Take action to help kids in math and science
Nothing has a greater impact on student learning than the quality of the teacher in the classroom. SB 1660 helps struggling schools hire more quality math and science teachers to help students succeed.
Click here to here to send a letter to ask your Assemblymember to support the bill.
July 2 | School's out (of cash)
Budget cuts force districts to cancel summer classes
By Chris Moran
San Diego Union Tribune
Thousands of students in the county won't take classes this summer, school officials say, because districts don't have money to run them.
San Diego Unified, Poway Unified and La Mesa-Spring Valley school districts have canceled summer school for all elementary students who aren't in special education. Middle and high school students will continue summer studies to keep them on pace for promotion or graduation. Click here to read more...
Click here to send a letter to your Assemblymember on the budget.
June 22 | RETURN OF THE MATH WARS
By Debra J. Saunders
San Francisco Chronicle
1997 saw the height of the Math Wars in California.
On the one side stood educrats, who advocated mushy math - or new-new math. They sought to de-emphasize math skills, such as multiplication and solving numeric equations, in favor of pushing students to write about math and how they might solve a problem. Their unofficial motto was: There is no right answer. (Even to 2 +2.)
They were clever. They knew how to make it seem as if they were pushing for more rigor, as they dumbed down curricula. For example, they said they wanted to teach children algebra starting in kindergarten, which seemed rigorous, but they had expanded the definition of algebra to the point that it was meaningless. Click here to read more...
June 15 | California may water down eighth-grade algebra standard
By Dan Walters
Sacramento Bee
Eleven years ago, after much political and pedagogic angst, California adopted a historically rigorous set of academic standards for the state's K-12 students, one of which – and one of the most contentious – was that eighth-graders should learn the rudiments of algebra.
Adoption of the math standards by the state Board of Education was a victory for advocates of traditional academics and a setback for those, including Delaine Eastin, then the state superintendent of schools, who preferred what many called "new math" that emphasized fuzzy concepts over precise calculation. Click here to read more...
June 13 | A new math war — on Monday
By John Fensterwald
Educated Guess - Mercury News
Watch the State Board of Education closely on Monday to how it handles a dilemma over the math test for eighth graders. Its decision will determine whether the state remains true to its commitment that all eighth graders take Algebra I to put them on a path of readiness for college.
What’s forcing the board’s hand is that the federal Department of Education under Secretary Margaret Spellings has finally noticed that the state is out of compliance with No Child Left Behind. The law requires that states adopt content-specific standards in math and test students’ knowledge of them. Click here to read more...
June 6 | Marchers in downtown Los Angeles claim unfair funding of charter campuses
Backers of the schools say the L.A. Unified district must provide space for their classrooms.
By Mitchell Landsberg
Los Angeles Times
They were well-organized, exuberant and very, very loud. Chanting "Support the law, support our charters," several thousand charter school parents, students and staff marched through downtown Los Angeles on Thursday to protest what they said was inequitable funding for their campuses.
"This is the beginning of something really big," Jacqueline Elliot, a co-founder of Partnerships to Uplift Communities, said to the demonstrators, who filled the street and sidewalks for a solid block in front of the Junipero Serra State Building. Elliot's organization runs eight schools in northeast Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. Click here to read more...
Read more about this new group of public charter school families. www.familiesthatcan.org
May 27 | Lagging middle schools targeted
By Connie Llanos
Los Angeles Daily News
Alarmed by slumping student achievement at Los Angeles Unified middle schools, district officials are moving this summer to roll out several programs designed to improve performance amid criticism that middle-schoolers have been overlooked for too long. Click here to read more...
May 22 | Oakland students enthusiastic about tests
By Jill Tucker
The San Francisco Chronicle
...With an API of 795 last fall, the East Oakland charter school had already beaten the odds. The predominantly Hispanic and English-learning students scored well above their peers across California and the country, an accomplishment formally recognized by state and federal officials, including most recently President Bush...
"...You guys have blown the teachers away. You guys have knocked our socks off," Epanchin told the cheering students. "Be ready to show the state of California, your teachers and your families and the whole United States how brilliant you are." Click here to read more...
May 12 | Despite high school algebra focus, more students need remedial college math
By Deb Kollars
The Sacramento Bee
Five years ago, California took a bold step and began requiring algebra of every graduating high school senior. The grumbling ran deep. The work was hard. The underlying equation came through loud and clear:
More math in high school would equal more students prepared for college.
For many, it hasn't added up. Click here to read more...
Click here to send a letter to your Assemblymember to help put more quality math and science teachers in California classrooms.
May 2 | California Senate approves bonus plan to draw experienced teachers to struggling schools
The Los Angeles Times
SACRAMENTO -- -- Legislators on Thursday advanced proposals to help poor-performing schools attract experienced teachers...
The proposal, which will now go to the Assembly, addresses concerns that students at the worst-performing schools are more likely to have science and math teachers who are on emergency credentials or who lack the training, experience and specialization to teach the subjects effectively, according to state Sen. Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles), author of the measure. Click here to read more...
April 21 | Pay incentive can lure teachers to poor schools
The San Jose Mercury News
California faces a shortage of math and science teachers, but it's not evenly spread. In low-performing districts, the proportion of teachers lacking sufficient knowledge of these subjects is far greater, and it presents one more obstacle to preparing students for college.
The state has the legal and moral obligation to erase this inequity. Last week, the Senate Education Committee took a small but monumental step when it passed a bill providing districts with a way to pay higher salaries to math and science teachers in troubled schools. Click here to read more...
Click here to send a letter to your Assemblymember on the bill.
