Each Thursday, we put one of our local newsmakers On The Spot.
This week: Assemblyman Gary Finch
This week's question: You made education reform a centerpiece of your most recent campaign. What steps are you planning to take to work on that problem?
Schools in the assembly district I represent are in a wide range of communities, from a small city like Auburn to rural districts such as Southern Cayuga and Union Springs. Educating such a diverse group of children can be very difficult. We should applaud the teachers, administrators, and board members of our schools because many of them surpass their responsibilities by volunteering countless hours to ensure our children get the best education possible.
I am committed to make certain that all children in our community receive a quality education and graduate to become productive and contributing members of our state's workforce and economy. While New York ranks among the highest in the nation on educational spending, we still fall short in the areas of test scores, graduation rates and school district accountability.
Studies indicate that the system seems to be effective from pre-K through the third grade but suffers a disconnect at the fourth-grade level.
The key to improving our education system involves working together to identify this breakdown. Conversing with teachers, administrators, board members and parents, one finds that attention must be brought to how our education system relates to students between the fourth and eighth grades.
These grades are a vital tier in our children's education, where they establish the foundation for their higher learning.
By focusing our attention on those areas, we can begin to identify ways to improve students#, success rates with the educational material that will prepare them to competing in our ever-more global economy.
My conference and I propose a broad range of programs that seek to address the problems we face, as well as influence and inspire a generation of students to enter the areas of math, science and technology.
The most important thing to remember is that our actions today affect our children for generations to come.
By listening to each other and working toward viable solutions, we can create a highly skilled and productive workforce.
This week's question: You made education reform a centerpiece of your most recent campaign. What steps are you planning to take to work on that problem?
Schools in the assembly district I represent are in a wide range of communities, from a small city like Auburn to rural districts such as Southern Cayuga and Union Springs. Educating such a diverse group of children can be very difficult. We should applaud the teachers, administrators, and board members of our schools because many of them surpass their responsibilities by volunteering countless hours to ensure our children get the best education possible.
I am committed to make certain that all children in our community receive a quality education and graduate to become productive and contributing members of our state's workforce and economy. While New York ranks among the highest in the nation on educational spending, we still fall short in the areas of test scores, graduation rates and school district accountability.
Studies indicate that the system seems to be effective from pre-K through the third grade but suffers a disconnect at the fourth-grade level.
The key to improving our education system involves working together to identify this breakdown. Conversing with teachers, administrators, board members and parents, one finds that attention must be brought to how our education system relates to students between the fourth and eighth grades.
These grades are a vital tier in our children's education, where they establish the foundation for their higher learning.
By focusing our attention on those areas, we can begin to identify ways to improve students#, success rates with the educational material that will prepare them to competing in our ever-more global economy.
My conference and I propose a broad range of programs that seek to address the problems we face, as well as influence and inspire a generation of students to enter the areas of math, science and technology.
The most important thing to remember is that our actions today affect our children for generations to come.
By listening to each other and working toward viable solutions, we can create a highly skilled and productive workforce.
Citizen
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