BACK TO SCHOOL DAYS

Forget the fact that for 228,569 students attending 208 year-round schools in Los Angeles County, it’s more like the un-back-to-school season. It’s that time of year again and, as of this week, most of the 1.6 million children attending public schools in Los Angeles County were once again filing into classrooms. The end of summer vacation brings with it an opportunity to ruminate on some facts and observations about our schools:

* Number of year-round schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District in 1974: 2.

* Number of schools the LAUSD hopes to operate year-round by July, 1991: 611.

* There are 1,565 schools outside LAUSD on the traditional calendar year.

* Eighty-two school districts operate countywide, with a total of 1,603 schools.

* Only 14% of public school students countywide have year-round schedules.

* Of the 208 year-round schools in the county, the LAUSD operates 170.

* Estimated number of public school teachers in Los Angeles County: 300,000.

* Average student-to-classroom ratio in 1979: 27.2.

* Average student-to-classroom ratio in 1989: 29.1.

Most Likely Current Events Topic:

The crisis in the Persian Gulf.

“I want to discuss with the kids if they think . . . Saddam Hussein is a parallel with Hitler during World War II. And I want to know if they think the Constitution should be rewritten with regards to the war powers of the President.”

--Randy Denis, world history teacher, Santa Monica High School

What’s Out:

Many school districts warn against--and some ban--wearing the following items of clothing because they could be mistaken for gang attire: Hats, hair nets, curlers, bandannas, overalls with straps hanging down, colored shoestrings, earrings, all-black clothing, gray pants and white shirts, armbands,

black-web belts, fabric belts with cut-out initials, British Knight tennis shoes, see-through football jerseys, and clothing with L.A. Raiders emblems.

What’s On Its Way Out:

Florescent colors. Dick Tracy, Simpson’s and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle T-shirts.

What’s In:

For younger pupils, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle lunch boxes and Little Mermaid backpacks. Stirrup pants in bright floral and geometric patterns for little girls. For teen-age boys, elastic waist beach pants. For teen-age girls, long shirts with draw-string waists, stretch pants and ankle-high boots.

Just Say No:

* DARE, the Los Angeles Police Department’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, sends officers into approximately 503 of the LAUSD’s 611 schools to teach children to turn away drug pushers.

* SANE, the Sheriff Department’s Substance Abuse Narcotics Education program, sends officers into 384 elementary schools countywide to help kids say no to drugs.

Source: Los Angeles County Office of Education