Governor Steve Beshear has
suggested it “is time for a thorough review of the Kentucky Education Reform Act,” and said that next week he will launch a task force on early childhood services to better coordinate and have more consistent services.
“It’s critical that our children enter the K-12 system with minds prepared to work,” Beshear said.
He also wants more dialog between education, business and legislative leaders.
Western Kentucky University President Gary Ransdell was pleased to hear of the interest in reviewing KERA and seeing where improvements can be made.
“We (at universities) are spending a lot of money on developmental education for underprepared students,” Ransdell said. “I just don’t know how much longer we can do that. Our primary focus has to be on capable, prepared students if we are to drive Kentucky’s economy.
“I agree wholeheartedly that public education has to prepare students,” he said. “A university has to focus on ‘higher’ education, and not offering a repetition of what a student should already have when they get to us. And if that is to be done, then we need to partner with community and technical colleges to do most of that remediation.”
Rep. Jim DeCesare, R-Bowling Green, said he was both surprised and pleased with the governor’s line that it was time for a review of KERA.
“Hopefully, we will be able to get something done with changes in the (Kentucky Accountability Testing System) and portfolios, like I have been working on all along,” DeCesare said.
...Rep. Jody Richards, D-Bowling Green, said he’s not sure if the governor plans to form a task force to study KERA or whether he expects changes to be made through legislation already proposed during this session.
“The House will certainly look at those changes,” Richards said. “The main thing is the testing, which is so influenced by whether or not (the federal) No Child Left Behind will be retained. To me, that is a big culprit. (NCLB) doesn’t help the Kentucky educational process – and it really harms it – because it’s another layer of assessment on what we already had.
“There may be a chance that Congress will repeal that, and it would be the best thing that could happen to us.” ...
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