Don't Sign the Anti-LEARNS Petition! (Part II)

If you read Part I of this series, you know the goal of the petitioners is to overturn Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders' new education law called the LEARNS Act. Overturning LEARNS is an attempt to maintain the Arkansas public education system in its current form, a form that fails far too many students in our state. In this second part of this series, you'll learn what LEARNS is and why signing the petition is a bad deal. (Part I, Part III)

Our goal is to mobilize citizen volunteers to overturn or veto the LEARNS Act ~ CAPES Website

LEARNS is a sweeping, bold overhaul of Arkansas's public education system. In my 17 years as a teacher, I've suffered through several failed education reform efforts, including No Child Left Behind, Common Core, and Every Student Succeeds. All were long on promise and short on results. Many like to point the finger and blame teachers every time one of these reform efforts fails, but the truth is the vast majority of teachers want to see their students succeed. Most teachers go to work every day and give their absolute best effort within the constraints imposed by the system in place. Reform efforts of the past typically imposed additional constraints. The picture this brings to mind is the character Jacob Marley in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Marley's ghost, weighed down with heavy chains, confronts Scrooge and declares that he forged every link in the chain by his own choices in life. Teachers are burdened by similar chains, but they were forged by politicians, administrators, and policymakers instead of the teachers themselves. Every time a link was added to the chain, the more difficult it became to actually teach the kids.

No Child Left Behind mandated high stakes testing. Before Common Core, curriculum in US public schools was often described as "a mile wide and an inch deep." Common Core tried to mandate a mile wide and mile deep curriculum that befuddled kids and their parents alike. Then Every Student Succeeds mandated a transparent reporting system that essentially made schools create a transparent reporting system to show the world just how impossible the impossible constraints were. In the end, none of the reform efforts we've endured in Arkansas have lifted us out of this pit where kids graduate from high school without the skills required to succeed after graduation.

Governor Sanders took office in January and said, ENOUGH! Instead of introducing another reform effort that trims the system around its edges, she pushed a complete renovation of the system, from Pre-K to 12th grade, from school security to teacher pay, and everything in between. L is for Literacy

The LEARNS Act insists that kids learn to read! And believe it or not, that's controversial! One major component of the Act is that kids who can't read on grade level by the end of the 3rd grade will be retained. They'll repeat the 3rd grade. If that seems harsh, think about this. From kindergarten to 3rd grade, kids learn to read. Starting in 4th grade, kids read to learn. They're required to read in order to learn. If they start 4th grade unequipped to learn, they're going to fall farther and farther behind in subsequent years. Never catching up. Always falling farther and farther behind. The Act calls for specially trained support personnel to help get kids to grade level and to keep them at grade level. LEARNS recognizes that practically all learning depends on a student's ability to read and commits to prioritizing literacy for all kids.

E is for Empowerment

Imagine an education system where parents are empowered to make the best choice to provide the best education for their kids. You have to imagine it at this point because it's never been a reality for anyone before. School choice has been a thing for a while in Arkansas, but in limited form. Receiving schools were capped at the number they could take. Many families didn't have the means to get their kids out of schools that absolutely failed their kids. LEARNS expands school choice to include a universal school voucher program. Under this program, the money the state pays a school district for each child enrolled will "follow the student." Instead of automatically going to the district where the student resides, that money will go to the school the student attends, even if that is a private or charter school.

The voucher program may be the most controversial part of the LEARNS Act. An Opportunity Arkansas poll from early this year found a majority of Arkansas voters support vouchers, but only a 51% majority, easily within the poll's margin of error. Opponents of LEARNS harp that vouchers will strip public schools of funding. The truth is, good public schools, public schools that educate their students, will be the recipients of a lot of these funds. You will hear it said this will bankrupt rural schools. But the truth is most rural residents simply don't have the option of private schools because there just aren't private schools close enough to utilize. If rural residents want to take advantage of the voucher program, most will be transferring their student to another public school they believe will better serve their child. LEARNS will empower parents to choose the school they believe will best prepare their child to succeed in the future. A is for Accountability

It may be hard to believe, but there are teachers out there who were accused of serious ethical violations who were never reported. They were simply allowed to resign their position and take a job at another district. LEARNS will stop that. Superintendents will be required to report such violations to the Department of Education. Even allegations of offenses that could result in the loss of a teaching license will require reporting. In these cases a notation will be added to the teacher's license that it is under review or its there are charges pending. There is also a section in the law that provides teacher "bonuses" of up to $10,000 for effective teachers. A sort of merit pay, this should incentivize teachers to increase their effectiveness. Should we not all desire effective teaching?

R is for Readiness

According to the Arkansas School Report Card, only 41% of Arkansas high school students enrolled in college the fall following their graduation. LEARNS mandates schools develop career ready pathways for students with future plans that don't include college. There are many opportunities in skilled trades that do not require a college degree. Students headed down that path should be well-served and well-prepared by their K-12 experience also.

N is for Networking

Regardless what direction they go, today's students will utilize technology and the internet. LEARNS plans to increase available bandwidth to students across the state so that every student learns to navigate the technological environment of the future workplace. A September 2020 study found that 10% of Arkansas households with children had no internet connection. In July of 2021 it was reported that "54 percent of Arkansans have access to only one internet provider capable of providing an internet connection that runs at minimally acceptable speeds." Without a doubt, Arkansas students need better access to the internet to prepare for their future.

S is for School Safety

I served on the 2018 and 2022 Arkansas School Safety Commission. We spent months studying school safety and produced two reports following the school shootings in Parkland, FL and Uvalde, TX with sweeping recommendations to improve school safety. Many schools and districts were slow to adopt those recommendations, and many of the recommendations remain unadopted in a lot of districts. LEARNS mandates many of these recommendations in an effort to improve safety and security of Arkansas schools. 

That is a quick overview of LEARNS, the law the petition peddlers hope to overturn.

One thing that should be clear is every word and every clause in this law is focused on improving education for Arkansas STUDENTS. Teachers are not the focus. Administrators are not the focus. The focus, 100% of the focus, is to provide Arkansas students a better education.  And the petition pushers want to stop that from happening.