Back to School

As we approach the excitement of students and teachers returning to school for a new year, we need to take note of some warning signs that temper our enthusiasm. First of all, the 1% sales tax approved by voters in May only prevented further cuts to district budgets on top of the ones undertaken in response to the legislature’s slashing the state education budget. This means that class sizes will likely be greater than before and teachers will receive small or non-existent pay raises – and quite possibly pay cuts. Another cautionary sign: the recently released AIMS scores reflect an evolving curriculum in the area of math created by changes to math standards implemented last year. With lower scores being reported almost universally, there will be increased emphasis on math instruction to meet the new standards. Such focus will require more from students but also from teachers in terms of professional development and classroom management – even with smaller salaries and larger classes.

What can Arizona do about these issues? Certainly, funding education appropriately to reduce class sizes and to be able to adequately train teachers when the state mandates curriculum changes provides one solution. In order to do that, we must increase the revenue stream to the state by creating jobs so that we have more people working and spending money as well as paying taxes. Last year the state legislature passed more than 250 bills into law, but not one had to do with meaningful job creation. Secondly, Arizona needs legislators who know that an investment in education is the right thing to do for the future of our state. Besides providing our students with the skills they need for their futures, a strong public education system will produce a skilled workforce and a quality of life that will attract businesses to Arizona.

Another issue that impacts teachers’ workloads and class size is that of unfunded mandates. Every year the legislature passes laws that demand more of teachers – this past year, for example, the legislature required districts to provide a program to prevent violence in dating. Thus a new curriculum must be developed and approved and if teachers have to be trained to present it, which is very likely, that training will take them out of the classroom (and districts will have to pay for substitutes). Additionally, the new curriculum is added to everything else the teacher must teach. Teachers and schools become burdened with another responsibility that should be handled by parents. Continuing to put more on the backs of schools only detracts from learning, and when these requirements are not funded, they take away from an already overburdened school budget.

The solution to the education issue necessitates a long-term process, but steps need to be taken this fall to get the right people in place. That is why I am running for the state legislature.