Educators Clash Over Program to Challenge Students

Everyone in the Santa Paula Union High School District agrees that they want to boost their students’ academic performance. But they can’t agree on a timetable or a method.

In the mainly blue-collar town, typically 5% to 10% of the students at Santa Paula High School--the district’s sole campus--enroll in a four-year college. The school’s most recent reading and math test scores came in far below the national average.

Principal Tony Gaitan and district Supt. William Brand tried to change all that for their 1,314 students. Earlier this week, their plan was unveiled during a faculty meeting: drop all standard courses and figure out how to revamp them into college-prep courses, which are more rigorous.

“If you give students a chance to achieve at a higher level, they’ll meet it,” Brand said. “What we’re trying to do is open up the curriculum for all the students.”

The idea behind the plan--to meet the demands of the 21st century--was to provide all students with access to tougher courses so that they would be prepared to attend college or obtain good occupations.

The district Thursday sent out memos to teachers requesting that they figure out how to make this plan work by mid-March so that the new courses would be ready for fall.

A number of teachers fully support the idea, but they say they aren’t being given enough time. The decision, some say, has left them bewildered and alienated.

“It’s taken everybody by surprise,” math teacher Gil Wright said. “The teachers that I’ve talked to are standing there with their mouths open wondering what do we do now.”

The Santa Paula American Federation of Teachers, which represents all 57 teachers in the district, is considering filing a grievance against the district.

“In our contract, we have provisions to cooperatively work together,” union President Steve Lopez said. “At this point, we feel this stuff is being shoved at the teachers. . . . You’re asking somebody to build something, but what’s wrong with [the existing system]?”

Others said the plan needs a lot more study.

“All the teachers agree that the rhetoric is great,” Wright said. “Yes, we want to push those kids as high as we possibly can push them, but to dump them into the deep end of the pool and tell them to swim or drown is not the way to push them to their best efforts.”

A few also wondered what to do if a student enters high school with a fourth-grade reading level. Will they be put in a college curriculum course? Will they be expected to do five grades of catching up in one year?

Courses to allow students to catch up will be provided, students behind on their reading or math levels will be encouraged to attend summer school, and staff members will be given the resources to implement the plan, Brand said.

He said one or two months is enough time.

“Why wait another year and allow another group to go without high expectations. We have to make that transition now. The teachers are the geniuses; they’re the ones that are going to make it work,” he said.

On paper, students in standard-level classes are allowed to progress to college-prep courses. But that rarely happens because students often can’t catch up enough to get into the more rigorous classes, Brand said.

Results of the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills, a nationwide test that measures math and reading skills, showed that students in the high school district scored far below the national average. Typically, they score in the 20th and 30th percentiles, with 50 being the national average.

District officials point out that other school districts, such as Conejo Valley Unified, adopted a similar plan. Most of the standard classes have been phased out, but over a period of eight years.

The Conejo Valley motto was also to set high expectations, said Richard Simpson, that district’s assistant superintendent of instructional services.

“I think what we found was that a very high percentage of students in standard classes had the ability to compete at the college-prep level, but by being in the standard class, it meant one of two things--they didn’t view themselves as being able to do it or didn’t want to do it, and that can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

Having most students take college-prep courses would focus attention on letting all students achieve their maximum ability, rather than only those bound for college, Simpson said.

The Santa Paula district plans to follow suit, but at a quicker pace.

“What is our job in education?” Brand asked. “How can we not give these kids access to a rigorous curriculum? That’s what we’re here for. It’s essential we don’t give up on them because our test scores aren’t high. We want to say, ‘If you stay with us, we will create opportunities for you to get better.’ ”