Office of the Superintendent Board of Trustees*

The Alisal Union School District in Salinas is not meeting statewide averages for English and math test scores. The Alisal Union School District Superintendent and the Alisal Union School District Board of Education agree with this finding.

The K-3 class sizes exceed the 20 students per teacher that was mandated by the California Department of Education in 1996. While the Alisal Union School District Superintendent and the Alisal Union School District Board of Education agree with this statement that Alisal USD K-3 class sizes exceed the 20 students per teacher that was mandated by CDE in 1996, it is worthy to note that this Twenty-to-One mandate has been revised. The K-3 Class Size Reduction (CSR) Program (Senate Bill 1777, Chapter 163, Statutes of 1996) was established in 1996 for kindergarten through third grade. This program provided funds to school districts and charter schools that reduced class size to 20 pupils or fewer per certificated teacher. The program ended at the conclusion of the 2012-13 school year. Currently California Education Code (EC) sections 41376 and 41378: (a) demand an "Average" class size—meaning that while some individual classes may exceed the student-to-teacher ratio, the District can still meet compliance if the overall average ratio of all classes within a particular grade level is within the legally proscribed range; and (b) prescribe the maximum class sizes and penalties for districts with any classes that exceed the following limits: Kindergarten – average class size not to exceed 31 students; no class larger than 33 students Grades one through three – average class size not to exceed 30 students; no class larger than 32 students Grades four through eight – in the current fiscal year, average number of students per teacher not to exceed the greater of 29.9 or the district's average number of students per teacher from the base year of 1964

The general goals for the progress of ELL students set by the California Department of Education for teaching ELL students are not specific or quantifiable, and do not provide a standard against which actual results could be compared. The Alisal Union School District Superintendent and the Alisal Union School District Board of Education partially agree with this finding. The California Department of Education (CDE) goals for the progress of English Learner students are not specific or quantifiable. Research indicates it takes between five to seven years for a child to acquire the academic language that is needed to be on a level with native speakers. (Hakuta, K., Goto Butler, Y. & Witt, D. (2000), How Long Does It Take English Learners to Attain Proficiency?, Stanford, CA: The University of California Linguistic Minority Research Institute). English Learners enter school at different stages of English language development and with varied linguistic and experiential backgrounds. A student's background knowledge and level of proficiency in their primary language affects the pace at which a student will attain English proficiency. The California Department of Education's English Language Arts, English Language Development Framework (2014) provides a standard for the progress of all English Learners which specifically defines the stages of progress of English language development. English Learners take the California English Language Development Test (CELDT) annually in order to measure their progress. This test assesses four language domains: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. In addition, the CELDT measures five levels of proficiency: beginning, early intermediate, early advanced, and advanced. The CELDT Performance Descriptors define the specific English proficiencies at each level. (Appendix 1). The CDE expects that, "English learners acquire full proficiency in English as rapidly and effectively as possible and attain parity with native speakers of English," and, "within a reasonable period, achieve the same rigorous grade level academic standards that are expected of all students." The test components of CELDT domains are listed in the chart below: Test Component Test Component Domain K-1 Grades 2-12 ■ Following Oral Directions ■ Following Oral Directions ■ Teacher Talk Teacher Talk Listening Extended Listening Extended Listening Comprehension Comprehension Rhyming ■ Rhyming (Grade 2 only) Oral Vocabulary Oral Vocabulary ■ Speech Functions Speech Functions Speaking ■ Choose and Give Reasons Choose and Give Reasons 4-Picture Narrative 4-Picture Narrative ■ Word Analysis ■ Word Analysis Reading ■ Fluency and Vocabulary Fluency and Vocabulary ■ Reading Comprehension Reading Comprehension Copying Letters and Words Grammar and Structure Writing Writing Words Writing Sentences ■ Punctuation and Capitalization ■ Writing Short Composition Additionally, the CDE requires that each district's Local Control and Accountability Plan must include baseline data and defined goals for English Learner progress toward English proficiency as measured by CELDT progress and Reclassification data. Further, the CDE's new Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) has an evaluation rubric that includes the expectation that English learners will move up at least one CELDT level until they are reclassified (see Appendix 2).

It is unlikely that the low amount of funding per student ADA, the disparity between the cost of living in Salinas, and starting teachers" salaries will be solved in the foreseeable future. The Alisal Union School District Superintendent and the Alisal Union School District Board of Education agree with this finding. The amount of state funds per student ADA is the same regardless of where your district is located (except for basic aid districts). Therefore, in a high cost area, the funding is the same as in a low-cost area.

The new CSUMB/Hartnell College joint venture, the "Professional Teacher Pathway," in South Monterey County provides a blueprint for similar programs and would contribute to a long-term solution to the shortage of qualified teachers in the Salinas elementary schools. The Alisal Union School District Superintendent and the Alisal Union School District Board of Education agree with this finding. The new CSUMB/Hartnell College joint venture to create a professional teacher pathway could indeed help the greater Salinas area grow local talent and produce teachers who are from the community and want to teach in or near their home towns in the future.

Cooperation and coordination between the elementary school districts and the Salinas middle schools within the Salinas Union High School District is not adequate to ensure that all students entering middle schools are equally prepared. The Alisal Union School District Superintendent and the Alisal Union School District Board of Education partially agree with this finding. The (TK-6th) Alisal Union School District is one of seven feeder districts that enter the Salinas Union High School District. Coordination among the districts' academic programs is important. While each district is responsible for its own curriculum which is approved by its local school board, matriculation from the elementary districts to the high school district ensures continuity in the students' educational preparation. Currently, Alisal Union School District has been working collaboratively to articulate its programs with corresponding secondary school districts, and has plans to deepen the coordination of its programs to ensure that all students entering middle schools are equally prepared.