Bill to Propose Major School Overhaul

Bipartisan legislative support was announced Monday for major school overhaul legislation aimed at reducing class size and imposing tougher credentialing requirements on teachers.

The proposal, to be contained in bills by Sen. Gary K. Hart (D-Santa Barbara) and Sen. Marian Bergeson (R-Newport Beach), is an outgrowth of a study last November by the California Commission on the Teaching Profession. Key elements would include:

- Appropriating an addition $60 million annually to bring class sizes down from about 30 to 20 students per teacher.

- Making it tougher for teachers to achieve tenure by increasing the probationary period from two to three years and requiring a teacher-applicant to prove his or her competency, and then monitor teachers by peer review and a rigorous evaluation system.

- Abolishing the state Commission on Teacher Credentialing and replacing it with what was described as “a new, tougher” California teacher standards board that would develop standards and conduct licensing examinations.

Hart, chairman of the Senate Education Committee who carried a landmark school reform program three years ago, and Bergeson, the vice chairwoman, said the bills likely will face opposition. But Hart said linking teacher tenure and credentialing reforms to the proposal for increased money to reduce class size would have broad appeal, especially to Gov. George Deukmejian.

The governor has vetoed Hart bills aimed at reducing classroom size each of the last two years, largely on the basis of cost. Hart said he thought the tenure provisions would appeal to Deukmejian and called the package of bills “very realistic. It’s workable.”

But the proposals on tenure and teacher credentialing drew immediate criticism from teacher union officials. Ed Foglia, a member of the executive committee of the 1.7-million-member National Education Assn. and immediate past president of the California Teachers Assn., predicted that those provisions “are not going to be supported by teachers.”

He said that since the legislation contains no money, the proposals would be seen as “merit pay without pay.”

William S. Lambert, an official with the United Teachers of Los Angeles, criticized the package for concentrating on teachers. “We don’t see anything in either package about cleaning up school administrators who aren’t doing a good job,” he said.

Hart said he is suggesting an eight-year phase-in period for his proposal to reduce class sizes at a cost of $60 million a year or a total of $480 million.

Hart said that the national average is 18 pupils per teacher, but in California classes in math, English, science and social studies “typically have more than 30 students per teacher.”