As California Goes-So Goes the Nation?
California is often looked to as the trend setter for the nation. If so, as far as education is concerned, the latest figures tell us that we have a lot to be concerned about.
The San Francisco Chronicle recently reported that the high school graduation rate in that state is the "lowest in 10 years " as over a third of the state's seniors failed to earn a diploma. In 2005, the graduation rate was 71%; in 2006, 67%.
For the past decade, the state has put into place a range of expensive changes in the classroom- including class-size reduction, higher standards, additional teacher training and more. So what is behind the dismaying new statistics?
The decline appears to be related to the state's setting an "exit exam"-- a basic skills test--as a requirement for graduation. This has led to a predictable debate. Critics of the exam use the findings to urge that the exit exam be delayed until the state can ensure that all students have had the chance to learn what's on the test. Supporters of the exam, on the other hand, take the same findings to argue that the decline simply illustrates the need for the exit exam.
Ironically, neither side is addressing the core problem. Like most school measures, the exit exam is based largely on literacy skills. But as the US government figures have repeatedly told us over the past several decades, those skills are in a precarious state. Consistently, approximately forty percent of students across the nation have serious reading problems. As long as California, and the rest of the nation, continue to use traditional methods for teaching reading, the failure rate will persist--along with the appalling drop out rate.
