Education

By Michael W. "Mike" Fitzgerald

California's public education system was once the envy of our nation, but now our students rank near last in fundamentals like reading and arithmetic. As a product of California's public education system, and the son of a former California Teacher of the Year, I will not turn my back on public education, but realize it is in need of drastic reform.

Support expansion of charter schools to give parents a choice in determining the best learning environment for their children.

Guarantee funding for class size reduction.

Require that teachers be tested for subject-matter competency.

Support connecting our schools to the Internet and providing facilities that are conducive to a good learning environment.

Promote more English-as-a-Second-Language instruction in place of bi-lingual educatiion.

Support the evaluation of teachers by student test scores.

Oppose attempts to eliminate the use of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) score as a criterion for admission to the University of California and State University systems.