SECTIONS 310-311 - California Statutes

EDUCATION CODE

SECTION 310-311

310. The requirements of Section 305 may be waived with the prior
written informed consent, to be provided annually, of the child's
parents or legal guardian under the circumstances specified below and
in Section 311. Such informed consent shall require that said
parents or legal guardian personally visit the school to apply for
the waiver and that they there be provided a full description of the
educational materials to be used in the different educational program
choices and all the educational opportunities available to the
child. Under such parental waiver conditions, children may be
transferred to classes where they are taught English and other
subjects through bilingual education techniques or other generally
recognized educational methodologies permitted by law. Individual
schools in which 20 pupils or more of a given grade level receive a
waiver shall be required to offer such a class; otherwise, they must
allow the pupils to transfer to a public school in which such a class
is offered.

311. The circumstances in which a parental exception waiver may be
granted under Section 310 are as follows:
(a) Children who already know English: the child already
possesses good English language skills, as measured by standardized
tests of English vocabulary comprehension, reading, and writing, in
which the child scores at or above the state average for his or her
grade level or at or above the 5th grade average, whichever is lower;
or
(b) Older children: the child is age 10 years or older, and it is
the informed belief of the school principal and educational staff
that an alternate course of educational study would be better suited
to the child's rapid acquisition of basic English language skills; or
(c) Children with special needs: the child already has been
placed for a period of not less than thirty days during that school
year in an English language classroom and it is subsequently the
informed belief of the school principal and educational staff that
the child has such special physical, emotional, psychological, or
educational needs that an alternate course of educational study would
be better suited to the child's overall educational development. A
written description of these special needs must be provided and any
such decision is to be made subject to the examination and approval
of the local school superintendent, under guidelines established by
and subject to the review of the local Board of Education and
ultimately the State Board of Education. The existence of such
special needs shall not compel issuance of a waiver, and the parents
shall be fully informed of their right to refuse to agree to a
waiver.