Schools to hold to standards
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Christine Carrillo
The state Board of Education has decided to maintain the rigorous
standards currently laid out by the state’s Academic Performance
Index program, even though it may mean losing federal funding when
schools fail to meet those standards as demanded by President Bush’s
No Child Left Behind program.
The No Child Left Behind program requires that all students,
including those in special education programs and those students
still learning English, meet proficiency standards in English and
math, standards that are set by each state.
Despite projections that nearly all schools will fail to meet
federal expectations by the 2014 deadline, state education officials
decided to stick to the rigorous proficiency standards put in place
last year before the federal law was in effect.
Huntington Beach school officials applaud the state board’s
gumption, yet they harbor concerns about the repercussions.
“We want to uphold the standards that we have here and we’re
pretty proud of them,” said Karen Colby, assistant supt. of
curriculum and instruction with the Ocean View School District.
“I think this No Child Left Behind program kicks it up to a higher
level,” she said. “I’m just hopeful that there will be an opportunity
for review by the [state board] over time.”
California has defined “proficiency” in English and language arts
and math as being determined by state tests and a student’s ability
to attend a four-year university by high school graduation.
“California has had really high standards academically and I
really appreciate that,” said Duane Cox, principal at Ethel Dwyer
Middle School in Huntington Beach. “I think we’ve developed really
strong programs and it’s really raised the bar and if we lower our
standards, we lower them for everyone.”
While lowering state standards may qualify more schools for
federal funding, providing they meet federal expectations as a
result, school officials worry that it may send the wrong message.
“I think there’s been a tremendous push to move students toward a
greater proficiency and a lot of that is because of the high
standards California has,” Cox said.
As more and more teachers become accustomed to teaching the state
standards by using the materials that support it, school officials
are hopeful that more and more students will increase their level of
proficiency and eventually meet expectations.
“I think we have to shoot for it, we can’t not,” Colby said. “I
think it needs to be reviewed ... and I hope that the Department of
Education is willing to look at it again and make modifications if
needed.”
* CHRISTINE CARRILLO is a news assistant with Times Community
News. She can be reached at (714) 965-7177 or by e-mail at
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