For years, California politicians and educators – who are sometimes the same – have talked about the “achievement gap” that separates poor and “English-learner” students from more advantaged classmates.
For years, they have pledged to close the gap that is exposed in periodic testing.
Three years ago, at the urging of Gov. Jerry Brown, the Legislature completely overhauled school finance. The state gave schools many billions of new dollars, eliminated restrictions on existing funds, and provided extra money to districts with large numbers of disadvantaged students to attack the achievement gap.
Ever since, the awkwardly named Local Control Funding Formula has sparked nonstop infighting over how the targeted money is spent, how the outcomes are monitored and what happens in schools that fail to raise achievement levels.
Those conflicts continue, pitting education reform and civil rights groups against the education establishment, including teacher unions, without resolution in sight. And it’s likely they will wind up in the courts.
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