Gov. Davis Proposes English Classes For Immigrants

His funding plan could also reduce the students-to-computer ratio, now one of the worst in the nation.

SACRAMENTO Computers for classrooms and intensive English classes for immigrant children and their parents are the latest budget goodies dangled by Gov. Gray Davis to end a week that was particularly kind to teachers.

Administration officials Sunday released the latest of five budget previews strung over the last week to tantalize Californians.

The Democratic governor releases his full revised budget, expected to total about $90 billion, today.

Since his original 2000-2001 budget plan in January, the state’s soaring economy has increased tax revenues for this year and next by as much as $13 billion.

The five education, tax and transportation proposals would spend about $7 billion of that.

All Davis’ budget proposals still need legislative approval as part of the budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. At least one a full state income tax exclusion for public school teachers elicited strong skepticism from lawmakers.

Public schools and teachers would get $3.5 billion of the surplus under the proposals announced over the last week. However, administration officials say that’s not all.

“I think there’ll be a little bit more to talk about tomorrow” for public schools and higher education, said a Davis aide who spoke Sunday on condition his name not be used.

Sunday’s proposals were $400 million additional for computers, Internet connections and teacher computer training and $300 million for intensive English training for 795,000 students and their parents.

Currently, California schools average 14.8 students per computer, one of the worst averages in the country, particularly considering the state is home to the Silicon Valley.

The funding could reduce that ratio to eight students per computer, compared with a national average of 9.8 to 1, the administration official said.

The state would sign a contract with one company to provide as many computers as possible, anywhere from 350,000 to 700,000. School districts would submit a plan to Davis’ education secretary to be eligible for the computers, which would go first to districts with the fewest, he said.

When added to computer money in Davis’ January budget plan, the total proposed for computers would be $600 million.

The English language training would take place in schools and community settings such as libraries.

The $300 million would be in addition to $100 million for English language training included in the January budget; $50 million of that is required by Proposition 227, the 1998 initiative that ended most bilingual education.

Kevin Gordon of the California Association of School Business Officials said the governor’s computer and English language proposals are in areas that many districts are also emphasizing.

He praised Davis for stressing computer training for teachers and including immigrants’ parents in the English instruction.

“Whatever we can do to raise the fluency of their parents so together they can understand and comprehend the challenge of the school curriculum, the more likely it is we’re going to lift achievement,” Gordon said.

Davis’ education proposals came during a week that started with a Capitol rally last Monday of more than 8,000 teachers, parents and school board members sponsored by the California Teachers Association.

The day after the rally, Davis and Democratic legislative leaders announced an agreement to include $1.8 billion in the budget that districts could use any way they want. Much of that money is expected to go for teacher pay raises.

The governor’s surprise teacher tax break Saturday is much more controversial. Both Democratic and Republican legislative leaders say it would single out one profession for a tax break while ignoring other worthy jobs such as police, firefighters and nursing home workers.

Davis’ press secretary Michael Bustamante defended the proposal Sunday and said Davis wants to make a statement that “this is the most important profession we have.”



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