greatest possible flexibility in
curriculum planning consistent with providing quality education and in
compliance with the School Code , including requirements for courses to be
taught (24 P. S. §§
15-1501 and
16-1605); subjects to be
taught in the English language (24 P. S. §
15-1511); courses adapted to the age,
development and needs of the pupils (24 P. S. §
15-1512); minimum school year of 180 days and
minimum of 900 hours of instruction at the elementary level and 990 hours of
instruction at the secondary level (24 P. S. §§
15-1501 and
15-1504); employment of
sufficient numbers of qualified professional employees (24 P. S. §
11-1106) and superintendents to enforce the
curriculum requirements of State law (24 P. S. §
10-1005); and this part.
(c) Access to educational programs shall be
provided without discrimination on the basis of a student's race, sex, color,
religion, disability, sexual orientation or national origin.
(d) School entities shall adopt policies to
assure that parents or guardians have the following:
(1) Access to information about the
curriculum , including academic standards to be achieved, instructional
materials and assessment techniques.
(2) A process for the review of instructional
materials.
(3) The right to have
their children excused from specific instruction that conflicts with their
religious beliefs, upon receipt by the school entity of a written request from
the parent or guardians.
(4) The
right to review a State assessment in the school entity during convenient hours
for parents and guardians, at least 2 weeks prior to their administration, to
determine whether a State assessment conflicts with their religious belief. To
protect the validity and integrity of the State assessments, each school entity
shall have in place procedures to be followed when parents or guardians request
to view any State assessment . Procedures must be consistent with guidance
provided by the Department in its assessment administration instructions. If
upon inspection of a State assessment parents or guardians find the assessment
to be in conflict with their religious belief and wish their students to be
excused from the assessment , the right of the parents or guardians will not be
denied upon written request that states the objection to the applicable school
district superintendent, charter school chief executive officer or AVTS
director.
(5) The right to have
their children excluded from research studies or surveys conducted by entities
other than a school entity unless prior written consent has been
obtained.
(e) The
Department will provide support to school districts, ACTSs and charter schools,
including cyber charter schools, in developing educational programs that enable
students to attain academic standards under §
4.12. Department support will
include:
(1) Establishment of a voluntary
model curriculum and diagnostic supports aligned with State academic standards
in each of the content areas assessed by the Keystone Exams under §
4.51b(i)
(relating to Keystone Exams ).
(2)
Assistance in the development of effective student tutoring, remediation and
extended instructional time programs.
(3) Opportunities for continuing professional
education designed to improve instruction in each of the content areas assessed
by the Keystone Exams under §
4.51b(i).
(4) Technical guidance in developing local
assessments that meet the requirements of §
4.24(c)(1)(iii)(B)
(relating to high school graduation requirements), upon
request.
(f) The
Department may not, and the Board will not, require school entities to utilize
a Statewide curriculum or Statewide reading lists.
Notes
The provisions of this § 4.4 amended under sections 121,
2603-B and 2604-B of the Public
This section cited in 22 Pa. Code § 11.7 (relating to religious objections).
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