UC Davis experts: School reform
UC Davis has experts available to talk on a wide array of topics related to school reform.
- Standardized testing and English learners
- School oversight and improvement
- Ethnic diversity in schools
- Higher education's role in school reform
- Academic literacy
Standardized testing and English learners
Increased use of standardized tests has raised the stakes for all students, but for non-native speakers of English, the tests can create potentially insurmountable obstacles. Jamal Abedi, professor of education, says the tests put an undue burden on English learners and may result in unreliable test results. Abedi's research points to the need to simplify test language to ensure that all students are assessed fairly. Abedi can also discuss concerns about accommodations for English learners made in response to recent legislation mandating inclusion of all students in national and state assessments. He contends that some of these test accommodations may not be appropriate, effective or valid. Contact: Jamal Abedi, School of Education, (530) 754-9150, .
School oversight and improvement
California spends more than $373 million per year through its High Priority Schools Grant Program, which helps schools with the lowest student achievement scores boost student performance. Schools that fail to improve face sanctions, including potential closure or state takeover. Thomas Timar, professor of education, can talk about whether this carrot-and-stick approach is working. Timar studies how low-performing schools spend the grants, how they measure results, and whether the grants lead to long-term improvement. Timar can also discuss alternative models of school oversight and accountability, including the British "inspectorate" model. Contact: Thomas Timar, School of Education, (530) 754-6654, .
Ethnic diversity in schools
Michal Kurlaender, assistant professor of education, studies the impact of racial and ethnic diversity on student outcomes. She can talk about the dismantling of federal mandatory and voluntary school desegregation plans and persistent inequalities in segregated minority schools, including access to adequate classroom resources and good teachers. Kurlaender serves on the advisory board of the Chief Justice Warren Institute on Race, Ethnicity and Diversity at the UC Berkeley School of Law. She is also a faculty affiliate of the Harvard University Civil Rights Project and a policy research panel member for Policy Analysis for California Education. Kurlaender has worked with several school districts that have undergone major changes in enrollment as a result of recent legal challenges. Contact: Michal Kurlaender, School of Education, (530) 752-3748, .
Higher education's role in school reform
Harold Levine, dean of the UC Davis School of Education, can talk about efforts under way at colleges and universities throughout California to help ensure that all students have an equal opportunity to learn and succeed. Levine serves as associate provost for education initiatives at the UC Office of the President, responsible for developing, implementing and evaluating strategies for coordinated, ongoing collaborations between University of California campuses and California's public preschool through 12th-grade schools. He is also a member of California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell's P-16 Council, a statewide group of education, business and community leaders charged with developing strategies to better coordinate, integrate and improve education for preschool through college students. Levine's research focuses on entrepreneurship in education and organizational structure. Contact: Harold Levine, School of Education, (530) 752-4663, .
Academic literacy
Kerry Villalva, assistant professor of education, can discuss the difference between everyday English fluency and academic literacy. According to Villalva, bilingual high school students who may have spent years in U.S. schools and been deemed "fluent" in English often do not have the level of literacy needed to do well in their academic coursework. Villalva argues that an understanding of how adolescents, both monolingual and bilingual, navigate various academic and social activities is essential to developing effective approaches to increase their participation in the classroom and improve their language and literacy skills. Villalva is fluent in Spanish. Contact: Kerry Villalva, School of Education, (530) 754-6374, .
Media contact:
- Claudia Morain , News Service, (530) 752-9841, .
Last updated Nov. 27, 2007
