Friday, March 7, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
CARSON CITY -- After years of debate about the falling achievements of students, the state Board of Education has narrowly decided to retain the same number of credits required for high school graduation.
And that decision Thursday disappointed Clark County School Superintendent Brian Cram. "Our desire was to have it changed," Cram said today. He said the district favored keeping a state requirement for rigorous core subjects but allowing the district to decide on the electives.
The current state regulations require 14 credits in the core or basic subjects such as math, English, history and science. And it sets 8 1/2 credits for elective courses.
Cram said he had no objection to the state raising the core requirements but the district should have to ability to set the elective schedules.
Some groups wanted to lower the current 22 1/2 credits and give the school districts more flexibility in allowing students to take certain classes. Others sought to increase the credits required for core classes, such as science and mathematics.
In the end, the board voted 6-5 to stay at the same figure. It defeated a motion to raise the basic subjects from 14 to 17 and have only three elective credits.
Cram said the current mandated 22 1/2 credits makes it difficult for a student who fails two classes to make them up for graduation because of the high requirements for electives that also must be satisfied. "We agree with tough, rigorous core subjects, but give us flexibility" in the electives, he said.
By not requiring as many electives, Cram said a student could concentrate more on academic skills. He noted Nevada is second lowest in the nation for those who have a college education.
Board President Da vid Sheffield of Elko initially had championed the plan for raising the core credits to 17, but then he switched.
"The reason I switched was I realized the graduation requirements were not the issue," Sheffield said. "The issue is standards." The counties in his district in Northern Nevada already require more than the state's 22 1/2 credits.
"The public equates standards with graduation requirements. If we drop to 20 (credits), they will be saying, 'You're talking out of both sides of your mouth.'"
Board member Bill Hanlon of Las Vegas backed the plan for raising the core requirements and dropping the electives so the number of credits would be lowered to 20. He argued Nevada has the fifth-highest high school credit requirements in the nation but it certainly doesn't produced the fifth-highest student achievement scores.
But the board voted 10-1 against the suggestion of raising the core from 14 to 17 credits.
Many of those who testified Thursday favored leaving the credit requirement alone. The Nevada State Education Association, a union of teachers, urged no change. So did many vocational education officials who felt that lowering the overall credit requirements would hurt their programs in preparing children for jobs.
archive
