Update on Senator Wiger's Three Strikes and You Graduate Bill

The Three Strikes bill is moving through the Senate and getting more press. Unfortunately, most people are missing a key point.

Passing the GRAD Math exam is not required to earn your diploma. In fact, the GRAD "Parents Brochure" found on the Minnesota Department of Education website list 4 ways to meet the diploma requirement:

How do students meet the graduation requirement?
There are a number of ways to meet the diploma requirement, including
• Receiving a proficient score on the MCA-II
• Receiving a passing score on the GRAD
• Receiving a Pass Individual (for students on IEP or 504 Plans)
OR
• Receiving a passing score on a GRAD retest

While the GRAD Math exam is "embedded" in the MCA-II exam, the GRAD Math is only part of the total math portion of the MCA-II. This means that a student could fall short on the GRAD math questions, but do well enough on the remaining math questions to pass the MCA-II without meeting the GRAD requirement. In that case, and this has been confirmed by the department, the student would still earn a diploma because they met one of the "4 ways to meet the diploma requirement."

Understanding this reaffirms my opposition to Senator Wiger's bill. I don't doubt that the math test may be difficult. I don't doubt that some of our students aren't prepared for the GRAD math testing. But, I actually believe that the state has adequate options for our students in this regard. Even if they fail the GRAD Math test when it is administered in their Junior year of high school, they still have 2 paths to graduation open to them. They could pass the MCA-II exam and still graduate or they can retake the GRAD math exam until they do pass it. There are several opportunities to retake, and pass, the GRAD before graduation.

The real issue that should be addressed is whether the GRAD math exam is too dificult, our math programs are too weak, or both. If the GRAD requirements are excessive, we definitely should have them reviewed and reworked. If the GRAD requirements are found to be appropriate, then we need to find ways to improve our mathematics curiculums. Lets not dismiss the importance of mathmatics proficiency while we work on the root of the problem.

Anti-bullying law introduced by Senator Wiger

I want to believe that the Senators who introduced the anti-bullying bill in the Minnesota Senate are doing so out of care and concern for those students who suffer with bullying in school. It is a noble goal, but it is the wrong place for it.

In the interest of full disclosure, I was on the wrong side of bullies most of my school days. I was that kid who had to explain to my mom why my good school clothes were ruined, my broken finger, and the numerous days I was late because I had to find a creative path home to avoid the confrontations.

I beieve that bullying needs to be addressed and reduced, if not eliminated. Like most education issues though, I don't believe that our state government should be legislating school behavior. Teachers, Principals, staff and school districts need to consider bullying when they create, review and impliment their disciplinary and student safety policies every year. For the state to imply that this doesn't happen is ridiculous. Bullying isn't some new issue that requires special training to understand. To think that schools need the state to tell their staff that this is a problem and that well crafted state statutes will fix the problem is ludicrous.

After reading about the bill, I believe that the actual intent is to educate school staff on the unique issues facing students who are bullied for issues of "gender identity". While this is one reason for bullying, it is only one of many. Regardless of the reason, bullying is wrong, period.

Again, I don't believe that the state should, or honestly can, legislate tolerance for students who are already coping with the pressures of their own gender identity issues. This is an issue that should be addressed on its own merits, and not masked under the guise of bullying. This is an issue that needs to be considered by teachers, principals, staff, schools and school districts when preparing policies for an upcoming school year. But, schools shouldn't have their policies dictated by the state, and likewise, shouldn't wait for the state to tell them what issues are important, and what issues need to be addressed.

If a child is being bullied in school, parents should feel welcome to bring this issue to the school's attention. If school districts need to enact policies to improve how bullying is handled, then take the issue to the school board. My bullying issues ended in my high school principals office, not on the floor of the state capitol. This is where this issue needs to be addressed and dealt with.