Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Why create another system to grade Utah's schools if a perfectly good one already exists? That's what educators are asking, trying to figure out what lawmakers are up to with a bill on Utah's Capitol Hill.
If SB271 makes it into law, Utahns would have easy-to-read letter grades for schools based on things like student growth and graduation rates.
The bill is nevertheless being met with opposition from educators. The state Board of Education calls the measure unnecessary.
"We're afraid that if this bill passes, we would be required to have two systems of accountability, said Board member Kim Burningham. "The cost would increase."
It seems like they're always trying to fix something that doesn't need to be fixed.
–Sen. Pat Jones, D-Holladay.
Among the concerns is that student growth doesn't factor enough into the grades the schools get. In addition, the measure duplicates state law.
"Two years ago the state Legislature passed a bill saying we would grade schools," Burningham said, speaking about the Utah Comprehensive Accountability System. "We're moving toward that."
State schools just received their first year of data from UCAS. The bill's sponsor, Sen. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, sees this measure as more of an extension or complement to UCAS. He maintains growth gets enough of a look.
"If we're trying to find a way to fund and compensate teachers, to fund and compensate education," Adams said, "this actually gives us metrics."
Still, the bill hasn't been an easy sell. It cleared the Senate only in spite of some vocal objections.
Related:
$150M more for education approved in House
Utah's public schools will see the largest funding increase in years under the terms of a revised budget that unanimously passed the House of Representatives on Wednesday."It seems like they're always trying to fix something that doesn't need to be fixed," said Sen. Pat Jones, D-Holladay.
Some people are raising questions about how late this bill came up in the session. But the bill's sponsor said that the proposal's been out there for three years and this is no surprise.
Some teachers still maintain the whole grading process is misguided, and the profession should be self-regulating.
"We really do know what we do and what we are doing, and we really do care," said Elizabeth Wright with the American Federation of Teachers.
