The Governor’s Committee on Education Excellence has released a confidential draft report of its recommendations to reform public education in California.
Although a final version of report has not yet officially been released by the committee, the draft has been widely leaked .
Due to the state’s severe financial crisis, it is unlikely much progress will be made in 2008 to carry out any of the committee’s recommendations. Regardless, the report is still of interest to educational leaders and policy makers.
Formed in 2005, the group is chaired by State Board of Education member Ted Mitchell and co-chaired by former state Sen. Dede Alpert. It is made up of public school representatives – including ACSA members – as well as representatives from the private sector.
Following is ACSA’s take on the Governor’s Committee on Education Excellence draft report.
ACSA welcomes the report of this committee, and notes that its findings mirror ACSA’s belief that the evolution of the public education system depends on adequate, efficient, stable and ongoing funding to help students achieve the high academic standards set for them. In fact, ACSA has set four priorities for public education, all of which are supported by this report:
• Narrowing the achievement gap.
• Building capacity among teachers and administrators.
• Measuring results through reliable data on student achievement.
• Providing adequate, stable and ongoing funding.
Strengthening teaching and leadership
ACSA agrees that the committee’s first priority, strengthening teaching and leadership, is the key to making schools successful. Providing competitive salaries for all teachers, providing support for collaboration and learning among teachers and principals, and offering greater incentives for quality teachers to work in high poverty, high need schools will help ensure student success.
Surveys show the single most important working condition for teachers is a strong leader. Adequately staffing for leadership in schools, and providing support – especially to principals – through coaching, will allow school leaders to focus on instruction and on results for students.
California must invest more resources in training teachers and administrators in proven methods to ensure the learning needs of all student groups are met.
ACSA agrees with the report’s finding that deregulating the preparation of administrators by allowing school districts and other organizations to provide training would be beneficial. Expanding local and statewide opportunities for professional growth for prospective and current administrators will enhance their instructional effectiveness and leadership skills. Providing the numbers of leaders our schools will need and increasing the capacity of our leaders to meet the demands of the education system must be our very first priority.
Ensuring fair funding that rewards results
The committee’s second priority, ensuring fair funding that rewards results, builds on ACSA’s belief that schools need adequate, stable and ongoing funding to help students achieve results.
Poverty, mobility and second language bring significant needs and challenges to California schools. While progress is being made to narrow the achievement gap and increase literacy levels, increased resources for support and intervention strategies will improve opportunities for learning.
As the recent “Getting Down to Facts” studies out of Stanford showed, levels of education spending in California are among the lowest in the nation. At this time when massive cuts to K-12 education are being proposed by the governor, the need for a more fair and equitable funding system is even more urgent.
Using data wisely
ACSA shares the committee’s belief that using data wisely is a top priority. The current state and local data systems don’t measure up. Multiple measures – not a single test – should be used to measure progress. Furthermore, individual student progress should be accurately measured over time.
The only way to truly assess and meet the needs for student success is to follow the same student’s progress as he or she moves up by grade level and compare how that student is performing each year to previous years.
California also needs to put more resources into training for teachers and administrators so they can use data wisely and understand how to interpret student data to improve achievement.
However, there are a few possible problem areas. The report’s third priority involves “streamlining governance.” In addition to calling for expanded local control with greater resource flexibility and school autonomy, the report calls for:
• Designating the superintendent of public instruction as the “independent guarantor of success,” overseeing accountability (post 2010).
• Having the secretary of education manage policy, program and funding (post 2010).
• Having the State Board of Education become advisory to the governor and secretary.
Potential problems with this proposal include the political power being shifted from the SPI, an elected position, to the governor, who would control the State Board and secretary. Given the governor’s many priorities, it may be difficult for education to receive the attention it deserves.
A strong SPI provides a single voice for education, and ACSA believes the SPI’s authority should be strengthened with regards to policy and programs. Voters are in favor of this as well, having rejected proposals to diminish the SPI’s authority in the past.
In addition, the report calls for eliminating “almost all categorical program mandates” and “allowing local choice to drive program selection.” Greater local control over spending is needed, but we must continue to serve and support the students being served by those programs, as well as all students. Perhaps one solution could be bigger block grants.
New programs recommended by the report are good ideas, but ACSA questions where the state would find the billions of dollars in funding they would require. Examples include:
• A move toward universal preschool with subsidized tuition and full-day kindergarten.
• A weighted-student formula that adds 40 percent to the base level for students from low-income families and 20 percent for English learners. In any new formula, current funding must be protected. But the fact is, the entire K-12 system is greatly underfunded. In fact, new research from Education Week shows that only 3 percent of California’s students attend schools in districts where per-pupil spending is at or above the national average.
The report also calls for a school inspection system “to identify problems and support improvement.” With massive cuts proposed for K-12 education, this is not the time to create an inspection system that adds another layer of bureaucracy to already overburdened schools.
In addition, the report recommends moving toward a “zero tolerance policy for chronically low-performing schools and districts,” assigning a trustee with broad executive powers to the school. The trustee would have the authority to convert the school to a charter school, assign it to a neighboring successful district or county office, assign control to an education management organization or reorganize the school. ACSA believes this is a punishment, not a solution. Rather than punishing struggling schools and districts, we need to build the capacity of administrators, teachers and school staff in order to lead students to success. While ACSA is unsure when – or if – the much anticipated 250-page report will be released, the association is following the progress of the committee and will keep members aware of any developments. If and when the report is released, ACSA will be analyzing it for our members.
For more information on the governor’s committee, visit www.everychildprepared.org.