Fixing California's Education Woes

It seems that everyday the nightly news informs us of the ongoing financial crisis being suffered by school districts statewide. Teachers and support staffs are being laid off, programs are being cut, and schools are being closed, all in an effort to bridge a multi-billion dollar budget shortfall. Read an article today, describing cuts in our local district, two schools, about 90 teachers, music programs, extracurricular activities, and vocational training are on the block this time around. Additionally, they are reducing funding to athletics, asking teachers to take pay cuts, and proposing to cut five days from the school year. Meanwhile, about a half-hour, or so, up the road, the State Legislature is passing a profanity-free week, finding other ways of spending more money, and creating more debt. Somehow, it seems oxymoronic to me.

The problem with school districts is the idea of preparing all students for college. A few years ago, while I was working through Chapman University to obtain a teaching credential, I came across an interesting statistic: only twelve percent of Americans have a Bachelor's Degree (or higher), and that number has remained constant for over 100 years. My local district, as mentioned in a previous blog, prides itself on having 84% of their students going straight on to college. This percentage is based on the number of students "enrolled" in college, and doesn't track anything beyond the end of the enrollment period (like who actually shows up on the first day of classes). The twelve percent figure was based on a study of actual degrees earned over a 100 year period (1895 - 1995), and I'm sure that number has increased over the intervening fifteen years, but probably not to any signigicant degree. I'm inclined to believe that it may have gone up to as much as 20%, but most of those have been conferred upon adults who return to school to increase their marketablility. For the pupose of my argument, I'm going to go with the 20% figure. If only 20% of Americans ever receive an "advanced degree," then schools are pandering to a minority. What happens to the 80%?

As a Navy-veteran, I have traveled extensively beyond the boudaries of the US. The only continent I haven't actually set foot upon is Antartica, and I really have no desire to visit there, anyway. I've met people around the world, and while I claim no expertise on the subject, it seems to me that Japan has the right attitude about educating it's people. In Japan, at a certain age, students take an exam that directly impacts the way they will be educated. Those who score high enough enter a college-preparatory school, the rest go to vocational schools to learn a trade. As a veteran classroom teacher, I believe this would work in America as well.

We all ready have the testing "in place," it's simply a matter of using the test to identify those who have the potential to succeed in a university, and building a curriculum for vocational training. I propose that California use it's "high-stakes" STAR Testing as a basis for identifying the skills necessary for college-level success, beginning in the Sixth Grade, coinciding with their "graduation" from elementary school. Middle Schools wouldn't change much, and subsequent STAR Tests could be used to track individual improvement, allowing students additional opportunities to get back on the college-prep track. The decision could be made, whether college or Voc-Ed, upon completion of the Eighth Grade, and students would be assigned to a high school depending upon their abilities.

The modern public high school's biggest problem, as far as students go, seems to be motivational. Too many of our young people feel that the world owes them something, as parents continue to indulge their children, and do not make them work for what they receive. A classic example, from my own experiences, was a student in a Summer School class, repeating Ninth Grade English. The student was in class every day, but did no work whatsoever, and consequently, I gave him a failing grade. His mom called me at the school, demanding to know why her son failed, "He was there everyday, doesn't that count for something?" I told her why I gave him his "F," and she got angry... With me!

The modern high school student seems to look at school as something they "just have to get through," and their only motivation, it seems, is to do as little as they can get away with. Few actually study, fewer still actually do homework, and the environment in classrooms is chaotic. Almost every student has an ipod, cell phone, or other apperatus, complete with "ear buds," and spend entire class periods texting friends, listening to music, and ignoring everything else. They seem to believe that no matter how they perform (or fail to perform), that Mommy and Daddy will be able to get them into a university. Indulgent parents are a kid's worst enemy.

A colleague and I were talking about a particular student's "attitude" towards school, and his potential to go on to college (both of which were not good). I had to agree with my colleague, however, in principle, when he summed up this young persons future by saying "Well, we need good janitors, too." I wondered, as he was in the college-prep track, where he would be able to learn and develop those skills. That's when I first started to view the Japanese-model as a solution.

Schools could put Vocational Education students on a work/study program, and involve both the public and private sectors in educating our youth. It would be a limited-classroom program, where the students would still receive training in English, Math, and Social Studies, but would require them to get work-related experience outside of the school (OK, they'd have to get and maintain a job, and the employer would be responsible for giving a Pass/Fail grade). Students unable to find a training program (job) would be given generalized industrial training at the school, with training curriculum developed by the school district in conjumction with local business leaders.

The result would be that the districts would then be fulfilling their "missions," preparing students to become full-contributors to their local communities. That seems to be an idea that has gotten overlooked in the frenzy to put names on college enrollment lists. The 80% of students, who may never go on to earn college degrees, would have the training and experience necessary to succeed in the modern workforce. Hey, Meg Whittman, are you listening?