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Monday, September 10, 2007
Grad Rule: Still Complaining About The Arts
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I spent part of Friday afternoon reading through some of the public comments submitted to the Georgia Department of Education about the proposed high school graduation rule. I’m back here this morning trying to finish up before the State Board of Education’s hearing on the issue Wednesday.
There are literally hundreds of e-mails and letters — most from educators, but also some from parents and grandparents. So far, most of the complaints surround the issue of fine arts.
You may recall that there was an uproar earlier this year, when the first draft of the new rule was released, because there was no mention that students could choose fine arts classes to meet elective requirements. Of course, the current rule doesn’t require students to take fine arts, either, but it at least mentions those courses as an option.
To quell the outcry, state officials put the fine arts wording back into the rule. But the message hasn’t seemed to have gotten through. Or, maybe some feel it’s still not reasonable to allow students a choice of whether to take fine arts.
“We are moving more and more toward a skills-focused curriculum, one that responds well to skills being tested and displayed on the EOCTs and other such instruments,” one Henry County high school English teacher wrote. “…Having the skills and knowledge to get through and succeed in life is one thing; enjoying the artistic expression of human spirit, however, makes the journey worthwhile.”
I got a chuckle out of one comment, which said that the rule was more clear and understandable when it was first released. I’m beginning to think that state officials just can’t win on this one.
UPDATE: Well, I finally finished going through all of the public comments on the proposed graduation rule. It seems that fine arts and the lack of a specific requirement for foreign language (state universities require at least two years) are the biggest complaints.
I also discovered another aspect that hasn’t been discussed much: The cost. A couple superintendents in metro Atlanta wrote the State Department of Education to say they worried about the burden on their budgets. With tougher standards, they said, more students would need more tutoring, remedial classes and other catch-up programs, which, of course, would cost more money.
