Influencing Legislation

My community partners at Valley Oak High School have encouraged and tried to make legislative changes in education like many other schools. Unlike most schools, as an alternative high school, they are seeking to get a exemption from the STAR testing. They are seeking an exemption from the test because the majority of students at an alternative high school are already likely to score poorly on the tests. In the past few years, Valley Oak High School has failed to meet testing expectations and goals set by the state and federal governments. Alternative high schools have experienced some legislative in California. Alternative High Schools now try to meet the goals of the Alternative Schools Accountability Model (ASAM) as outlined by California. In order to become a model school, the alternative education program must prove to be effective in helping students graduate and improve their learning. For example, Valley Oak High School is now considered to be a model high school because they are effectively engaging and educating students.  This year, Valley Oak has made an effort to engage the students even more and creating an outlet for them by introducing a P.E. program that actually incorporates lesson plans. The biggest challenge for this program is being able to find funding that will allow my sister to by P.E. equipment. Because of NCLB and recent budget cuts, states have had to cut education funding in programs that are deemed to be unnecessary. These programs include physical education and performing/fine arts.

The school districts and teachers in California are advocating for more funding to go directly to teachers and their programs. This is done through the Teacher's Union and various other lobby groups that are associated with education. In addition, there is also a committee at the state level that has to do with education. The Teacher's Union and other special interest groups are able to go the committee on education and push pieces of legislation that represent their interests. A great example of this is Prop 30 which passed this past election on the ballot. In this case, they took this proposition directly to the voters to have approved. In other cases, educators and those interested in effective public education will go directly to their representatives and ask for their voice to be translated into law.

Some of the biggest problems that have been encountered for influencing legislative changes have come from the recent budget crisis. When the state has to make budget cuts, one of the first areas that experiences cuts is education. Furthermore, these cuts are made specifically to the programs that are not considered to be the core fundamentals of education. For my sister, this specifically means the physical education departments of schools because they are not  considered to be important. However, there is a growing importance for physical education because there is a huge obesity concern among adolescents. Valley Oak High School, although it lacks funding, has found a reason and a little bit of money to get the program going. There is also a reason to incorporate health into her class because it teaches students things like healthy habits and stress relief techniques. I am not sure is there is any specific interest group to make sure physical education programs stay well-funded in schools, but I do know that there is interest in keeping the youth of the nation healthy. Physical education will continue to face obstacles in schools until teachers, parents and law makers realize the importance of teaching students about becoming healthy and active at a young age.