State of Education: Progress and persistent challenges
O’Connell sums up 7 years as state superintendent of public instruction
Published: January 26, 2010
In his final regularly scheduled State of Education address as California’s superintendent of public instruction, Jack O’Connell balanced seven years of progress in California’s public schools with the recognition that challenges remain, and that a greater investment in education is needed to meet them.
Speaking in Sacramento last week to an audience of state officials, government workers, educators and reporters from around the state, O’Connell credited the progress made “to the collective determination of our students and parents, teachers and paraeducators, school administrators and school board members, the staff at the California Department of Education, and so many more who contribute on a daily basis.”
And he called on those groups to continue to work to close the academic achievement gap that continues to separate groups of students while preparing all students for success in college or careers.
“Our success will rely on creating a new relationship between the state and the local educational community, a relationship that allows educators to focus on the core business of schools: student learning,” O’Connell said.
“The state’s role must further evolve from regulating inputs and monitoring processes to instead, setting and maintaining world-class standards, providing assistance, leveraging best practices, and monitoring results in a way that fosters continuous improvement at all levels,” O’Connell continued, while “the local role will need to be one of leadership and innovation.”
Progress
A former high school history teacher, Santa Barbara County school board member and state legislator, O’Connell will close out his second and final four-year term as California’s schools chief at the end of the year.
“In each of the last seven years since our statewide tests were completely aligned to our high standards, California public school students have made real gains in achievement.” O’Connell said.
“Today, half of our students are proficient in English-language arts. Think about this: Seven years ago only 35 percent of our students met this high bar. In mathematics, 46 percent of California's students are now at the proficient or above level—11 points above where we were seven years ago.”
“California students are also making steady gains in science and history-social science, and we've seen a slight increase in our graduation rate, a decrease in our dropout rate, and, yes, we are incrementally closing some achievement gaps,” O’Connell continued.
The number of career technical education courses meeting University of California “a-g” entrance requirements has grown from 289 to 7,650 over the past seven years. The California High School Exit Exam—which O’Connell championed in the state Legislature—has withstood legal challenges, and the California Department of Education that he heads continues to implement recommendations of the P-16 Council that O’Connell appointed.
“We have made major improvements in the quality of school nutrition and expanded access to healthy meals. We have built and modernized hundreds of schools throughout the state,” O’Connell said.
‘Budget disaster’
“All of this amazing work has been accomplished under the dark cloud of a state budget disaster that has left our schools reeling. In just the last two budget years, $18 billion was cut from our schools. [Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s] current budget proposal would cut K-12 public education by another $2.4 billion,” O’Connell pointed out, affecting class-size reduction, school transportation and summer school programs “and critical music, art, career technical education opportunities, and sports programs.”
O’Connell reiterated his longstanding support for lowering the voter approval threshold for local parcel taxes for education from two-thirds to 55 percent, which would match the requirement for property tax votes.
He also dwelled on the state’s recent application for the U.S. Department of Education’s Race to the Top competitive grant program, which will commit participating states and local educational agencies to reforms including using student performance in teacher and principal evaluations and even closing persistently underachieving schools.
“We need to use our creativity, leveraged by the Race to the Top award, to build a new way of running California's educational enterprise. The new system must be less hierarchical and more collaborative, student-centered rather than adult-centric, and data-driven with mutual accountability at all levels, O’Connell said.
“California and the nation are truly in a race: a race against time to prepare our students for success in the global economy of the 21st century.”
Easy link:
Review O’Connell’s State of Education address and related information, such as a status report on P-16 Council recommendations:
http://www.cde.ca.gov/eo/in/se/yr10soe.asp