ITEM The state Board of Education has approved delaying the requirement that high school students pass the math section of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning in order to graduate. Thats in the wake of the failure of 49 percent of sophomores last spring to pass the math test, and an announcement by Gov. Chris Gregoire and Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson that they will ask the 2007 Legislature to approve the delay through 2010. In the meantime, plans are for better teacher training, more emphasis on the importance of math and a longer school day and year.
by Don C. BrunellPresident, Association of Washington BusinessGrowing up in the mid-1960s, my parents blamed everything on The Beatles. According…
by Sheldon Richman
by William Maurer
With thousands of local children returning to school this week, students and drivers must use extra caution to ensure their safety and to prevent a tragic accident. The dangers are real in October 2005 a M-PHS student was seriously injured when he was hit by a bus while on his way to school in darkness of the early morning.
by Jim Hightower
Despite the dedication and hard work of a group of very committed volunteers, it appears, unfortunately, that the Arlington Library Bond which appeared on the Nov. 7 general election ballot has failed to get the required 60 percent supermajority needed to pass.
We live in an area blessed with many good things and a few IBPEs (Irregular But Predictable Emergencies). November is a good case in point.
I got two items of feedback on my last article, the one that probed into the complex mire of our Iraq involvement. Both questioned the middle part in which I tried to explore why simplistic notions of victory and defeat cant fit the situation.
Okay, elections over, back to the real world.
by Jim Hightower
This column first appeared here Dec. 17, 1997. We reprint it by request.
by Senator Maria Cantwell
