Lessons at the LAUSD

Re “Cortines lays down the law,” Editorial, July 10

Congratulations for spelling out in your editorial what the LAUSD has to change. Congratulations to Supt. Ramon C. Cortines for facing up to the teachers who have refused to administer tests that measure students’ progress. Now it’s time for the board to lead in modifying the district’s pensions, medical plans and restrictive work rules. This can only be done by changing denial into action, and doing what’s best for the kids.

Fred Stern

Los Angeles

Every day in my classroom, I assess my students in a variety of ways. Every day I check to see if my children understand the subject matter we are learning.

Educators use a variety of assessments, including tests, oral discussions, written assignments and homework, to understand which children need reteaching and which children are ready to move on.

The periodic assessments are just one piece of the puzzle that teachers use. It is discouraging if it is believed that teachers in L.A. Unified would only rely on one assessment piece and that we don’t evaluate our children on an ongoing basis.

Nancy Horton

Los Angeles