Not the same old school year
There are no comments for this page [ Add Comment ]Sunday, March 25, 2007
Utah lawmakers are good at exhibiting bravado and confidence when confronting difficult issues facing the state. But for several years now, the demographics of public education have had them ... well, not exactly curled up in the fetal position under their desks, but definitely nervous, hoping someone invents a solution -- soon.
It's too early yet to say for sure, but a promising idea to buttress the next decade of increasing enrollment and teacher shortages is worth a serious examination. In its raw form, the report presented by the state's K-16 Alliance's Special Task Force on Teacher Shortages last week suggests a fundamental shift in thinking away from the way Utah has always viewed its education scheduling. Among the changes:
* The school year and school day would be lengthened, as the state moves to a trimester system. Instead of teachers working 190 days per year, they would have the option of working 228 days, with a commensurate salary increase. That means students and families having more choice regarding schedules, and the option of much earlier graduation from high school.
* This would require facilities upgrades at many schools that don't currently have air conditioning, but it would make for obvious improvements in the efficient use of public school buildings -- many of which sit vacant for almost three months each year.
* The number and amount of college loans and grants to students pursuing teaching degrees at Utah's universities would be increased. Along with the extra funds, capacity would have to be expanded to accommodate more students in those programs.
* Greater flexibility in the hiring of qualified individuals to become certified teachers is an option, too.
We like the sound of all those proposals. But lots of ideas sound good in general. The real test will come when state lawmakers, the education establishment and parents start pounding out the details.
A rough model is already up and running in an institution of higher learning -- Brigham Young University-Idaho. That school's president, Kim Clark, former dean of the Harvard Business School, revamped the college's schedule to better utilize his facilities and serve more students.
That's precisely what the K-16 Alliance is attempting to deal with. Utah's education officials and elected leaders are looking down the wrong end of a double-barreled shotgun: K-12 enrollment will be increasing by 14,000 students per year over the next decade. At the same time, if classroom sizes are to remain level, Utah will need 700 additional teachers each year over the next decade.
As we said before, the demographic realities are staggering. Now that trio of constituencies -- lawmakers, the education establishment and parents -- will have to crunch the numbers and measure the social impact of transforming the system as suggested. If this, or a variation of it, is both achievable and acceptable, the Legislature could start work during its 2008 session 10 months from now.
It's a tall task, but as our reporter Lynze Wardle wrote last week, this year there was a shortage of 1,400 school teachers in Utah. The problem will only get worse unless we deal with it now.
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