Independent study: a vital option worth fighting for: independent study schools are required to educate their students to the same level as traditional schools. They just do it in a different way

Leadership, May-June, 2002 by Bob Taylor

As the current president of the California Consortium for Independent Study, I have been spending too much time in Sacramento defending independent study. There have been some financial abuses in the past by a few school districts, but we are working to change that and to educate the public and legislators about the quality of most of our programs.

Now, with the Public Schools Accountability Act and the SAT-9, plus the need for students to pass the High School Exit Exam and the need for all schools to meet the state standards, many improvements have been made to independent study programs and schools. They are required to meet the same standards as any other school in a district. Independent study is nothing more than an alternative method of instruction.

Unfortunately, Gov. Gray Davis is trying to save the state $43 million by cutting independent study schools' ADA by 10 percent. This amount of money would really have little impact at the state level, but to my district and many others it would require very drastic cuts in educational services.

The independent study high school where I am principal provides all of the same academic services as a comprehensive high school. If these funds were lowered, I am not sure we could continue to offer all of these services. All of our funding goes toward academics.

Gov. Davis feels that it is less expensive to run an independent study program or school than it is to run a comprehensive program, so budgets can be cut. My argument is that if it is less expensive, why not put every student in the state on independent study?

In my school district, I have on-site classrooms, three satellites with Internet access, a computer lab with quality software programs and books and materials for all of the students. And because of the requirement to pass algebra, we have a credentialed math teacher teaching a math lab. The old concept of students meeting one hour a week with a teacher can no longer exist. Current state law states that independent study has to be "equal or better than" the other schools. We have to educate our students to the same level, we just have to do it in a different way.

The California Consortium for Independent Study is currently sponsoring legislation to try to change the budget proposal and to try to eliminate much of the unneeded paperwork and allow our teachers more time to work on the curriculum and with their students. We are also working against a proposal to cut funding for summer school for independent study students. In our legislative efforts, CCIS has received backing from ACSA and other professional groups.

While independent study is not appropriate for all students, all students will not be successful in the "regular" classroom. We have some very talented students who just need a different way to receive their education. We cannot ignore that. We all have to work together to make sure these students' needs are met.

Bob Taylor is principal of Sierra Vista High School in the Tulare Joint Union High School District and state president of the California Consortium for Independent Study.