San Diego Politics Online
Fixing Education in 1999
by California Assemblyman Steve Baldwin
20 January 1999
Today's number one issue in California is
education. It was the single most talked about topic in last year's
campaigns statewide. Our new governor, Gray Davis, has said that education
is his "first, second and third priority."
While everyone seems to agree that something must be done about
education in our state, there is heated debate over the many proposed
solutions, reform plans, and increased spending proposals being discussed
to solve our education problems. Unfortunately, until we agree what has
caused the mess we're in, we'll never be able cure that which ails our
schools.
During his campaign for Governor, Gray Davis proposed forcing parents
to sign a "contract" that would require them to participate in the education
of their children. In his inaugural address Davis emphasized three different
times that students would have to work harder. Our schools are faced with
many problems, but the willingness of students to learn is not one of them.
It may be convenient for Davis to blame students and parents while only
making a cursory reference to the education establishment, but that in fact
is where the problem lies. The education professionals have failed our
children.
There is nothing wrong with the dedication of most students in California,
and the vast majority of parents in our state would give all they have and go
to any lengths for the good of their children. No, Governor Davis, our
education problems stem from one thing alone -- the failure of our
education establishment. Blame may be shared equally by everyone who took
a turn at the switch over the past thirty years; members of the
legislature, governors, school superintendents, administrators and
education bureaucrats. And while we are at it, we must not forget the
educational theorists who thrust "experiments" such as whole-language reading
, new-math and new, new-math on the minds of our children.
Because of the popularity of the issue, throughout the coming year the
California Legislature will witness an onslaught of education "reform"
proposals. We will see ten-point plans, and "specialized" teaching programs.
We will see efforts to tinker with the curriculum, and all kinds of proposed
compacts and contracts between parents, students, teachers, law enforcement
and maybe even the Department of Motor Vehicles. Through it all, we will
see proposals for more and more spending.
One thing is certain: money is not the solution to our education
problems. We now spend over $7500 per student each year - nearly three times
what it costs to educate a child in a private school. In California,
spending on education has increased steadily over the past decade.
Our Constitution was amended a decade ago to require that at least forty
percent of the state budget be spent on public education. Last year we
spent even more than that. Still, test scores continue to plummet. In a
failed ten-year experiment in Kansas City, a "cost is no object" approach was
embarked upon to improve inner-city schools. Teacher-to-student ratios were
reduced to thirteen-to-one. Teachers were paid more, and per-pupil spending
exceeded $11,000! The results surprisingly were no increases in test
scores. Upholding my claim, that money is not the solution to our
education problems.
California's schools are begging for reforms that have little or nothing
to do with money. Accountability at the local level must be the first step.
Principals should be able to fire unsatisfactory or lazy teachers on the spot,
and they should be able to offer raises and promotions to the shining stars
of their faculty -- without having to check first with some far-away
bureaucrat.
We must allow parents a greater say over how and what their children are
taught. Schools must be compelled to provide parents with their children's
curriculum, and grant parents the opportunity to examine all instructional
materials and facilities. If anyone does try to sneak materials full of
risqué social situations into a classroom, the parents won't be forced to
discover it by accident.
Finally and most importantly, until our children are performing on par
with the rest of the country we should put an end to all the experimental
teaching practices and return to basics. To survive in the modern workplace,
to go on to college, and to succeed in the high-tech world in which we live,
everyone should know how to read and write and perform simple mathematics.
Isn't this the primary objective of our public school system? Kids who are
failing in these areas should not be promoted and they should not be wasting
time on electives and other "fun" classes until they are making basic
educational progress.
Our schools are a mess, but contrary to what Governor Davis thinks, the
kids are not to blame, and the vast majority of parents are not to blame.
The failed education establishment in this state is responsible. If we are
to reform public education in California we must change how and what our
children are taught, and we must change it now. Too much is at stake.
California's future, and the future of each and every child yet to
graduate are dependent on what we do now. It's our last chance to get it
right.
Click here to go to:
Steve Baldwin's Assembly Website
Go back to:
"Matthew's Law" Update Page
Go back to:
San Diego Politics Online
