How To Tackle School Reform

By Susan Tifft

The facts are shocking. An estimated 13% of America's 17-year-olds -- and perhaps 40% of minority youths the same age -- are functionally illiterate. In the six years since the federally sponsored A Nation at Risk report warned of a "rising tide of mediocrity" in U.S. schools, average combined scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) have risen only slightly, from 893 to 904. Despite a 46% jump in the average amount that local, state and federal governments spend per pupil, the percentage of high school students who graduate has actually dropped, from 73.3% to 71.1%. "We are standing still," Education Secretary Lauro Cavazos said in May, as he unveiled a report showing a tenacious lack of progress in public education.

That dismal overall assessment, however, masks the success that many states have had in boosting the quality of their schools. Since A Nation at Risk, as many as 16 states have adopted major legislative packages calling for sharp spending increases and radical restructuring of their schools. How some of these states moved education to the top of the political agenda -- and what they are doing to keep it there -- provides telling lessons for others. A look at three case histories:

ARKANSAS. Since 1983 Democratic Governor Bill Clinton has been determined to improve public education in a state that, by nearly every measure of academic performance, ranked near the bottom. Within a year of his election, Clinton rammed through a package of reforms that lengthened the school day and required the state's 24,000 teachers to take a controversial competency exam. To pay for the improvements, lawmakers raised the sales tax from 3 cents on the dollar to 4 cents.

The infusions of cash and care paid off. The high school graduation rate has risen from 73.4% to 77.5%, and the percentage of students going on to Arkansas colleges, just 38.7% in 1982, has grown to 44.5%. All this has helped Clinton, 42, a boyish-looking Rhodes scholar with presidential ambitions, earn a national reputation as a wizard of school reform. "I feel real good about where we have come in the past 6 1/2 years," says the Governor.

But Clinton's reform plans may be in for some rough weather. Earlier this year, at the Governor's urging, the general assembly enacted new education measures. Among them: a choice plan that will allow students to attend virtually any public school in the state, fines of up to $50 for parents who fail to show up for parent-teacher conferences and a minimum teacher salary of $16,000. But legislators, fearing a voter backlash, refused to pass a 1 cents boost in the sales tax to underwrite the package. Determined to carry through with his program, the Governor has been touring the state's small, backwoods communities since March to reignite enthusiasm for education reform and solicit support for the taxes to fund it. Says Clinton: "We need to make sure people know what the gains were."

SOUTH CAROLINA. While Arkansas' reform zeal is flagging, South Carolina seems to be catching its second wind. In June the legislature adopted "Target 2000," the second installment of the Education Improvement Act of 1984. The bill not only continues support for most of the act's original programs, it actually expands many of them. Says David Beasley, chairman of the house education and public works committee: "We've kept the heat on and the excitement rolling."

Why the fevered momentum? E.I.A.'s tough provisions -- mandatory kindergarten for five-year-olds, exit exams for high school graduates -- have shown impressive results. Thanks to a special test-preparation program, average SAT scores have soared 48 points since 1982 (from 790 to 838), the biggest such gain in the nation. Enrollment in advanced-placement courses has tripled since the 1983-84 school year, and the average number of student absences has dropped almost two days, to 7.7 a year, making the state sixth in the U.S. in attendance.

One reason E.I.A. has enjoyed sustained support is that its sponsors, led by State Superintendent of Education Charlie Williams, took care to build a consensus among business leaders, educators, politicians and parents. The business community, motivated by the need for a literate work force, has been especially enthusiastic. "We understand that we have to make a generational commitment to education," says Bob Thompson, vice president of public affairs for Springs Industries, a textile firm. "Reform is not just something you do one time."

A key ingredient of E.I.A.'s success is accountability. Each year the state education department issues a booklet titled What Is the Penny Buying for South Carolina?, which liberally mixes darts and laurels. Last year's report, for instance, praised the rise in SAT scores but also pointed out that the 25% dropout rate had not gone down significantly. There is room for improvement in other areas as well. Despite recent gains, the average teacher salary ($24,403) still ranks 35th in the nation, while expenditures per pupil ($3,465) rank 41st.

WEST VIRGINIA. Last month the Mountain State put into effect the most sweeping and costly education reform in its history. Of West Virginia's $1.7 billion budget for 1989-90, fully 70% is going toward school-system bailouts and quality improvements. The high priority put on education is all the more remarkable coming from one of the country's poorest states.

Credit for the $1.2 billion package goes largely to freshman Democratic Governor Gaston Caperton, 49. After making education the centerpiece of his inaugural address last January, Caperton immediately called the legislature into emergency session. Over the next ten weeks, he persuaded lawmakers to raise an estimated $400 million in new taxes, including a levy of 5 cents per gal. on gas and 6 cents for each dollar's worth of food.

The new money will help provide a 5% pay raise for teachers (from $21,736 in 1988 to an estimated $23,000 in 1990), new bonds for school construction, a basic-skills program and advanced-placement programs in high schools. The biggest chunk of cash ($120 million) will go to shore up the dangerously depleted teachers' pension fund.

Caperton's swift action has surprised West Virginians, who watched his Republican predecessor, Arch Moore, promote some of the same proposals without success. The difference may lie in Caperton's consultative approach. Weeks before taking office, he formed a bipartisan committee of legislators, educators and business leaders to advise him on education. By the time of the special legislative session, he had committed allies for his program.

Not everyone is happy with Caperton's reforms, which tend to centralize authority in the state capital. Taxes on gas and food are also considered unfairly regressive in a rural state where cars are considered vital to survival and per capita income is only $11,658, 49th in the nation. The Governor knows his support is fragile. He regularly tours local communities, listening to teachers and parents in an attempt to counter public apathy. Says Harold Carl, superintendent of Pleasants County schools: "We are on the right track. Now the big chore is to take the reform, master it and make it work."

The main lesson of these states' experiences is that reform works best when those concerned have a say. "Unions, business, educators -- everybody has to be involved," says Joe Fernandez, superintendent of schools for Dade County, Fla. "You've got to forget the turf battles."

The ability to translate higher spending into concrete results is also crucial. The problem, of course, is that the fruits of education reform are often not seen for decades. "The toughest battle is to convince the public that dollars invested in education are golden, that the payoff is there," says Bill Honig, state superintendent of public instruction in California.

Despite such obstacles, many education advocates think the future of reform is bright. They point to innovations such as New Jersey's alternative teacher certification, which has opened up the field to mid-career professionals, and Minnesota's choice system, which this fall will phase in a program that allows students to attend any school in the state.

The next wave of educational improvements will probably originate not in state capitals but in individual districts. Already, schools in Dade County, Rochester and Toledo have taken the initiative to raise pay, restructure curriculums and monitor results. "In the first phase of reform, it was state executives who led the way," says former Tennessee Governor Lamar Alexander. "In the 1990s, reform will be led by parents and taxpayers." That is, if they care enough to pay the price.

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CREDIT: TIME Chart by Cynthia Davis

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With reporting by Topper Sherwood/Charleston and Don Winbush/Atlanta