Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 1, 1995 TAG: 9509290005
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: G-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER/STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
TO Montgomery County kindergarten teacher Billie J. Mullins, the biggest need of Virginia's public schools is money.
She says more money would raise teachers' salaries, buy more computers, hire more teachers and create smaller classes so students could get more individual instruction.
Many voters apparently agree with her - and are willing to spend more on education.
In a recent Virginia Commonwealth University survey, voters ranked education first in their spending priorities, ahead of prisons, one of Gov. George Allen's pet projects, and transportation.
But money alone won't improve schools, Allen says, although increased funding will help.
Since taking office, the Republican governor has proposed nearly $100 million in budget cuts for public and higher education, prompting Democrats and some educators to argue that he is undermining the state's schools and colleges. They have tried to portray him as anti-education.
"A lot of teachers are angered at what the governor has tried to do," said Gary Stultz, a third-grade teacher in Roanoke.
Still, Allen says he wants to make education the state's No.1 investment. Under his budget this year, he says, state spending increased by nearly $50 per pupil.
State per-pupil funding for education has risen by 65 percent in the past decade, a growth rate that has exceeded inflation.
Yet, Scholastic Assessment Test scores for Virginia's high school seniors have dropped in the past 10 years. Standardized test scores have remained relatively flat. The failure rate on the state's Literacy Passport Test for sixth-graders has remained at nearly 33 percent since the test was instituted six years ago.
And nearly one of every four Virginia high school graduates enrolling in state four-year and community colleges needs remedial work in math, English or reading.
Allen says these are disturbing trends that can be reversed only with changes in educational policy and programs.
"We must couple our increased spending on education with real academic reform," he said at the recent governor's conference on education. "It does not make sense to continue to throw more money at failed policies."
The Allen agenda
Allen has framed his education agenda as an attempt to return to basics with higher academic standards, give localities more flexibility and provide parents more control over their children's education.
His proposals have put him at odds with Democrats in the General Assembly, the Virginia Education Association and much of the state's education establishment.
His education proposals have included:
Charter schools. These would be experimental schools that would be financed with public funds but operated by independent groups. They would provide choice in public schools, and have been approved by several states, but Democrats in the General Assembly and some educators fear charter schools would siphon off funds and top students from public schools and lead to resegregation of schools. A legislative committee is studying the concept and will make a recommendation next year.
Higher academic standards and accountability. At Allen's urging, the Board of Education has approved new standards of learning for math, science, English and social studies. The standards are benchmarks of the skills and knowledge that students must master at each grade level. The drafting of the standards was controversial and some educators charged that Allen allies tried to slant them to a conservative ideology.
Sex-education program. Allen tried to end the state-mandated sex-education program and to make it a local option. He also wanted to require written parental permission before children could participate - a change from the current "opt-out" approach, in which parents have to request in writing that their children not be placed in the classes. Democrats killed the proposals.
Civil immunity for teachers. Allen wanted the General Assembly to give teachers immunity from lawsuits for actions they take to discipline students. Democrats killed the proposal, saying it was not needed because the courts have already given teachers immunity.
Criminal background checks for new school employees. Allen wanted to require school systems to run background checks on all new employees; the legislature rejected the proposal. It is now left up to individual school districts to decide if they want to make checks.
Lottery profits to localities. Allen wants to return lottery profits to localities to be used for schools, law enforcement or tax relief. Democrats killed the proposal, saying the lottery money is already earmarked for education.
Even though most of Allen's proposals have been killed or delayed by Democratic lawmakers, he says he will return to the legislature next year and try again to get them approved. He hopes to gain GOP allies for his program in the November election.
Democrats target disparity
While Allen has focused on reform in academic standards and education policy, the Democrats have concentrated on money. They restored most of his proposed $52 million in budget cuts for public schools this year and provided more than $100 million in disparity funds for poor school divisions next year.
Beverly Sgro, Allen's secretary of education, says the Democrats apparently believe that all problems in education can be solved with money.
The Democrats think the biggest problem in education in Virginia is the funding disparity between poor and affluent school districts.
With the support of some GOP legislators, the Democrat passed the Omnibus Education Act this year that will provide nearly $150 million in disparity and technology funds for schools in the next biennium.
Funds will be provided to poor school systems to create smaller classes in early elementary grades in schools with high concentrations of children from low-income families.
Allen vetoed the disparity legislation last year because, he says, it contained an unfunded mandate, but he signed it this year after revisions were made to eliminate his objections.
The Democrats have not developed a program of academic reform to counter Allen's because they do not believe that the state education system is broken.
House Majority Leader Richard Cranwell, D-Vinton, said the state's test scores have "waxed and waned" over the years, but he is confident that students are getting a better education than five to 10 years ago. He rejects the notion that state education policies have been a failure.
What's at stake in the education debate is the quality of schools in Virginia, says Richard Salmon, professor of education at Virginia Tech.
"It's going to take a lot more money, as well as higher standards, to improve schools," said Salmon, a national expert on disparity in school funding.
The Democrats have made a start with the disparity package, but it falls far short of what is needed, Salmon says.
The state pays only 35 percent of the cost of Virginia schools, but most states foot nearly 50 percent of the cost for their schools.
Salmon says it will cost $800 million to $1 billion to eliminate disparity in Virginia - and that will require a reordering of the state's spending priorities.
Many elementary teachers believe disparity funds will help improve schools in poor localities. Class size is critical in elementary schools, says Linda Wyatt, a second-grade teacher in Roanoke and a City Council member.
"I had 18 children in my class this year as opposed to 25 or 30 in past years. It makes a world of difference," she said. "You have more time to give individual attention to children."
Stultz, the third-grade teacher in Roanoke, says he has been having about 25 children in his third-grade class, but he will have only 18 this year because of the disparity money.
"I am a firm believer in small classes," he said. "I think this will help more than anything we can do."
Standards debate
The new standards of learning are the cornerstone of Allen's reform effort, and they will affect every school and student if the governor gets his way.
Allen wants to make the standards mandatory for every school system, to test student performance regularly and develop a report card to show how each school is faring.
School systems and teachers would retain the right and responsibility to develop the curriculum to meet the standards.
This year the General Assembly refused to turn the standards into requirements for all school systems; Allen says he will renew his request next year.
James Jones, president of the Board of Education, says the state can require schools to meet the standards even if the legislature refuses to approve Allen's request.
The state has had standards for many years, but they have been advisory and have received little attention.
Allen's push is part of a national movement for higher standards; in recent years, 49 states have either revised or started revising their standards.
In some states, new standards have helped boost test scores and caused schools to upgrade curriculum in core subjects such as math, science and English.
Teachers in Virginia are divided on whether the standards will improve schools and students' academic performance.
David Wheat, a Botetourt County government teacher, says the standards will mean that elementary and middle school students will get more history, government and geography. High school students will also have a broader and more rigorous curriculum, he says.
"The standards represent a significant step in increasing the content requirement for schools," said Wheat, a former White House aide and a member of Allen's Champion Schools Commission. All school systems should be required to meet them, he says.
Wheat and several commission members rewrote portions of the standards that were initially drafted by school divisions. The revisions prompted charges of political interference, which Wheat denies.
Lee Ware, a history and government teacher at Powhatan High School, says the new standards will help restore academics to their rightful place in schools.
"I believe that strong academics are the first obligation of schools," he said. "Whatever value other things have, academics are what we are all about in school."
Ware, who was recently appointed to the Board of Education by Allen, believes the standards will help keep schools focused on priorities.
But other teachers worry that the benchmarks could hurt the quality of instruction, especially if they are mandatory and students are tested on them.
"The obvious danger is that teachers will begin teaching to the test," said David Turk, a government teacher at Salem High School.
"When you get so focused on the test, you forget the bigger goal - how to teach the kids to think and solve problems on their own."
Debbie McClure, a second-grade teacher in Roanoke County, opposes making them mandatory.
"It's comparing apples and oranges when you compare children across the state," she said. "Some school systems have so many resources, but others don't."
Mullins, the kindergarten teacher in Montgomery County, says the standards seem to be a message from the Allen administration to teachers: You are not doing a good job. We have to tell you what to teach.
"I resent that. We are being asked to do more every year," Mullins said. "It will take more money to implement the new standards at the same time they are cutting education."
Lawrence Cross, associate professor of education at Virginia Tech, said the new standards represent "noble goals, and there is something to be said for them."
But, Cross says, standards and tests alone won't improve the quality of schools.
"They are well-intentioned and politically popular," he said, "but you need to provide money to help improve the quality of instruction and help those school systems that are not doing well."
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by CNB