Debra Strain
Regulations Coordinator, Legal Division
California Department of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5319
Sacramento, California 95814

Dear Ms. Strain:

On behalf of the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), I write to submit
comments in response to the January 19, 2007 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking; Amendment to Title 5, California Code of Regulations, Regarding Instructional Materials….  We have recently advocated for an update to the state’s instructional materials process with the goal of removing barriers to the adoption of technology-based materials. Learning technologies present new and exciting opportunities not available, or even imagined, just a short time ago….  

Today, students and educators are eager to use technology to enhance and transform teaching and learning. Yet, the system employed in California to review and approve K-8 instructional materials – originally designed for print-based materials – does not sufficiently address opportunities and realities of technology-based instructional materials. Many software, webbased, and other digital and electronic resources are poised to meet core state learning standards and education needs if given a chance. Efforts are therefore now needed to reform state statute, regulations and processes to ensure appropriate consideration of technology-based instructional materials to provide access to such materials as desired and when appropriate.

While California allows for inclusion of such electronic resources in their definition of
instructional materials, rules and processes originally crafted for print-based textbooks often result in the exclusion, albeit often unintended, of electronic learning resources. These include provisions that adopted instructional materials:
• remain unchanged in content, appearance and format for the adoption period, although
such constraints fail to fully leverage technology’s capacity for currency and innovation;
• be reviewed without ensuring reviewers have the expertise to review technology-based
materials that differ from print materials in their format and instructional design; and
• be sampled without accounting for alternative sampling copies and methods that are most appropriate for technology-based materials, such as availability on a designated website….

The proposed regulations take several important steps at addressing these issues, including the continued move toward referencing “instructional materials” rather than “textbooks.” SIIA also supports the proposed allowance that technology-based materials be updated without CDE approval, provided there is no change to content. SIIA proposes several additional changes as well as outlined in the attached document…. [A]ttached are the following SIIA documents outlining the need for adoption rules updates and proposing changes to California’s adoption process…

Sincerely,
Mark Schneiderman
Director, Education Policy

SIIA Comments to California DoED on Changes to Instructional Materials Adoption (with attachments), March 13.