Download: California Educational Opportunity Report 2005 (803 KB, 1 Page)
CALIFORNIA PUBLIC SCHOOLS
California's 6.3 million students attend 9,265 public schools in 1,051 different school districts
CALIFORNIA PUBLIC SCHOOLS
- 12% of California schools have severe teacher shortages - more than a fifth of the teachers do not have full credentials.
- 10% of California schools are designated "critically overcrowded" by the California Department of Education - they have twice as many students as they should.
- 50% of California high schools prepare fewer than 10% of their 9th graders to take AP Mathematics in 12th grade.
In August 2004, California settled Williams v. California, a landmark case highlighting the inadequate conditions in many schools across the state. The settlement requires the state to identify schools that are most deficient in facilities, school materials, and teacher qualifications. Under the settlement, 39% of California's schools are eligible for additional funding and require additional oversight to address inadequate conditions.
California Schools and Federal Accountability
Under the Federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB), schools must improve test scores for all groups of students each year. If schools fail to demonstrate progress for two consecutive years, they are placed in "Program Improvement" and are subject to increasingly strict sanctions. 17% of California's schools are eligible for additional funding and require additional oversight to address inadequate conditions.
In addition to requiring schools to improve relative to past performance, NCLB demands that schools increase the percentage of students each year who meet a standard of "proficiency" in core academic skills. If we project from last year's test scores, most (75%) California schools will not meet NCLB's threshold for the percentage of students who should demonstrate math proficiency in 2010.
Progress to Graduation and College in California High Schools
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More than half (54%) of California's high schools have failure rates of 20% or greater on the Mathematics section of the High School Exit Exam for the class of 2006.
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More than half (54%) of California's high schools have failure rates of 20% or greater on the English Language Arts section of the High School Exit Exam for the class of 2006.
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Only 37% of California's high schools graduate at least 3/4 the number of students who were in the 9th grade four years earlier.
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Only 28% of California high schools prepare at least 1/3 the number of students in 9th grade to graduate "college ready" - having passed the courses required for admission to the University of California and California State University.
Resources in California Schools
California schools spend less per pupil (after adjusting for cost of living) than almost any other state in the nation. As a consequence, California schools rank at or near the bottom (49th or 50th) of all states on a number of essential resources.
- 92% of California schools spend less per pupil that the national average when cost of living is taken into account.
- 85% of California's students attend schools in districts that have fewer teacher per student than the national average.
- 94% of California's students attend schools in districts that have fewer counselors per student than the national average.
- 98% of California's students attend schools in districts that have fewer librarians per student than the national average.
Inequalities in California Schools
California's schools with the highest proportions of students of color, low-income students, and English Learners, are more likely to be overcrowded and poorly resourced than other schools in the state. A 2004 state-wide survey of over 1,000 California teachers revealed that schools serving 90-100% students of color are 6 times more likely than majority white schools to experience multiple opportunity problems - lack of credentialed teachers, high teacher turnover, poor facilities, and inadequate instructional materials.
- In 25% of California schools, 90-100% of the students are students of color.
- In 34% of California schools, 50-89% of the students are students of color.
- In 36% of California schools, more than half of the students are white.
- In 50% of California schools, more than half the students receive free or reduced lunches.
INSTITUTE FOR DEMOCRACY, EDUCATION, AND ACCESS
For more information please contact John Rogers at UCLA/IDEA:
1041 Moore Hall • Box 951521 • Los Angeles, California 90095-1521 • www.ucla-idea.org • 310-206-8725