Thursday, Jan. 8, 1998 | 10:07 a.m.
A nationwide study by Education Week magazine, a Washington, D.C., based publication for educators, gives Nevada low grades in several areas of public education, basically showing little or no improvement compared to a similar study released last year.
But at least one Nevada official says he doubts that the numbers in the study, which he has not yet seen, reflect major strides that have been made in recent years.
"Massive attention has been given to education in the last 18 to 24 months," said David Sheffield, president of the State Board of Education.
Sheffield also is on the Council to Establish Academic Standards for Public Schools, a committee created by the 1997 Legislature to improve educational standards in schools across the state.
If the 1998 report card is like the 1997 report card it misses its marks, Sheffield believes.
"Education was the No. 1 issue in the last Legislature," said Sheffield, an Elko resident. "We're nowhere close to where we want to be, but on the other hand we have made some strides and are working toward making Nevada a premier state in education."
Last year Education Week ranked Nevada 39th in the amount of money it spends per student, an average of $4,842.
Though that amount has grown to $5,084, according to the publication's spokesman Craig Jerald, Nevada still ranks 39th -- thus earning a "D" in the study's estimation.
The national spending average is $5,787 per student.
Comparing the 1997 and 1998 reports, Nevada declined in these three areas of resources examined by researchers:
One of the declines sure to upset many in the field of education was in quality of teaching, which received a C- in 1997 but this year the grade dropped to a D.
"We looked at whether the state was putting into place performance-based standards and whether teachers actually meet certain standards," Jerald explained. "Nevada hasn't adopted any such standards, there is no assessment for knowledge and skill."
In at least two categories, Nevada did not receive grades because it is in the process of developing standards -- those areas include standards in the teaching of math and English.
The study, titled, "Quality Counts '98," was released today, both in a 270-page bound copy as well as on the publication's Web site.
The report warns that all states are in danger of failing to improve education if they don't recognize their problems and solve them.
Sheffield said Nevada is identifying its problems, with the help of several nationally recognized education consultants.
One of the biggest problems is the rapid growth -- a double-edged sword that has created a booming economy but makes providing education difficult.
The state has a massive transient population and a population made up of large numbers of non-English speaking students -- about 3 in 10, according to Sheffield.
"Iowa has a very homogenous population," he noted. "There are not a lot of people coming in and going out ... but when you open 40 to 45 new schools a year (as in Nevada) you have a lot of things you have to deal with."
According to Sheffield, the state has fared a lot better in other studies conducted by other organizations in recent months.
Those studies, he said, recognize the major strides the state has made in education.
Sheffield pointed out researchers who put together the study for Education Week didn't bother to spend any time in the state.
"If you are going to do an exhaustive study, you need to spend some time in the state and talk to the players," said Sheffield, pointing out that Nevada students generally score above average on national standardized tests. "No one talked to us."
John Jasonek, spokesman for the 20,000-member Nevada State Education Association, also complained researchers didn't visit classrooms.
"Their numbers (in the survey) may be credible," said Jasonek, who also has not seen the report, "but to take those numbers and to make them into grades is not fair simply because they have not been in a classroom here. We know for a fact that Nevada teachers are as good or better than teachers anywhere else."
Jasonek vigorously defended the state's teachers, though he agreed with the report that not enough money is being spent on education.
Jerald said grades were based on a number of factors, including such things as whether tough academic standards were being established, whether enough was being done to upgrade the quality of education, class size and parental involvement.
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