Education Reform

By: Associated Press

Updated: Mon 10:37 AM, Dec 16, 2002

Some education proponents say that 20 years after landmark school reforms in Mississippi the state is again falling behind.

Former Gov. William Winter, the architect of the 1982 Education Reform Act, says the sweeping reforms achieved the promise expected, but now must evolve.

After the 1982 legislation, kindergarten became mandatory, education compulsory, standards uniform and more stringent and credentials for teaching tougher to obtain.

Retired Jackson schools Superintendent Jayne Sargent says the
state must keep moving forward with new reforms.

Today's concerns are:

Pushing early childhood education below the kindergarten level.
Easing the chronic shortage of trained teachers.
Building on the state's system for judging how successfully schools are teaching students.
And ensuring consistent and stable funding.

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