California is facing serious issues in public education.
Facts consistently show that California's public schools rank at or near the bottom in almost every key measurement when compared to schools nationwide.
One of the purposes of the PTA is to support and speak on behalf of children in the schools, community, and before governmental bodies and other organizations that make decisions affecting children.
To this end, we've compiled the following information to keep you informed of the current issues affecting our school and students.
The Education Coalition represents more than 1.7 million parents, teachers, school board members, school employees and administrators, represented by The California State PTA and many other groups. They have updated information on the current proposed budget cuts and how they will effect our schools.
EdSource is an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization whose mission is to clarify complex education issues and to promote thoughtful policy decisions about public school improvement.
EdSource also hosts a site called California School Finance which provides an in-depth explanation of how California public school financing works,
and collaborates with several governmental agencies to provide Ed-Data, which compiles fiscal, demographic, and performance data on California's schools.
At Ed-Data, you can see detailed financial reports, as well as comprehensive demographic and testing data.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. Research includes K-12 assessment and accountability, school reform, teachers and teaching, higher education, military education and training, worker training, and substance-abuse prevention in schools.
Their 2005 report, ?California?s K-12 Public Schools: How Are They Doing?? chronicles how the state's K-12 school system has fallen from a national leader 30 years ago to its current ranking near the bottom in nearly every objective category.
The Legislative Analyst's Office provides fiscal and policy advice to the California State Legislature. The LAO reports on the state's gap between revenues and expenditures, and proposes solutions.
The National Education Association works to make public schools great through shaping education-related federal and state legislation. Their Legislative Action Center highlights current issues and provides easy "Take Action" links. For those of you interested in more in-depth research, take a look at their recent report on State Public School Rankings (pdf).
Sacramento Bee School Funding Series: In three segments of "Paying for Schools," published during 2003, reporter Deb Kollars peels back the layers of such little understood funding categories as categoricals, mandates and revenue limits. What she found was a system rife with problems.
The National PTA publishes a weekly newsletter, This Week in Washington with information on what's happening on Capitol Hill and legislative issues that affect families, schools, and communities.
Effective Advocacy for Your Child is an e-learning course for PTA Members. The course provides both basic and intermediate information for members who are currently working on issues that affect children, as well as for members who want to learn how to take action. The information and scenarios provided will guide you and help build your confidence organizing action for issues that affect your child and school community.
You may also find the following resources helpful:
Contact your State Representatives
The best way to draw attention to any issue that concerns you is to contact our government representatives. Click here for a list of who they are and how to contact them.
The National PTA publishes a weekly newsletter,