The department found that only 49 percent of students met or exceeded the state standard for English Language Arts. Fewer than 34 percent met or exceeded math standards. These represent noticeable drops from the last full school year before the pandemic. State officials’ excuse — that only a quarter of students took the tests this year — isn’t reassuring.
This is a full-on disaster, especially when one looks at the granular data. In Riverside County, only 39 percent of students met English-language standards and fewer than 21 percent met the math standards. The numbers were 61 percent and 43 percent, respectively, in relatively high-scoring Orange County and 48 percent and 31 percent in Los Angeles County.
In fact, during the 2020-2021 school year, absenteeism soared and graduation rates continued to dip. Consider that only 67 percent of English learners graduated in four years — and only 72.5 percent of Black students did so. These are failing numbers for every category of student. They are shameful in such a well-funded school system.
Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond at least acknowledged the severity of the situation: “The statewide performance data from last year confirm what we heard from school districts and county offices throughout the year. Namely, the challenges that students and educators faced during the pandemic were multi-dimensional and disruptive to learning and mental health.”
Nevertheless, Thurmond, a close ally of the teachers’ unions, trotted out the same old solutions: spending more public money on the school systems, even though more than 42 percent of the state budget goes toward K-14 education. Frankly, the needs of the state’s students continue to play second fiddle to the demands of the public-school work force. That has become obvious during the pandemic.
Teachers’ unions have resisted a rapid return to the classroom. They have made bold financial demands to school districts before sending teachers back to the classroom. While private schools and charters have done yeoman’s work minimizing learning disruptions, public schools often have dragged their feet and struggled to provide meaningful distance learning.
That has been the source of growing parental frustration, which has boiled over at contentious school-board meetings across the country. Yet despite all the evidence pointing to the ill effects on student health and performance, the public-school establishment continues along its same old path by resisting in-person teaching rather than trying their best to assure that students’ needs are met.
For instance, Oakland Unified School District teachers last week shut down 12 schools as part of a sickout demanding better COVID protections. The tail is wagging the dog — the demands of the people who work for these districts seems to take priority over the students they are supposed to serve.
California’s data aligns with reports from other states. The answer is more school choice, so parents can choose the best options to keep their kids on track. As always, competition leads to innovation — and is likely to sort out the most effective pandemic-related education strategies.
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