Education

By Michele M. (Bernard) Nash-Hoff

I want to ensure that our children have safe, successful, and secure schools that will prepare them to lead productive, satisfying lives as adults.

· Shift control back to parents and teachers, helping them to work together on a local basis.

· Award "needs" scholarships to parents who can show that their neighborhood school is performing below statewide criteria or that their child has special needs or talents that must be met elsewhere. These scholarships could be used to send children to the school of the parents' choice.

· Encourage dramatic school reform centered on school choice by fostering the formation of more Charter Schools.

· Provide all schools the opportunity to have an on-campus 6 a.m.-6 p.m. childcare program, such as the one provided by the City of San Diego.

· Utilize teaching methods that have proven to be successful, such as the phonics-based California Early Childhood Education Program of 1973-1978.

· Strive to provide every child with access to computers by the 4th grade.

· Continue reducing teacher/pupil ratio for all grades K-12.

· Provide more teacher scholarships in an attempt to attract more people to choose teaching as a career.

· Require accountability of administrators, principals, and teachers, rewarding success as appropriate and providing assistance where needed.

· Establish statewide academic standards.

· Measure the progress of individual students.

· Improve teacher training/certification.