A controversial decision that requires all California eighth-graders to be tested in algebra has started a court fight between groups representing local schools and the State Board of Education.
Two organizations that advocate for hundreds of school districts and thousands of school officials are suing the board over its July 9 vote to require eighth-grade algebra tests.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had urged board members in a letter to make the change. Others opposed it because they said not all 13- and 14-year-olds were ready for the abstractions and unknowns of algebra.
The California School Boards Association and the Association of California School Administrators filed their complaint late last week in Sacramento Superior Court.
In the 21-page filing, the groups claim the board failed to give adequate notice prior to its July 9 meeting that it would be considering a change of such dramatic proportions. "This was a huge change in public policy done at the last minute, with no opportunity for school districts to weigh in," said Holly Jacobson, assistant executive director of the School Boards Association.
The lawsuit also claims board members appointed by the governor exceeded their authority by effectively changing the state's curriculum for middle-school math – a task that belongs to the Legislature.
Lawmakers had recently designated algebra as a high school subject, Jacobson said.
"By requiring that all eighth-grade students take the Algebra 1 end-of-course examination, the SBE has essentially required that all eighth-grade students learn and be taught Algebra 1," reads the complaint.
The lawsuit asks a judge to declare the board's actions "null and void."
The head attorney for the Board of Education said Monday that the dispute is a matter of legal interpretation for a judge to decide.
"It really comes down to whether the description the board did post was legally sufficient," said Chief Counsel Donna Neville.
She said the board has responsibility for making sure the state complies with the testing provisions of the federal No Child Left Behind act.
"What the state board did at the meeting was adopt an Algebra 1 exam," Neville said. "They are charged with complying with the (federal) law."
The Schwarzenegger administration echoed that opinion. "We believe the state board acted legally, responsibly, and in the best interests of California schoolchildren by increasing academic standards," said Camille Anderson, a spokeswoman for the governor.
Call The Bee's Hudson Sangree, (916) 321-1191.
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