One Bill to Increase Class Sizes Dies for the Year, Another Scheduled for Committee Vote May 19

CTA and a coalition of school supporters won another battle in the fight to protect the state's Class Size Reduction program. However, the groups are gearing up for another battle that could determine the fate of one of the remaining CTA-opposed bills that would increase class sizes by more than 10 percent. On May 7, CTA and Californians for Smaller Class Sizes helped defeat SB 837, a CTA-opposed measure by Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Los Angeles). The proposal was defeated in the Senate Education Committee. SB 837 would have increased class sizes to a maximum of 25 students in kindergarten through third-grade classes in all schools but those in Deciles 1-3 on the state Academic Performance Index (API).

With the bill's defeat, CTA and the coalition will now turn its full attention to the remaining class size reduction bill, SB 556 by Sen. Byron Sher (D-Palo Alto). That proposal is slated for consideration in the Senate Appropriations Committee on May 19.

Like the other measures CTA and the coalition have defeated, SB 556 would allow districts to keep class-size reduction funding - $906 per student - and increase student teacher ratios by 10%. The changes would give California the dubious distinction of having the largest class sizes in the nation.

Currently, districts participating in the class size reduction program are required to cap class enrollment at 20 students in grades K-3. School administrator groups are attacking the student-teacher ratio limits so that they can divert the program's instructional funding to other district programs.

The changes would not save the state any money or help balance the state budget, because districts would still receive the same amount of state dollars.

Besides CTA, Californians for Smaller Class Sizes also includes the California State PTA, the California Association for the Education of Young Children, the California Coalition for Youth; Educators for Social Responsibility - Sacramento Chapter; No Cuts 4 Kids; Chicano Youth Center; Oakland Kids First; the California State League of United Latin American Citizens; the National Coalition of Hispanic Organizations; the California Black Chamber of Commerce; the Black American Political Association of California; the California Church IMPACT; Madres Del Este De Los Angeles; Martin Luther King Democratic Club - San Diego County; Salvadoran American Leadership & Education Fund; Pueblo y Salud, Inc.; Black Employees Association; People for the American Way; Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN); West Bay Pilipino Multi-Service Center; Sacramento Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce; Japanese Cultural Community Center of Northern CA; Congress of California Seniors; California Legislative Council of Older Americans; Industrial Areas Foundation; the Gray Panthers of Long Beach, Central Contra Costa County, Greater Oakland, and San Francisco.

CTA Members:

Get in touch with Senate Appropriations Committee and urge committee members to defeat SB 556 (Sher). The panel will be looking at the financial implications of the bill, and it will be important to remind them that the proposal will hurt students and not save the state a single penny.

Also remind members of Senate Appropriations that:

• Research proves smaller classes improve student learning. A study by the Public Policy Institute of California found five of California's largest school districts have seen a significant increase in student test scores since the class size program began.
• Smaller classes are especially vital for high-need students. For instance, research in the Los Angeles Unified School District determined that reading scores rose by 19.5%, math scores by 29.2%, and language scores by 22.5% for high-need students in small classes.
• Parents and teachers know smaller classes work. More than 70% of voters believe reducing class sizes is a very effective way to improve public schools.

(Note: Contact information for Senate Appropriations is below.)

Senate Appropriations Committee - SB 556 (Sher):

(Note: clicking on the e-mail notation should allow you to e-mail directly to each lawmaker. If the link does not work, you may e-mail each by using the address firstname.lastname@sen.ca.gov. For instance, Sen. Dede Alpert's e-mail address is dede.alpert@sen.ca.gov.)