By Senator Rosemary McAuliffe and Senator Eric Oemig

Redefining the funding formula for Basic Education is the critical catalyst for moving our K-12 educational system into the 21st century. It is our responsibility as Chair and Vice Chair of the Washington State Early Learning & K-12 Committee to identify and implement policies that allow all children the opportunity to learn and to support educators with the resources they need to deliver a quality education for every child.In the 2009 session we redefined Basic Education (House Bill 2261) which sets a pathway for essential improvements needed in our educational  system. 

We started work this summer and fall by traveling around the state and conducting listening tours — the sole purpose being to listen to what teachers on the ground have to say and make sure our objectives align with real needs. We realize every classroom and school has unique needs and that one size does not fit all. By speaking with multiple teachers from across the state, we have gained insight into the types of reform that will be meaningful for teachers in different classrooms.

Here is some of what we heard from teachers:

• The real discussion that needs to happen is about how the state is going to revamp the tax structure in order to fund our schools better and increase revenue.
• Over the years the education budget has become a smaller percentage of the overall budget and yet schools are being asked to do more. 
• Both the professional development and certification process needs to be something that helps teachers in the classroom, not just more process and more hoops to jump through.
• Evaluation needs some focus on the administrator's role rather than always focusing all the attention on the teachers.
• Procert seems like it was a “bandaid” response to the underlying problem of lack of quality control.  One of the values of Procert is the introspective aspects of it, but that would potentially be more helpful later in the career of a teacher.
• An accountability system must look at all that impacts a student's learning: parental and societal responsibilities, state obligations, and federal obligations.
• Districts need some accountability in terms of how they allocate the money to the schools and how that impacts student achievement.
• Policy makers need to understand the realities of all students as you create new standards and measures of accountability — one size does not fit all. 
• Basic Education must be more broadly defined than just Math, English, and Science. 
• Smaller class sizes is the most important part of improving education in Washington.
• Teachers are not opposed to data collection or use of data, just make sure you are using and looking at the right data and that the data is accurate.
• Administrators don't have the time they need to really be an effective instructional leader and work with teachers.
  The state is accountable for funding education and shouldn't be holding teachers accountable when the state isn't giving schools the money needed to do the job.
• Need to blend the early learning programs with the K-12 system. 
• Community and parent involvement in the classroom is a valuable resource that needs to be encouraged but in a way that does not create additional burdens for teachers.

We have brought these thoughts, and others, back to the Quality Education Council (QEC). One of the main short term objectives is to address the "implementation" of the new definition of Basic Education and the policies and funding necessary to support it. The long-term objective of the QEC is to build the constantly evolving 10-year plan for Washington K-12 education — establishing goals and priorities for education in order to make sure all students have the opportunity to learn.  

1. By listening to the hundreds of teachers around the state and discussions through the QEC, we plan to move forward with the following steps:
2. Recommendations to the Legislature for how to convert the current funding formula into a prototypical school funding formula at current levels of state spending (The "Crosswalk").
3. Recommend a Program of Early Learning for at risk children.
4. Recommend a schedule for phasing-in any increases in program requirements concurrently with increases in funding, with full implementation by 2018.
5. Consider a phase-in schedule for a new pupil transportation funding formula.
6. Work with the Achievement Gap Oversight Committee to integrate programs that address the achievement gap into everything we do.
7. Closely monitor work on the Accountability System and the Education Data Improvement System and consider recommendations from the QEC to the Legislature to support continued progress on these objectives. Also, monitor the development and implementation of the new certification system.
8. Consider a statewide beginning teacher mentoring and support system. 

There are many steps involved with bringing policy to practice and the above steps are just a start. As we move forward with the effort to redefine Basic Education, we want to continue engaging teachers and administrators around the state. We recognize the state needs to provide the necessary resources and tools to ensure that policy can become practice. This is a shared responsibility of everyone involved.