A raft of past programs have failed to substantially improve the reading skills of middle grade and high school students. CPS is trying once again, as part of a federal project that aims to help teens learn how to analyze complex non-fiction.
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Chicago lawmakers file bills to rein in school closings, class sizes
By: Jim Broadway / February 06, 2012
SPRINGFIELD - When Chicago catches a cold, the Illinois General Assembly coughs.
The state legislature has been hacking like a two-pack-a-day smoker over school actions in the Chicago Public Schools—closings, phase-outs, changes in attendance boundaries and other moves that critics say are disruptive for students and the surrounding neighborhoods.
(Find the district’s facilities plan online.)
Legislators responded in 2011 by enacting a law requiring CPS to develop a detailed five-year facilities master plan on school construction and interventions. That bill also created the Chicago Educational Facilities Task Force to review the district’s progress on facilities reform and report back to the General Assembly. But the task force has questioned the district’s decision-making, accusing it of "playing games" and now wants a moratorium on closings altogether.
State Rep. Cynthia Soto (D-Chicago), chair of the task force, has proposed HB 4487, which would bring all closings, consolidations and phase-outs on facilities to a screeching halt through the 2012-2013 school year.
Previous proposals for a closings moratorium in Chicago have failed.
Another bill, posted for a hearing in Springfield this week, was filed by state Rep. Luis Arroyo (D-Chicago) and seeks to force CPS officials to “testify every year before the General Assembly” concerning the district’s budget request for the following fiscal year, including “plans to build or repair schools and to close or consolidate schools.”
Arroyo’s HB 3871 would link CPS’ eligibility to receive block grant funding from the state to the requirement that the district spell out its facilities plans to state policymakers.
Proposed school closings, conversions or turnarounds that were determined to be appropriate could not be implemented before the 2013-2014 school year and would be “subject to any new set of requirements adopted by the General Assembly.”
Soto’s bill would require CPS to focus its attention on academic issues. “During this moratorium period, the district shall establish polices that address and remedy the academic performance of schools in which Illinois Standards Achievement Test scores reflect students performing at or below 75%.”
The district’s policies would have to be linked to its facilities plans and would include “encouragement of multiple community uses for school space.”
Rep. Soto’s bill was filed Jan. 31, too late for a hearing this week. The next opportunity for the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee to consider it will come after the Legislature, which is taking next week off, returns on Feb. 21.
Class sizes
A third bill, filed last week by Rep. Marlow Colvin (D-Chicago), would prevent increases in class sizes in Chicago schools—something that the Chicago Teachers Union has long complained about but has no power to negotiate over in its contract. Primary grade classes would be set at 18, classes in grades 4-8 at 22, and high school classes at 25. HB 4455 has not yet been posted for a committee hearing.
Another bill posted for a hearing this week does not concern CPS facilities planning but might be seen as a dig at the school district. HB 209, sponsored by Rep. Kenneth Dunkin (D-Chicago) would make it state policy that the CEO of CPS have a master’s degree in education and hold a valid teaching certificate.
But as Julie Woestehoff, director of the school parents’ advocacy group PURE and fierce critic of CPS school facilities actions, recently blogged, current CEO Jean-Claude Brizard not only holds these credentials but has used his teaching certificate.
“It has been 26 years since the [non-interim] top “educator” running the Chicago Public Schools had a teaching credential,” Woestehoff wrote.
The Chicago Teachers Union has also delivered a round of applause – not for Brizard or CPS, but for what CTU President Karen Lewis called the “courageous” legislators who filed bills to curb the district’s penchant for closing schools.
“These bills come at a time when teachers, paraprofessionals and school leaders are under tremendous assault by anti-public education and anti-labor forces that have used the law and media to attack our profession, our pensions and our schools,” Lewis said.
Jim Broadway is the founder and publisher of State School News Service.
Wishful thinking
These bills are no more than wishful thinking. The Mayor will fight them, and unless Speaker Madigan is willing to support them, they really haven't a snowball's chance in the Tropics of becoming law.
The legislature really shouldn't try to micromanage Chicago's schools--especially in ways they would never interfere in the state's other school districts.
And the bill on class size--and I'm all for class size limits--has the least chance of all for being passed. How much more money would Springfield have to send to Chicago to implement these numbers? No way the legislators will support it.
btw Julie of Pure Hogwash has her facts wrong. (And not for the first time.)
laws come and go!!
No matter what the laws ..they never benefit the teachers....34 kids....no raise...90 minutes more...pension has about the same 1/2 life as uranium
..it's all about the kids....at the teachers expense of course....dont see any others paying for this mess....teachers are going down the tubes...yet they want the results....while our own boss "the mayor" is h bent on destroying any sense of morale with the teacherssssssss....unless you work at AUSL OF course! or Noble
To "Danny"
IF CPS were running its business in a legal and fair way, there would be no need for the state senators and reps. to micromanage CPS. But as the Task Force heard on Jan. 12th from the communities impacted, CPS is not playing fair . There is no sense or reason why they are placing schools on the list , by-passing lower scoring schools and putting higher ones on. Also doing turnarounds and closures in areas already impacted by those, so that some kids are looking at their 2nd or 3rd turnaround in their elementary school years. What the State Legislature heard the parents and staff say at that hearing is that ENOUGH is ENOUGH - that CPS is making decisions without community input or consideration, and the parents will not roll over and play dead and let their children be played around like this. IF CPS had listened and tried to work with the communities, there would have been no need for the State to get into it !
"The legislature really
"The legislature really shouldn't try to micromanage Chicago's schools--especially in ways they would never interfere in the state's other school districts."
Yeah, because that never happens. CPS is not required to bargain over class sizes - unlike every other district in IL. After 90 days of "negotiations" CPS may implement a teacher evaluation system of its choice - unlike every other district in IL. The mayor has control over the schools - unlike every other district in IL. CPS gets exemptions from PE and special education requirements - unlike every other district in IL. CPS teachers are required to obtain approval from 75% of all Union members to authorize a strike - unlike every other district in IL.
This list goes on, and on, and on. What a joke.
Mike Madigan vs. Rahm Emanuel? Now that's a fight I'd pay to watch!
Go Soto Go!
I'm glad someone has the courage in this state to stand up for sound public policy in CPS. Rahm has been following an agenda set by those that seek to profit at OUR expense - school turnarounds have been found to be failures - this is simply his ploy to put city dollars (our dollars) in the hands of private contractors that will runs the schools - privatization worked so well for our meters, it'll work so well for our schools too right!
I'm glad that our state representatives aren't letting him get away with this and are standing up for our kids. It's high time we capped class room size (which has been proven time and time again to be critical in fixing education) and made common sense requirements for someone that seeks to run our school system (requiring a background in education!). These changes are much needed and are based on research and sound policy.
Kudos to Colvin
I am more than pleased with Rep. Colvin's initiative in reigning in the class sizes to contemporary manageable levels.
Until the Mayor and all the other self-styled "education reformers" understand that LOWERING CLASS SIZE is the ONLY research-based, scientifically-proven method to increase the performance and good behavior of students in EVERY category in ANY school setting, very little will be accomplished in the improvement of education in this nation.
Now if only someone will champion more right-brain oriented classes in the curricula ...
Kudos to Colvin
I am more than pleased with Rep. Colvin's initiative in reigning in the class sizes to contemporary manageable levels.
Until the Mayor and all the other self-styled "education reformers" understand that LOWERING CLASS SIZE is the ONLY research-based, scientifically-proven method to increase the performance and good behavior of students in EVERY category in ANY school setting, very little will be accomplished in the improvement of education in this nation.
Now if only someone will champion more right-brain oriented classes in the curricula ...
Kudos to Colvin
I am more than pleased with Rep. Colvin's initiative in reigning in the class sizes to contemporary manageable levels.
Until the Mayor and all the other self-styled "education reformers" understand that LOWERING CLASS SIZE is the ONLY research-based, scientifically-proven method to increase the performance and good behavior of students in EVERY category in ANY school setting, very little will be accomplished in the improvement of education in this nation.
Now if only someone will champion more right-brain oriented classes in the curricula ...
Kudos to Colvin
I am more than pleased with Rep. Colvin's initiative in reigning in the class sizes to contemporary manageable levels.
Until the Mayor and all the other self-styled "education reformers" understand that LOWERING CLASS SIZE is the ONLY research-based, scientifically-proven method to increase the performance and good behavior of students in EVERY category in ANY school setting, very little will be accomplished in the improvement of education in this nation.
Now if only someone will champion more right-brain oriented classes in the curricula ...
Finally a Little Common Sense!
If the legislature can get these bills passed, our children will finally have a fighting chance at succeeding in school. Rahm Emmanuel, Brizzard and the Rahm Emmanuels board of beuracrats is a joke and a disgrace. Can we please get a ceo with atleast a masters in education and a teaching certificate for crying out loud. 1 + 1 = 2 Its common sense!
Research on class sizes
Stan Hollenbeck writes: "LOWERING CLASS SIZE is the ONLY research-based, scientifically-proven method to increase the performance and good behavior of students in EVERY category in ANY school setting"
Actually, this isn't true.
The studies that support lower class sizes do so for the primary grades (K-3) and show more marked results for black students. Of course, that's a good reason to attempt lowering class sizes for those populations. Any legislation should really target K-3.
Although it makes intuitive sense, there really isn't any research supporting the notion that lowering class sizes has significant benefits for older students. (I'm a high school teacher myself and wish that it were so, but...) In fact, some of the nations that out-perform the U.S. in reading and math have higher class sizes than we do.
Still, we come back to my original statement (above). Legislation requiring lower class sizes for Chicago will fail when legislators realize how expensive it is.
RE: Research on Class Size
Although I haven't read of any country who has higher class sizes, I'd be willing to bet two of those countries are Japan and Korea. They do do not have diverse student populations and no particular affinity for individual creativity, the only export we seem to have left and also seem hell-bent on destroying any aspect of it in our student population..
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