Vantage Point: 'We’re not going to take this anymore!' 

I have had the privilege of seeing first-hand some of the outstanding programs many of you have in place to address the academic needs of the children in your schools. We are all becoming more accustomed to using data to drive the instructional approaches we lay out for the children we serve. Members of our communities have done their homework and expressed thoughtful concerns about the programs they believe we should pursue.

I often hear from board members and superintendents who are making these tough decisions. They base their actions on research and data–along with their ability to fund their selections. As the state moves ever so slowly to provide us with a comprehensive data system, our ability to address our local program needs (and to have much of this information available to our parents and communities) will grow.

Now contrast that careful, reasoned approach with the latest decision by the governor and his State Board of Education to mandate that all eighth-graders take Algebra 1, starting in three years.

The governor announced his position and gave that direction to the State Board less than 24 hours before its publicly noticed meeting. The board rammed the mandate through on a lopsided, 8-1 vote. (We thank board member James Aschwanden for voting no.)

The board had been considering ways to align an eighth-grade mathematics test for more than three months, but nothing on last month’s agenda item, “Standardized Testing and Reporting Program (STAR): Revisit General Mathematics Blueprint,” spoke to a recommendation to mandate Algebra 1 for all eighth-graders. Learning of the governor’s position, CSBA and others from the education community gave strong testimony in objection to the proposal.

CSBA Assistant Executive Director Holly Jacobson did a marvelous job of stating our objections to the Algebra 1 mandate. I would like to share some of the questions she raised that should have been addressed before making a decision:

•  How are eighth-grade students who take the Algebra I assessment doing compared to their high school counterparts? How do those data break down by race or ethnicity, socioeconomic status, urban, suburban and rural school districts, and other variables?
• Is there a relationship between “frontloading” math in this way and the increase in remedial coursework seen at the college and university level? Will students forget what they learned if there are gaps in math at the 11th or 12th year of schooling?
• Will students who take Algebra I in eighth grade receive A-G approval for that course? Do any middle schools currently receive A-G approval?
• How many eighth-grade students are in a self-contained classroom with a teacher holding a multiple-subject credential? Would those students be better served in a comprehensive high school with a single-subject credential holder?
• What are other states and nations doing with regard to math coursework?
• What does research say that could inform this policy decision with regard to developmental issues around the adolescent brain and the range of readiness for students in middle school?
• What do teachers think?

Last—but hardly least—there’s this question: How many more unfunded mandates can an education system that is underfunded by 30 percent (as calculated in “Getting Down to Facts” studies commissioned by the governor and Legislature) take? Put another way, when is enough enough?

With this decision, we are getting close to the point where, following the lead of Howard Beale in the movie “Network,” we go to our windows, and yell out for the world to hear, “We’re mad as hell, and we’re not going to take this anymore!”