SBE ignores calls to reconsider its Algebra 1 mandate
Published: October 9, 2008
Despite requests from math teachers, parents, CSBA and the Association of California School Administrators, the State Board of Education took no action at its Sept. 11 meeting to rescind its mandate that all California eighth-graders take Algebra 1.
Representing CSBA, Assistant General Counsel Judy Cias emphasized that both CSBA and ACSA support high standards and rigor for all students.
“Our concern is about the process the board took to reach this decision and whether the board has the legal authority to make the decision,” Cias told the panel. CSBA and ACSA have filed a lawsuit challenging the SBE’s July 9 decision.
Cias pointed to arguments against the mandate by state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Oakland; Sen. Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento; Sen. Tom Torlakson, D-Antioch; and Assembly Member Gene Mullin, D-South San Francisco. All of the legislators have questioned the SBE decision and the fact that it was made without adequate public notice or opportunity to respond, and without any input from the Legislature.
“We believe that the July 9 action was unlawful under the Open Meeting Act,” Cias told the board. “Because the underlying action was illegal, we believe any agreement or waiver between the state and the U.S. Department of Education based on the July 9 action is also illegal. We would urge [the SBE] not to move forward with any negotiations until the underlying legal issues are resolved.”
Cias was referring to ongoing negotiations between the SBE and federal officials on a time frame for phasing in the mandate and the possibility of a waiver to allow scores from students who score proficient or above on the Algebra 1 end-of-course exam during seventh grade to be credited and included to meet federal standards related to the No Child Left Behind Act.
Cias reiterated the associations’ concern that the board take no further measures without full transparency into its actions on the contentious matter.
“We would urge that any agreement or waiver and implementation plan come back to the full board for approval and not occur in isolation and without an opportunity for a public hearing,” Cias said.
Other objections to mandate
While the legal challenge to the SBE mandate centers on procedural issues, it’s expected that a public hearing would elicit broader concerns about requiring Algebra 1 for eighth-graders, such as the supply of qualified teachers and materials that will be needed.
“The SBE didn’t provide the public with an opportunity to express how such a change in policy will have significant ramifications for all aspects of the educational system,” CSBA Executive Director Scott P. Plotkin said when the CSBA-ACSA lawsuit against the mandate was announced in August. “These concerns include the teacher credentialing process, allocation of instructional time, professional development, instructional materials and areas in which our existing K-7 math standards must be strengthened.”
State Superintendent Jack O’Connell detailed those issues—and their cost—when he responded to the SBE action with his Algebra 1 Success Initiative. O’Connell estimates that more than $3 billion will be needed for student support, professional development and instructional materials, and recruitment and retention of qualified math teachers, starting in earlier grades, to adequately prepare all students for Algebra 1 in eighth grade.
“Jack O’Connell has always maintained that additional resources are required to do this,” Gavin Payne, chief deputy superintendent of Public Instruction at the California Department of Education, told the SBE at last month’s meeting. “We’re going to have a very steep hill to climb here.”