Race to the Status Quo Schools & Kids, posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 11, 2009 at 9:27 pm Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
"The Assembly Committee on Education pushed forward a bill Wednesday favored by unions and effectively shut down a bill supported by some education advocates and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The bills have different approaches to meeting these [Race to the Top] requirements. The Romero bill included provisions to give parents a stronger voice in how schools are run, while Brownley's bill would establish more oversight for charter schools, among other differences.
State politicians need to agree on a bill soon if California is to be eligible for the Race to the Top funds. The deadline to pass legislation and submit applications for the one-time money is Jan. 19.
"Today the Assembly and its leaders let down California's children, schools and parents," Schwarzenegger said in the statement. "President Obama issued a challenge: This is the Race to the Top, not race to the status quo."
"On a 6-5-6 vote they shot down SB X5 1 (Romero), which was a bipartisan effort supported by scores of education advocates, school districts, educators and business leaders. Conversely, they approved AB X5 8 (Brownley), which is little more than a union backed attack on California charter schools. Romero's SB X5 1 was largely about bringing greater accountability and flexibility to education in California."
"As expected, the Assembly passed its version of Race to the Top legislation Thursday, largely along partisan lines, 47-25. Even before the vote, Gov. Schwarzenegger vowed to veto the bill, saying, “It’s not a race to mediocrity, it’s a race to the top. We want to make sure we get a good bill out there.”
So what would it take to get a bill that Democrats and Schwarzenegger could live with? Probably not all that much: some word changes to Assemblywoman Julia Brownley’s ABX5-8 blended with some pieces of Sen. Gloria Romero’s SBX5-1. Specifically..."
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 11, 2009 at 9:53 pm Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
"“Some states have treated the stimulus money as a one-shot deal to prop up the status quo, rather than to leverage and seed far-reaching improvements in student learning,” he said.
Duncan touted the federal program yesterday, and he encouraged states to rethink how they fund and legislate schools and education policy.
“Many of these limitations on flexibility stem in part from antiquated state laws,” he said. “I am calling on state lawmakers to rethink and rewrite the hundreds of pages of state code that limit the ability of districts to succeed in promoting student learning, especially in our lowest-performing schools.”
Duncan stressed that the federal government is offering a rare chance to overhaul the nation’s schools, at a time “when crisis and urgency meet opportunity.”"
Posted by a reader, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 11, 2009 at 10:33 pm
In high quality suburban school districts like Pleasanton, many parents and teachers are fairly happy with the status quo and don't see any need for radical change.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 11, 2009 at 10:45 pm Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
Then you get passed by, my dear reader.
No one should be happy about the status quo of education in California if you seriously value education.
Posted by a reader, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 12, 2009 at 10:53 am
To Stacey,
The status quo of education in Pleasanton, San Ramon, Palo Alto, or Orinda is not the status quo for education in California. These are good school districts. Please be sure to distinguish between bad districts and good districts. Parents, seek them out. Pleasanton has seen some cuts in programs recently caused by the global financial crisis. A parcel tax can help to restore some of those programs.
Posted by Lynn, a resident of San Ramon, on Dec 12, 2009 at 11:08 am
When families come from out of state they often choose Pleasanton because we have better schools by California standards. It is upsetting to hear their concerns about how low our standard is compared to other states once they have experienced our schools.
Why would anyone accept status quo when there is an opportunity to push for improvement?
Posted by Lynn, a member of the Harvest Park Middle School community, on Dec 12, 2009 at 11:10 am
When families come from out of state they often choose Pleasanton because we have better schools by California standards. It is upsetting to hear their concerns about how low our standard is compared to other states once they have experienced our schools.
Why would anyone accept status quo when there is an opportunity to push for improvement?
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 12, 2009 at 11:12 am Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
You're absolutely wrong, of course, but either can't or refuse to see it. Pleasanton, San Ramon, Palo Alto, and Orinda all operate under the same state system and rules as all the other LEAs do. They are affected by the same status quo. If the State system was better, there would be no parcel taxes to make up for the system's deficiencies. What the State really needs to do is give more local control back to school districts and reform the way funds are distributed. The revenue limit game is wholly arbitrary, based on a number frozen from the 70s. A lot has changed since the 70s.
The position you're taking in this argument makes you look really bad so I warn you away from it. Do you honestly want to have a position that says that the rest of California's children can all go someplace in a hand basket because you happen to live in a community that can afford to make up for state deficiencies? That is not the way to invest in education as a society. California will continue to do poorly in education with attitudes like that. Companies will still push for H1-B visas to get the talent they can't find here. But that appears to be ok as long as YOUR child is ok.
Moreover, if you think sticking with status quo is so great, don't be surprised when you get passed by someone who was not settled with status quo.
Posted by Cholo, a resident of Livermore, on Dec 12, 2009 at 1:47 pm
In my opinion, maintaining the status quo is a convenient excuse for parents not taking responsibility for their children's education.
State and Federal funding for schools is dwindling. It's not a priority unless your voice is heard. Parents owe it to their children and to the country to insure the next generation of educated and capable Americans.
Don't let anybody tell you that you have NO VOICE!
Posted by a reader, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 12, 2009 at 2:34 pm
To Stacey,
"Moreover, if you think sticking with status quo is so great, don't be surprised when you get passed by someone who was not settled with status quo."
I'm not sure what you're getting at here. Are talking about kids from private schools passing by kids from public schools? Who is going to pass whom? As long as the children are getting the best education they can get, that sounds good to me.
Posted by Really?, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 12, 2009 at 3:26 pm
Yet Stacey is just fine with the status quo in Pleasanton, and actually argues for the cut- no to a parcel tax which has resulted in serious cuts to our classrooms today...not in the future.
We are not progressing anymore, we are not even staying at the status quo, we have now dropped, and will continue to do so with mid year cuts and next year's absence of one time money that currently funds class size reduction.
Posted by a reader, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 12, 2009 at 4:20 pm
Stacey seems to thing that by not passing a parcel tax in Pleasanton, we'll somehow effect a change at the state and national level. I say we should keep things in perspective and solve our local problems first.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 12, 2009 at 7:44 pm Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
Really?,
I'm not fine with the status quo in Pleasanton and I chose to vote no on a tax that would fund the continuance of that status quo. You and I can continue to have different opinions on methods, but that doesn't mean we both don't have the same ultimate goal of improving education.
Reader,
Stop acting so dense. Lynn told you what it means.
Posted by a reader, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 12, 2009 at 10:01 pm
To Stacey,
I don't think anyone is opposed to improving education in Pleasanton. I'm just pointing out that education in Pleasanton is already good. It is not a broken system in need of radical change.
My experience coming from another state is that schools in places like San Ramon or Pleasanton are refreshingly good compared to what I've seen in two other states.
Posted by PleasantonParent, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 13, 2009 at 6:39 am
"My experience coming from another state is that schools in places like San Ramon or Pleasanton are refreshingly good compared to what I've seen in two other states."
The above quote from "Reader" just highlights the reality of Pleasanton and East Bay Area schools...they are "good", but not the BEST when compared to the rest of the nation. Granted they are "better" than other CA districts or other state's schools, the schools in PUSD should NEVER be satisfied with their status quo. Check out the latest from US New and World Reports regarding the nation's top high schools. Not many on the list are CA schools.Web Link Didn't notice PUSD in the top ten...Continued improvement is inevitable, and even the BEST schools continue to strive for better.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 13, 2009 at 9:35 am Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
See, reader? You _do_ believe that it isn't enough to be settled with status quo after all. Whether change is radical or continued improvement is irrelevant. The point is that there is movement, not the kicking of the ball down the field far in the future for someone else to take care of.
Recently LAUSD took over a failing high school. The superintendent is making all employees at this particular school, from the principal down to the custodians, reapply for their jobs. Sounds like radical change. But if you read further, this school has been failing for 14 years! Now that's a long time of settling for status quo.
Posted by Cholo, a resident of Livermore, on Dec 13, 2009 at 11:10 am
Incidentally, if parents are not involved in continued improvement, you and your children will fall behind. Even in a private school, if there is no parent involvement with their child's education, the parent and the children will fall behind. Public or private, what makes the difference is the parents working with the schools. No ifs ands or buts!
Posted by a reader, a resident of the Another Pleasanton neighborhood neighborhood, on Dec 13, 2009 at 12:30 pm
"continued improvement is irrelevant."
It is very relevant. Like the Hippocratic oath for doctors says, we want first do no harm. Radical change could do more harm than good. We are dealing with a good school district here in Pleasanton to start with. We could easily make things much worse. I think we should go slowly with any change.
"Recently LAUSD took over a failing high school."
Obviously LAUSD is a miserable school district where practically anything would be an improvement. Pleasanton isn't like that at all. The schools here are uniformly good. Even if there is no change moving forward, we starting from the position of good schools. Going slowly and sticking with what works seems to me the prudent course of action for Pleasanton.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 13, 2009 at 1:00 pm Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
Reader,
You have a nasty habit of clipping what someone else wrote in order to change the meaning. There's no point responding in a serious manner to you.
Posted by Anonymous, a resident of the Canyon Oaks neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 1:32 am
Stacey,
We are tired of your condescending attitude. Why can't you engage in a thoughtful discussion without being patronizing and rude? Furthermore, if you can't take it then don't dish it out either.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 8:21 am Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
Those who want meaningful and thoughtful discussion have been quite successful in engaging me in such discussion. Prove yourself capable and worthy of such discussion and I oblige.
Posted by Anonymous, a resident of the Canyon Oaks neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 8:56 am
Stacey: Many of your posts have been patronizing and rude. You've been far less than diplomatic in many of your responses. Go find them. We challenge you to look for ways to engage in thoughtful discussion without being excessively critical. Use this as an exercise and go find them. It would be a good skill to learn.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 10:31 am Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
What did you ever write to deserve consideration of a thoughtful response?
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 10:58 am Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
Nothing wrong with that. Those meetings serve a purpose, although those might not be affordable in the future.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 11:16 am Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
Unless they say they're a teacher and use a consistent name (perhaps even register), how can you really tell? I think teachers get breaks too.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 11:18 am Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
Yea, the idea of a teacher coming to this website to write during working hours is something we can laugh at, but doesn't really contribute anything to the larger discussions that should be happening.
Posted by Stacey, a resident of the Amberwood/Wood Meadows neighborhood, on Dec 14, 2009 at 6:28 pm Stacey is a member (registered user) of Pleasanton Weekly
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