California SB 274 : New Education Law Will Transform School Discipline and Support

Published August 26, 2024
By Andrew Fierro, Candidate Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, CSULB 2025

Recently, California passed Senate Bill 274, which focused on making significant changes to the educational field in the state. This bill, which was passed into law on October 8, 2023, took effect on July 1st of this year. This article will provide an overview of the bill and its implications for teachers, students, parents, and other stakeholders across the state.

SB 274 is a state law that revises various areas in California’s school system. The bill was sponsored by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and supported by a coalition of more than 60 organizations and addressed current suspension policies and practices in the educational system. Notably, SB 274 is designed to keep kids in school by prohibiting the suspension of TK through 12 students for low-level behavior issues such as a student wearing a hat backward, falling asleep in class, or “talking back to a teacher,” known as “willful defiance.” The legislature observed these changes were warranted based on numerous factors, including, but not limited to, the U.S “Supreme Court ruling of Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012), and supported by neuroscience research, recognizing that young people are different and, because of the hallmark features of youth, such as ‘immaturity, impetuosity, and failure to appreciate risks and consequences,’ are both not as culpable as older people and capable of remarkable change; California law concerning youth, their development, and punishment for their behaviors have been evolving; Assembly Bill 420 of the 2013–14 Regular Session and Senate Bill 419 of the 2019–20 Regular Session; and numerous studies providing that ‘confirms that pupils of color, pupils who are homeless, pupils with disabilities, pupils in foster care, and LGBTQIA+ pupils are more likely to be suspended for behavior deemed to be a willfully defiant offense even when harmless.’”

Hence, one of the bill's main objectives was to ensure that the disciplinary practices within each school promote an environment where learning is the focus. To achieve this purpose, the bill made several changes to the suspension policies are the following:

  1. Restorative Justice Practices: The bill now addresses issues with a restorative justice approach rather than punitive penalties. This way, students can learn more about how their behavior was an issue and how to fix it going forward. This new approach gives students a chance to do better and succeed going forward rather than strictly being punished for their wrongdoings.
  2. Limitations on Out-of-School Suspensions: The bill focuses on ensuring that there are restrictions on using out-of-school suspensions when unnecessary. The bill particularly focuses on offenses that are deemed to be of lower level and the use of out-of-school suspensions on these offenses. The bill will now encourage schools to use alternative disciplinary methods that address behavioral issues while continuing to allow students to be engaged in the classroom.
  3. Professional Development: To be able to make these changes that the bill is focused on, there will be training instilled into all faculty and staff at educational facilities for them to be able to provide the best possible methods of discipline.
  4. Monitoring and Reporting: To ensure this bill’s success and to navigate future evaluations for educational facilities, each school will be mandated to track data related to its disciplinary actions. This includes suspensions and other measures to ensure students are being disciplined for wrongdoings but still getting the attention necessary to correct these issues.

This will have many implications for educators and students throughout the state. Educators will have to focus their attention and training on ensuring they can provide the necessary resources for students expressing problematic behaviors. On the other hand, students will have more opportunities to express themselves and correct their wrongdoings before serious consequences are enforced. This bill will allow students to obtain more from their education, learn more about acceptable behavior, and receive help from their school’s faculty if needed. The shift in focus from more punishment-focused actions to supportive actions will allow students and teachers to understand each other better and for the students to receive a better educational experience.