Petition to Preserve Equity and Excellence in Education at CCUSD

Culver City Unified School District has traditionally prided itself on excellence in education while providing individualized instruction adapted for the student’s level of readiness and interests. Culver City High School Principal Lisa Cooper and Kelli Tarvyd have removed the opportunity for 9th and 10th graders to pursue advanced study in English through Honors English classwork starting in the 2022-2023 academic year, as has already happened in the middle school. They justify that doing so will improve racial equity and expand participation in AP English classes.

However, there is no logical reason why eliminating Honors classes will achieve this goal, while decreasing academic opportunities can only weaken the academic rigor of our school. We can better promote equity by allowing all students the opportunity to pursue advanced studies in a public school, providing access to students for all racial and ethnic backgrounds. Eliminating advanced classes through “detracking” limits educational opportunities for everyone, including students from traditionally disadvantaged groups. 

The leadership has defended any criticism of these changes in the name of equity. But did you know that:

•  Little has been done to publicize the fact that Honors and AP classes are open to all
•  Our school system has failed to do a better job of identifying and cultivating accelerated learners regardless of background starting early in the educational system, when outreach has been shown to be most effective
• Other public school systems such as San Francisco have seen the achievement gaps between racial and ethnic groups widen after similar policies are implemented
• Most parents are not aware of these curriculum changes, which were made without publicity or any attempt to obtain input from the community 

Why is “detracking” such a bad idea? The answer is that eliminating choices for class selection will increase heterogeneity within the large classes at CCHS. With a wider range of student readiness, differentiated instruction will not be possible, leading to teachers teaching to the middle, so that both lower and higher achieving students get less attention. The administration and teachers assert, without evidence, that all students will be supported by in classroom “differentiation”, but this approach has never been successful in the setting of large class sizes in a public school. The meagre once weekly “Centaur Plus” time for receiving extra help will not be nearly enough to help students who are struggling, or who are not sufficiently challenged within a large, undifferentiated classroom.

Removing Honors and other opportunities for advanced studies will decrease the academic rigor of our classes and leave students less prepared for AP and college coursework. Meanwhile, the perception and reality of diminished excellence at CCUSD will lead to many parents looking elsewhere for their children’s education. These curriculum changes will put our students at a great disadvantage relative to students at schools that continue to provide opportunities for advanced study in 9th and 10th grade. Thus, our students will have their current and future opportunities diminished, as they become disadvantaged in applying to colleges in the UC system and beyond. Perhaps you may feel that this change in the English curriculum does not affect your child, but you may feel differently when opportunities for advanced study begin to disappear across other subjects, as has happened in other districts.

We address this petition to the CCHS leadership and to the superintendent of the Culver City Unified School district, Quoc Tran, to ask that parents and students have their voices heard before this change goes into effect. CCHS leadership has not been open with parents and students in the justification and planning for these changes. Experiences in other districts have demonstrated that detracking negatively impacts academic achievement, decreasing test scores and increasing the achievement gap between students. Our community deserves to know how the impact of these changes will be measured, whether a plan is in place to eliminate Honors programs in other classes, and whether the school will remove the ability to accelerate in mathematics. We should explore ways to promote equity without sacrificing academic excellence at CCUSD and preserve the opportunity for advanced studies in our schools.

What we are asking of Superintendent Tran, the Board, and CCHS administration:

1.Pause the plan for curriculum change to allow for parent input into the process and to consider other approaches to promote equal access to advanced classes
2. Define the plan for evaluation of this change and the timeframe for review. The plan for evaluation should be shared before making any changes
3. Detail the specific programs in place to engage students at the higher and lower ends of preparation including plans for reducing class sizes before making any changes
4. Pledge that additional elimination of Honors or accelerated classes not occur without notification and engagement of the community and opportunity for discussion

All parents should have their voices heard on the subject of curriculum change. Here is what you need to do next:

1. Sign this petition ito lend your voice in keeping class choice available in CCUSD by preserving the option for advanced studies

2. Forward this petition via Facebook, Twitter, or email using the buttons to the right to share with your friends and other families in Cuvler City

3. Signing this petition will send an email to CCUSD leadership sharing your opinion, or you can email directly to: Principal Lisa Cooper: lisacooper@ccusd.org; the Board of Education, boardmembers@ccusd.org, and Quoc Tran: quoctran@ccusd.org  

4. Attend a parent Town Hall meeting to voice your concerns and learn more about this issue

5. Vote for candidates in the upcoming Culver City School Board election that support education and equity in our schools