The Daily Report Card

--- Monday --- May 19, 1997 --- Vol. 7 --- No. 43 ---

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THE NATIONAL UPDATE ON AMERICA'S EDUCATION REFORM EFFORTS

============== QUOTE OF THE DAY ==============
"When parents talk about what they want out of their schools,
they talk about math, science and English. They don't talk about
teaching human sexuality and health products. That isn't what
they send their children to school for."
David Curtin, Christian Coalition of Illinois. (#2) _______________________________________________________________
| (c) by the Education Policy Network, Inc. |
| 1255 22nd Street NW; Washington, D.C. 20010; 202/632-0952 |
| EPN, Inc. hereby authorizes further reproduction and |
| distribution with proper acknowledgement. |
| Publisher: Barbara A. Pape |
|_______________________________________________________________|

============== TABLE OF CONTENTS ==============

GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP
FLEXIBLE OR RACIST?: Mass. spars over bilingual education. (#1)

STATESIDE
GOAL-SETTING AND SCHOOL FUNDING: Gathering steam in Ill. (#2)

MONEY MATTERS
PROJECT HOMECOMING: Sausalito schools scoring poorly. (#3)

FROM COURTHOUSE TO SCHOOLHOUSE
REJECT: N.J. court rules school-funding plan deficient. (#4)

PROMISING PRACTICES
STRUGGLING FOR SUCCESS: Minneapolis embraces model schools.(#5)

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===== GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP =====

*1 FLEXIBLE OR RACIST?: MASS. SPARS OVER BILINGUAL EDUCATION
Changes made by the Massachusetts State Board of Education
in the state's bilingual education regulations caused
consternation among many parents and teachers of bilingual
education students (multi cites). Board members also are urging
the Legislature to support Gov. William Weld's (R) proposal that
would forbid students whose first language is not English from
remaining in native language classes longer than three years,
writes the BOSTON GLOBE (Zernike, 5/13).
Changes recommended by the board include: elimination of
the mandate for parent advisory councils, instead giving local
districts the authority to decide how best to involve parents; a
widening of the age span of children in the same bilingual
classroom -- for example, in kindergarten the age span will be
three years; and an increase in the maximum bilingual student to
teacher ratio from 18:1 to an average of 20:1; and
"We know from history that school districts disrespect the
needs of minority parents," said Virginia Vogel Zanger, past
president of the Massachusetts Association for Bilingual
Education. "The reason we have [the current bilingual education
law] is because prior to 1970, hundreds of children were out of
school because districts were not doing the right thing. We will
have a repeat of that."
Board President John Silber insisted that students remain
for too long in bilingual education program. "Many supporters of
bilingual education believe the best bilingual programs last five
to seven years," said Silber, quoting from a report released by
the Center for Educational Opportunity, a Washington, D.C.-think
tank headed by Linda Chavez. "They are wrong. This is far too
long to keep students segregated." Silber also quoted comments
made by Alfredo Nunex, principal of Boston's Agassize Elementary
School: "The isolation of students within a school perpetuates a
second-class-citizen mentality that produces a sort of feeling of
being in a ghetto."
However, a related GLOBE article points out that the
research on bilingual education is conflicting. From the paper:
"Researchers and analysts, including supporters and critics of
bilingual education, say that after nearly three decades of it,
we know little about what works and what doesn't in teaching non-
native students to speak English." Mass. Education Commissioner
Robert Antonucci conceded that little is known about what works
in bilingual education. "We know that kids at younger ages learn
more quickly than those who are older, but beyond that, the
research is conflicting."
Antonucci also countered critics who claim the policymakers
"refuse to listen to the real voices." Antonuci: "The public
process has been more public than anything we have ever done. If
people don't like something, they tend to say we didn't listen.
We did listen."

===== STATESIDE =====

*2 GOAL-SETTING AND SCHOOL FUNDING: GATHERING STEAM IN ILL.
Conservative groups won a victory in Ill. by getting a
standards-setting committee to strike a provision on "the health
and well-being" of students (Parsons, Chicago TRIBUNE, 5/15).
Many conservatives feared that the clause would encourage more
schools to establish programs that "tread into issues of
sexuality, homosexuality and evolution," writes the paper.
"When parents talk about what they want out of their
schools, they talk about math, science and English," said David
Curtin, executive director of the Christian Coalition of
Illinois. "They don't talk about teaching human sexuality and
health products. That isn't what they send their children to
school for."
State School Superintendent Joseph Spagnolo agreed to remove
the "health and well-being" phrase from the goals. However, he
disagrees with conservative attempts to require the state
Legislature to approve the standards. According to the paper,
the standards task force is scheduled to submit the goals to the
State Board of Education this summer. Spagnolo said there is not
enough time for the Legislature to get involved in the process.
The TRIBUNE notes that one conservative lawmaker agrees.
"Somehow we have been led down this lily-lined path by the
liberals to believe a standard curriculum is going to make things
better," said Rep. Mary Lou Cowlishaw (R). "But I don't think
the state legislature should be in the practice of ratifying
these standards. It's much too technical. I don't think any of
us are qualified to do this."
In other Ill. news, Gov. Jim Edgar (R) has been working hard
to gain business support for his school funding plan (Neal,
Chicago SUN-TIMES, 5/12). SUN-TIMES political columnist Steve
Neal writes that the "active opposition" of key business groups
"would make it more difficult for Edgar to resolve conflicts with
suburban GOP legislative leaders on school funding."
Edgar's plan is to increase the income tax by $1.5B, with
$600M in new school funds and $1.2B in property tax relief for
homeowners.
The Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago is
standing behind Edgar's efforts to reform education funding and
schools. From a Civic Committee statement: "We firmly believe
that the quality of Illinois' schools will determine our
competitive position in the 21st century. In order to improve
educational quality, both substantial reforms and a restructuring
of the educational funding sytem should be tied together and
phased on over a multiyear period."
The Civic Committee also is supporting Edgar's plan to
"bring the lowest-spending school districts up to a minimum of
$4,225 per student and to increase the state's share of school
funding to 50 percent," writes Neal.
Edgar has "collected the endorsement" of the Illinois
Chamber of Commerce and the Illinois Association of Realtors,
reports Neal. However, "Edgar hasn't won over everyone," notes
Neal. IMA President Gregory Baise said his board does not
support any tax hike.

===== MONEY MATTERS =====

*3 PROJECT HOMECOMING: SAUSALITO SCHOOLS SCORING POORLY
A "conundrum of race, class and money" plagues Sausalito,
Calif., schools, writes the L.A. TIMES (LaGanga, 5/16). Nestled
in rich Marin County, the district does not lack funding: the
district spends nearly $12,000 per student, not including special
education funds, reports the paper. Despite a flow of funds,
significant numbers of students from second to seventh grade
perform below the 40th percentile in language skills and do not
even reach that mark in reading, according to test scores from
the 1996 Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills.
"It's the biggest mess I've ever seen," declared Josephine
Pearson, who left her teaching job at Sausalito's Bayside/Martin
Luther King School this year after nearly seven years. "It's so
sad. All that money and nothing for those kids."
Sausalito boasts conditions most schools would die for:
class size of 15 to 20 students; art and drama teachers; a
science specialist and computer instructor; the district ranks
number 10 in student spending out of nearly 1,000 statewide.
Yet, children are not achieving and more and more parents are
sending their children to private schools. The paper reports
that the school population has decreased by more than a third
since 1990.
The Sausalita school district is comprised of two enclaves:
one that is 94% white, with an average annual household income of
$107,485; the other located in Marin City, in which many families
dwell in public housing. Theories abound as to why the school
system is floundering, including white flight and social factors
that prevent children from learning. Others point to ineffective
school leadership, with some school district residents calling
for a recall of the board and superintendent.
Racism also may be a factor, according to some parents.
"Race is an issue at the school," said Andrea Leslie, co-
president of the Bayside/MLK PTA. "I can't fix racism. It's
part of the problem. It could be what keeps Sausalito families
away."
Barbara Chriss, a former Bayside/MK principal, claims the
problem stems from a lack of consistency "across the classes or
the grades in curriculum and in the behavior and performance
expectations, so the children are confused."
The TIMES writes that the district's problems encapsulate a
host of questions pondered by schools nationwide: "Just how
important are funding and class size? What makes children learn?
Does race play a role in how children learn? Can problems of
poverty and drug abuse be overcome in the classroom?"
"A lot of classic urban explanations don't explain the
situation here," said Michael Kirst, professor of education at
Stanford U. "It's a puzzle and an interesting social case."
Parents advocating for a recall of school leaders have
formed a group called Project Homecoming, a racially diverse
coalition of parents, educational consultants and residents of
Sausalito and Marin City. The group's motto is "Break the
Silence."
At one meeting, parent Cathomas Starbird, an African
American, explained why she does not send any of her children to
the public schools. "They don't educate children as far as I'm
concerned," she explained. "Nor do they provide an environment
for learning. Money is not the issue."

===== FROM COURTHOUSE TO SCHOOLHOUSE =====

*4 REJECT: N.J. HIGH COURT RULES SCHOOL FUNDING PLAN DEFICIENT
Dealing a "serious political blow" to N.J. Gov Christine
Todd Whitman (R), the state Supreme Court declared her new
education funding law unconstitutional because it does not
provide enough state aid to disadvantaged school districts
(O'Neill, Philadelphia INQUIRER, 5/15). "I'd be a liar if I
stood here and said I wasn't disappointed," said Whitman, who
touted her plan as the cornerstone to her reelection bid.
A 1994 court order ignited the crusade to find school
funding parity for poor and wealthy districts. Whitman changed
the state's funding formula for education but also developed a
detailed set of core curriculum standards. Whitman contended
that financial parity alone would not create a quality education
for low-income districts, reports the paper. The high court
concurred, ruling last week that the standards "are an acceptable
way of defining the vague requirement in the state constitution
that every child must have access to a thorough and efficient
education," writes the paper.
According to the paper, N.J. must find an extra $250M in the
state budget for the 28 designated disadvantaged districts. For
the first time, the court also ruled that the state must find
additional funds to repair decrepit school facilities in the
special-needs districts.
"Isn't it fabulous? It's a complete victory," said David
Sciarra of the Education Law Center, who challenged Whitman's law
before the court.

==== PROMISING PRACTICES ====

*5 STRUGGLING FOR SUCCESS: MINNEAPOLIS EMBRACES MODEL SCHOOLS
Spurred by reports that most Minneapolis eighth-graders
failed basic reading and math tests, the Minneapolis School Board
is grappling with the best ways to improve student achievement
(Peterson, MInneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 5/14). Their latest idea:
target funds to model schools in neighborhood clusters.
"It would be healthy for the district to cluster our schools
-- to break them down to human scale," said Board Member Judy
Framer. "Let's improve one school in every cluster so everyone
has a chance to 'see success.'"
According to the paper, "blunt" discussions between school
board members and senior school district managers covered the
following ground: clustering schools into clusters with strong
neighborhood identity in order to counter the district's
unwieldiness; "white board members complained that extras for
successful students are being tossed overboard in a panic over
basic skills for failing kids," with Katrina Reed, acting
superintendent, countering that "the needs of successful students
are being met. The needs of those who are failing are not;" and
the "dysfunctional" basic operating structure of the school
district.
State Board Member Ann Perget pointed out that "time is of
the essence in our credibility with the community." Betty Webb,
a senior administrator agreed. Citing the dismal test scores,
she noted: "We took a beating at the League of Women Voters."
Board member Dennis Van Avery expressed concern over the
impression that school officials do not want community help to
improve the schools. "We are coming off to businesses and others
as though we are saying, 'Go away, we're planning.'"

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John Kurilecjmk@ofcn.org