Requires teachers and library media specialists to complete professional development related to media literacy education; directs the department of education to develop model media literacy education and CTLE requirements related to media literacy education.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
119
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL, RIVERA, KELLES -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring teachers and
library media specialists to complete professional development related
to media literacy education
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 3006-a of the education law, as
2 added by section 2 of subpart C of part EE of chapter 56 of the laws of
3 2015, is amended and a new subdivision 4 is added to read as follows:
4 2. a. During each five-year registration period beginning on or after
5 July first, two thousand sixteen, an applicant for registration shall
6 successfully complete a minimum of one hundred hours of continuing
7 teacher and leader education, as defined by the commissioner. The
8 department shall issue rigorous standards for courses, programs, and
9 activities, that shall qualify as continuing teacher and leader educa-
10 tion pursuant to this section. For purposes of this section, a peer
11 review teacher, or a principal acting as an independent trained evalu-
12 ator, conducting a classroom observation as part of the teacher evalu-
13 ation system pursuant to section three thousand twelve-d of this article
14 may credit such time towards [his] such peer review teacher's or [her]
15 principal's continuing teacher and leader effectiveness requirements.
16 b. During each five-year registration period beginning on or after a
17 date which shall be determined by the commissioner, any teacher who is
18 an applicant for registration shall successfully complete a minimum of
19 five hours of professional development related to media literacy educa-
20 tion and any library media specialist shall complete a minimum of
21 fifteen hours of professional development related to media literacy
22 education, as defined by the commissioner. Such professional develop-
23 ment related to media literacy education shall be counted toward the one
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00606-01-5
A. 119 2
1 hundred hours of continuing teacher and leader education required by
2 paragraph a of this subdivision. The commissioner shall require that:
3 (i) professional development related to media literacy education
4 incorporates the principles and practices of the department's culturally
5 responsive-sustaining framework;
6 (ii) professional development related to media literacy education is
7 provided by or in coordination with a library media specialist or an
8 employee from a school district's library system in every school
9 district;
10 (iii) library media specialists in every school district receive
11 specific training in how to provide professional development related to
12 media literacy education to teachers of all grade levels and subject
13 areas contained in such library media specialists' schools, which shall
14 include instruction on how to effectively integrate media literacy
15 education into such teachers' curricula; and
16 (iv) the department creates and provides model curricula, teaching and
17 professional development resources on its website, which incorporate
18 media literacy education.
19 c. Nothing in this section shall limit the ability of local school
20 districts to agree pursuant to collective bargaining to additional hours
21 of professional development or continuing teacher or leader education
22 above the minimum requirements set forth in this section.
23 [c.] d. A certified individual who has not satisfied the continuing
24 teacher and leader education requirements shall not be issued a five-
25 year registration certificate by the department and shall not practice
26 unless and until a registration or conditional registration certificate
27 is issued as provided in subdivision three of this section. For purposes
28 of this subdivision, "continuing teacher and leader education require-
29 ments" shall mean activities designed to improve the teacher or leader's
30 pedagogical and/or leadership skills, targeted at improving student
31 performance, including but not limited to formal continuing teacher and
32 leader education activities. Such activities shall promote the profes-
33 sionalization of teaching and be closely aligned to district goals for
34 student performance which meet the standards prescribed by regulations
35 of the commissioner. To fulfill the continuing teacher and leader educa-
36 tion requirement, programs must be taken from sponsors approved by the
37 department, which shall include but not be limited to school districts,
38 pursuant to the regulations of the commissioner.
39 4. For the purposes of this section, "library media specialist" shall
40 mean an individual employed by a school district as a library media
41 specialist pursuant to 8 NYCRR 91.2.
42 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
