Lowering The Bar Doesn't Help

The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting on attempts by Democrats to impede the implementation of the California High School Exit Exam.

"We're looking like we're being tough on education, but we're not being smart," said state Sen. Gloria Romero, D-Los Angeles, whose SB517 would allow students at schools named in the landmark Williams legal settlement on school funding inequity to be exempted from its make-or-break outcome.

Why are Democrats blaming the test, instead of asking how these students got to the 12th grade when they can’t read or write at 10th grade level; or do math at an 8th grade level?

"The problem is that we have never held anybody accountable for the fact that the kids can't pass the exit exams," Riordan said. If children in any school are exempted from the consequences of failing the test, he said, "then nobody's going to be mad at the teachers and the others who have failed the children."

That’s right! If we stop graduating young people who can’t read or do basic math, parents are going to start asking who is responsible. They are going to ask why the best paid teachers in the country (Average Salary of $56,283) aren’t preparing our children for the future.

There is a lot of blame to go around. Politicians, teacher’s unions, education bureaucrats, unengaged parents and many others are all partly to blame in the mess. Setting a standard for academic achievement and sticking to it is the first step toward bringing accountability to the education system.

Wherever there is accountability, shortcomings are revealed. And the purpose of exposing them is not to place blame, but to fix them.

"Putting the pressure and the accountability on the kids is the type of thing that will turn the system around," he [Riordan] added.


Craig DeLuz

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