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SACRAMENTO - Responding to proposals that threaten to increase class sizes by as much as twenty percent, a diverse coalition of parents, teachers, and community groups today launched Californians for Smaller Class Sizes, a statewide organization dedicated to preserving small class sizes and keeping education dollars in California classrooms.
"California parents know that smaller class sizes work and will oppose any attempt to turn back the clock on class size reduction," said California State PTA President Jan Harp Domene. "Smaller classes ensure that students receive vital, one-on-one attention from their teachers, which helps improve student achievement."
Wednesday, the Assembly Education Committee is scheduled to consider several bills to dismantle California's successful Class Size Reduction program. Enacted in 1996 with the support of a bi-partisan coalition of parents, teachers, businesses, community leaders, and lawmakers, schools now receive additional state funding for reducing the size of kindergarten through third-grade classes to no more than twenty students.
Percy Pinkney, president of the Black American Political Association of California (BAPAC), pointed to a June 2002 Public Policy Institute of California study showing five of California's largest school districts reported significant test score gains since the class size reduction effort began.
"Smaller classes have increased test scores and student performance, especially among high-need students in our poorer communities," Pinkney said. "Smaller class sizes promote increased personal attention from a teacher - improving the education of our youngest students and helping to create a future of hope and opportunity."
According to an April 2001 Vital Research report, high-need students in the Los Angeles Unified School District benefited from smaller classes - increasing reading scores by 19.5%, math scores by 29.2%, and language scores by 22.5%.
Wayne Johnson, president of the California Teachers Association (CTA), said those attempting to undermine smaller class sizes in the name of making the program more "flexible" are simply looking to divert money away from the classroom.
"'Flexibility' is just a code word for crowding more students into our classrooms with less accountability for how our education dollars are spent," Johnson said. "Increasing class sizes won't cut the state deficit by even a dime."
Johnson also expressed concern that current proposals to increase class sizes could eliminate more than 5,000 public school teachers statewide.
"Laying off 5,000 teachers will have a disastrous effect on student achievement in California," said Johnson.
Californians for Smaller Class Sizes is a new and fast-growing coalition. In a matter of a few days, diverse interests have united to protect smaller class sizes, including: CTA, California State PTA, the California Association for the Education of Young Children, the California Black Chamber of Commerce, the National Coalition of Hispanic Organizations, People for the American Way (PFAW), the Black American Political Association of California (BAPAC), Madres Del Este De Los Angeles (Mothers of East Los Angeles), Industrial Areas Foundation, the Gray Panthers of Long Beach, and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN).