UPDATE 3/30/21 9:45
The Iowa Senate passed their version of the bill tonight with measures requiring public schools to publish their curriculum online and to shift taxpayer funding from public schools to a scholarship program that benefits private school students from lower-income families.
If teachers choose to change the curriculum the house's version of the bill requires that school districts update the information by the end of that week.
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There's a controversial bill that passed the Iowa House of Representatives and is being discussed in the Senate Wednesday night.
Schools would have to post their syllabi and library books online for parents to see. Iowa Republicans are calling for "transparency" but House Democrat Sharon Steckman calls it "teacher targeting."
The bill is borne out of books that are causing debates in Iowa school districts. Books like The Hate U Give, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and Gender Queer are all about marginalized communities. Legislators are divided on their place on library shelves.
"Gender Queer — which is, I've looked at it — and it has extremely graphic images and language and so on. When Gov. Reynolds started to read it at a TV interview they bleeped it out. It's that kind of thing, I've seen the book. I don't think it's appropriate," State Rep. Brent Siegrist (R) said.
"The Hate U Give is a beautiful story about a young woman who lives in a poor area and she goes to school at a white school in the suburbs and it's all about her life. Her best friend is shot by a policeman but her uncle is also a policeman," State Rep. Sharon Steckman (D) said.
The Senate is voting on a versionof this bill tonight dubbed the "Parents Bill of Rights." By July 2025 - schools must post materials like textbooks, handouts and articles online for parents to see.
"There's just no ability to adjust and teach individually in the moment," Lewis Central Community School District Superintendent Dr. Eric Knost said.
If teachers choose to change the curriculum, the House's version of the bill requires school districts to update the information by the end of the week. If a district violates that, it could face fines between 500 and 5000 dollars which irks Knost.
"I can't think of one example where a teacher ever said to a student or me. Oh nope, cannot talk about that. Don't bring that up, the State Legislature won't let us. It's illegal. I'll get fined if we go there, just the very idea of that is stifling," Knost said.
Siegrist voted in favor of the bill. As a former educator, he doesn't believe the legislation overburdens teachers.
"The teachers that have started teaching in the last 15 to 20 years, very computer savvy. Most of them, this won't affect. They do it anyway," Siegrist said.
Steckman is also a former educator who would like to see a different approach.
"We have such a wide achievement gap. Bills that do good things like that for our kids. Totally fund preschools. So we can help those kids get a good start. Those are the kinds of things I would like to be focusing on," Steckman said.
The House and Senate will continue to negotiate before anything lands on the Governor's desk for approval.
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