Relating to education; expanding the required academic standards to include a world language; requiring school districts to implement world language graduation requirements for students graduating in the 2014-2015 school year or later; modifying elective standards; modifying benchmarks and graduation requirements; requiring the board of teaching to review and approve qualified alternative preparation programs leading to licensure as a world language teacher; establishing an advisory task force on developing students world language proficiency to consider and recommend to the legislature a process for designing and implementing a comprehensive statewide program to ensure a high level of world language proficiency, sunset; establishing a pilot program to develop and implement Mandarin Chinese programs and to enhance existing successful Mandarin Chinese programs for school districts, specifying certain application requirements, specifying certain duties of the commissioner of education relating to application review, grant awards and evaluation; requiring the commissioner, in consultation with postsecondary institutions and the state board of school administrators, to develop and implement week long intensive training session for public school district administrators; requiring the Minnesota office of higher education to make recommendations to the legislature on developing and implementing world language initiatives in postsecondary settings; requiring the commissioner of education to establish within the department full time language and international education positions; requiring the commissioner to develop and recommend to the legislature by a certain date the standards and process for awarding bilingual and multilingual certificates; requiring the commissioner to establish a Mandarin Chinese information and resource center; appropriating money to the commissioner of education for the pilot program developing and expanding Mandarin Chinese program, school administrators training, department world language positions, Mandarin Chinese information and resource center, alternative teacher preparation scholarships, programs for world language teachers, teacher training, lending library, Mandarin Chinese leadership team, grants to develop innovative materials, public relations, Minnesota state colleges and universities for world language teacher preparation grants and Minnesota office of higher education for certain scholarships
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