Rita F. Silva: Senate bill devalues education in California
Just when I thought that Sacramento couldn’t dumb-down our educational system any more, Senate Bill 172 proves me wrong. If a student can’t pass an exit exam based mostly on what they learned in their sophomore year, we will give them a diploma anyway. And we may as well give diplomas to the students who couldn’t pass the test in the past.
We taxpayers made a contract with our school system; we give you millions of dollars and you will give our children the best possible education. This contract has been broken, and we should get our money back. A diploma, a job, the military and college grants are not a right, they are part of the “pursuit of happiness,” which is a right. SB172 is a slap in the face to the millions of students who strive to excel and achieve these goals. Giving out these diplomas tells students these that we don’t think they’re smart enough to earn them.
With SB172, there are no winners, only losers. What happens when these students get out into the real world and discover that sometimes you lose or fail, it is all part of life.
Rita F. Silva, Los Banos
This story was originally published October 29, 2015 at 7:22 PM with the headline "Rita F. Silva: Senate bill devalues education in California."