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THE SENATE                           S.C.R. NO.            S.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                    SENATE  CONCURRENT
                        RESOLUTION

  REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE REFERENCE BUREAU TO CONDUCT A STUDY
    ON THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION'S PLAN TO MOVE SIXTH GRADE
    STUDENTS FROM ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS TO INTERMEDIATE SCHOOLS.


 1        WHEREAS, the Department of Education wishes to combine
 2   sixth grades with seventh and eighth grades as part of its
 3   "Middle School Concept Plan"; and
 4   
 5        WHEREAS, the Middle School Concept Plan has only been
 6   partially implemented in the Honolulu District, and the
 7   Department of Education's goal is to eventually expand the
 8   program statewide, in the hopes that the sixth grade students
 9   will benefit from the broader educational opportunities in the
10   intermediate schools; and
11   
12        WHEREAS, parents and guardians of students who may be
13   affected by the Middle School Concept Plan may not be
14   adequately informed of its ramifications, and may not have had
15   a full opportunity for input and discussion; and
16   
17        WHEREAS, the implementation of the Middle School Concept
18   Plan will require additional funding to develop and provide
19   additional sixth grade curricula and programs; and
20   
21        WHEREAS, the shifting of resource requirements to the
22   intermediate schools to fund additional sixth grade curricula
23   and programs may have a negative effect on both the elementary
24   and the intermediate schools; now, therefore,
25   
26        BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twentieth Legislature
27   of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 1999, the House of
28   Representatives concurring, that the Legislative Reference
29   Bureau, with the assistance of the Department of Education, is
30   requested to conduct a study on the Department of Education's
31   plan to move sixth grade students from the elementary schools
32   to intermediate schools, which shall include:
33   
34        (1)  An investigation and consideration of the concerns of
35             parents and the communities affected;
36   

 
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 1        (2)  An investigation and consideration of the concerns of
 2             sixth grade students, as well as all other elementary
 3             and intermediate students;
 4   
 5        (3)  A specific determination of anticipated funding needs
 6             and resource adjustments;
 7   
 8        (4)  A reevaluation of whether the means fit the goals of
 9             the program; and
10   
11        (5)  An evaluation of alternatives to the middle school
12             plan, such as combining the seventh and eighth grades
13             with the elementary schools.
14   
15   and
16   
17        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference
18   Bureau submit its findings and recommendations to the
19   Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of
20   the Regular Session of 2001; and
21   
22        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
23   Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Superintendent of
24   Education and the Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau.