What makes California schools so poor? (Fresno, Sacramento: apartments, daycare, mobile home)

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

And there was a time when CA used to lead the nation in public education....all the way up to the public college level.

It still does, at that level. The UC schools are still the best public universities in the country.

[CA4Now]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

It still does, at that level. The UC schools are still the best public universities in the country.

Public ed from K-12 does not. Check average test scores in the last two decades and compare them even to 1980 scores....never mind the comparison to other states.

We know from your posts that you received a good education and that's great (actually so did I, and my former school district still ranks at the top of the state). However, public education in CA--on average--has declined.

[.highnlite]

However, public education in CA--on average--has declined.

Weelll.... My mother said that, in 1964.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

We know from your posts that you received a good education and that's great (actually so did I, and my former school district still ranks at the top of the state). However, public education in CA--on average--has declined.

I doubt it has. What's declined has been the SES of the student population. When I was a kid, and maybe when you were too, we didnt have a massive numbers of immigrants. Troubled schools were mainly confined to black communities like Compton or Oakland. Most other places were made up predominately of white, middle class, native born kids. Poor students, many of whom were black or Mexican, dropped out at a high rate.

The top 12.5 percent of students who qualify for the UC are probably much higher caliber than when I went there, as evidenced by the higher GPAs and SAT scores needed to get in now. You just have a lot more poor and non-native speaking people now than we did 40 years ago and a lot more bad students staying to graduation.

[Senno]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

I doubt it has. What's declined has been the SES of the student population. When I was a kid, and maybe when you were too, we didnt have a massive immigrant population. Troubled schools were mainly confined to black communities like Compton or Oakland. The top 12.5 percent of students who qualify for the UC are probably much higher caliber than when I went there, as evidenced by the higher GPAs and SAT scores needed to get in now. You just have a lot more poor people now than we did 40 years ago.

Last year my nephew learned his mult tables and division in 2nd grade in CUSD. They didn't teach us mult tables until the beginning of 3rd grade in the 70's and division in the second half of 3rd grade.

Some of the "declining standards" is pure poppycock. The standards are higher in some districts for sure.

I will stack my two little all-americans against anyone's anywhere...

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by Senno

Last year my nephew learned his mult tables and division in 2nd grade in CUSD. They didn't teach us mult tables until the beginning of 3rd grade in the 70's and division in the second half of 3rd grade.

Some of the "declining standards" is pure poppycock. The standards are higher in some districts for sure.

I will stack my two little all-americans against anyone's anywhere...

When you say CUSD are you referring to Capistrano Unified?

[Senno]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

When you say CUSD are you referring to Capistrano Unified?

Clovis Unified.

[.highnlite]

Basing school quality or student achievement on test scores is to base quality and achievement on the lowest forms of knowledge. Any quality school may not show well on test scores, because the children are taught higher level thinking, which cannot be tested on multiple choice tests. Note the following graph, only the lowest two forms of thinking can be tested on standaridized tests. The linked essay should be read by all.

You are a college professor.
I have just retired as a high school teacher.
I have some bad news for you. In case you do not already see what is happening, I want to warn you of what to expect from the students who will be arriving in your classroom, even if you teach in a highly selective institution.
No Child Left Behind went into effect for the 2002–03 academic year, which means that America’s public schools have been operating under the pressures and constrictions imposed by that law for a decade. Since the testing requirements were imposed beginning in third grade, the students arriving in your institution have been subject to the full extent of the law’s requirements. While it is true that the U.S. Department of Education is now issuing waivers on some of the provisions of the law to certain states, those states must agree to other provisions that will have as deleterious an effect on real student learning as did No Child Left Behind—we have already seen that in public schools, most notably in high schools.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by Senno

Clovis Unified.

Ahh, I went to the other CUSD.

[Senno]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

Ahh, I went to the other CUSD.

Well, that's better than attending the other, other Clovis. That's in NM...