In controversial move, LAUSD's Deasy wants to raise high-school graduation requirements
Posted: 05/05/2012 05:22:47 PM PDT
Updated: 05/05/2012 05:24:44 PM PDT
Students in teacher James Schwagle's physics lab at Francis Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley do an experiment to graph velocity vs. time. The LAUSD board is set next week to consider a change in the curriculum that would require every student to take college-prep classes to graduate. Physics is one of the courses that could become mandatory. (John McCoy/Staff Photographer)
He's moved aggressively to weed out ineffective teachers, raise English-learners to language proficiency, make schools safer and engage more parents.Superintendent John Deasy is now poised to launch the next big piece in his model for reforming the Los Angeles Unified School District, a controversial move that would toughen the curriculum and grading scale to make every high school graduate eligible for entry to a state university.
His proposal is politically contentious, generating debate about his strategy to overhaul a system where just half the students now graduate from high school. Against the backdrop of a financial crisis and without a strong support system in place, will those now struggling to learn basic math be challenged by the rigors of Algebra II, or will they falter along the way?
"We have to think long and hard about what we're doing," said board member Steve Zimmer. "This policy is
