LOS ANGELES : Coalition Unveils Plan for High School Reforms

The Los Angeles Educational Alliance for Restructuring Now--a coalition of business, civic and education leaders campaigning to reform Los Angeles public schools--has unveiled a package of recommendations aimed at better preparing high school students for jobs after graduation.

LEARN’s report urges the school system to scrap its practice of grouping students by ability and assigning them to either vocational, general or college-bound courses of study.

Instead, the report says, students should be encouraged to focus on career options in junior high school and be required to choose a career objective at the beginning of high school. Vocational courses should be upgraded and students given opportunities to work in their chosen fields before graduation. Schools should be restructured to allow more flexibility in scheduling and the use of business and industry employees as classroom teachers, the report recommends.