California Schools

Kickers to watch Tony Bumatay, Peninsula, 6-0, 170, Sr. Made 53-yard field goal Jordan Dascalo, Taft, 6-1, 180, Sr. Averaged 46.7 yards a punt Roger Howard, El Toro, 6-0, 170, Sr. Made 10 of 12 field-goal tries Ben Kreitenberg, Chaminade, 5-9 165, So. Will be best in SoCal by 2014 Bret Miller, San Clemente, 6-1, 195, Sr. Made nine field goals as a junior Robbie McInerny, Laguna Beach, 5-10, 170, Sr. Solid on kickoffs Jose...

A great teacher can have a huge effect on a child's life. So, unfortunately, can a bad teacher. But in education, job performance has virtually nothing to do with opportunities for advancement. Teachers who are consistently successful with students are not given leadership roles that would allow them to reach students beyond their own classrooms, and if they don't have enough seniority, they can be let go without anyone seeming to care come layoff time. This is enormously frustrating.

TUCSON — In its season opener, Encino Crespi faced a stern test from a quality opponent Saturday night and passed with flying colors. Senior quarterback Cody Cordell completed 17 of 25 passes for 240 yards, three touchdowns and one interception as the Celts overcame three first-half turnovers and cruised to a 35-20 victory over Salpointe Catholic in Tucson. Sophomore Okalani Langi rushed for 142 yards in 20 carries and caught a 12-yard swing pass for Crespi's first touchdown.

LONDON -- Jake Varner learned to wrestle in Bakersfield. From his father, Steve. From his cousin, Andy, who coached Jake to two California high school state championships and who still coaches at Bakersfield High. "It's in my blood," said Varner, who now has something Steve and Andy don't have. An Olympic gold medal. Varner, 26, tripped up Valerii Andriitsev of Ukraine, 1-0, 1-0, in Sunday's 96-kilogram freestyle wrestling final at the ExCeL Centre on the final day of Olympic competition.

Student photos of state standardized tests posted on social networks have caused a two-week delay in the release of scores and could result in more serious ramifications for nearly 150 California schools. In a letter sent to all state school districts this week, the Department of Education announced the postponement of the 2012 test results until Aug. 31. "It is imperative that when districts, teachers, parents and students receive their test results, we all can be assured that the integrity of the system remains intact," Deb Sigman, deputy superintendent of public instruction, said in the letter.

The people of a large and mighty nation wonder why their schools can't do more to imitate those of another large, powerful nation across the Pacific Ocean. But this time it's not the United States seeking to emulate the schools of an Asian country - it's China seeking to emulate ours, at least to some extent. China is pushing for more emphasis on building creative skills and less on high-stress, high-stakes testing, according to a recent article in the New York Times . Under the existing system, a single entrance exam determines whether students attend college, and which one. Talk about teaching to the test: The last year of high school is often given over to cramming for the exam.

Wouldn't it make sense for education funding in California to be transparent and equitable, with money spent according to students' varying needs? Gov. Jerry Brown is proposing to inject some overdue clarity and logic into the process by allocating to schools a flat amount per pupil, plus a large additional sum for low-income students or those who aren't fluent in English. The governor's plan is far from perfect - it's especially lacking in accountability - and the Legislature appears unwilling to support it this year for reasons both political and philosophical.

It's one thing to give school districts more authority over their budgets so they can bring students to the highest possible levels of educational attainment, as Gov. Jerry Brown wisely proposes in his budget plan. But Brown also, unacceptably, would include in that authority the freedom to lower educational standards by scaling back science requirements in high school. Lifting the state requirement that students take a second year of science in order to graduate would free Sacramento from its obligation to cover the cost for that second year, which amounts to about $250 million a year.

Hundreds of photos of standardized tests have begun to appear on social-networking sites in California, raising concerns about test security and cheating by students. In the worst-case scenario, the photos could lead to invalidating test scores for entire schools or prevent the state from using certain tests. For now, officials have warned school districts to heighten test security and investigate breaches. Students are not allowed to have access to cellphones or other devices that can take pictures when the tests are administered.

About 200 California public schools, including 30 in Los Angeles County, will be eligible to receive funding for additional Advanced Placement courses through an initiative announced Tuesday. The pilot program, created by the College Board, which administers the AP exams, will provide funding for the next three years to schools that currently offer fewer than eight AP courses but have many students with strong AP potential. The College Board will also pay for teachers to attend AP training courses, and schools will receive funding for textbooks and other materials.