Algebra

Gary Moskowitz According to standards set by the state, by the time Glendale students enter the ninth grade, they need to be ready to take algebra. For students like Joseph Chang, taking an introduction to algebra class this summer at Toll Middle School is a chance to review standardized concepts he struggled with during his seventh-grade school year. The class will also help Joseph, 13, get ahead of grade-level expectations. He is one of 100 students at Toll alone who are taking the summer course.

Judy Seckler ROSEMEAD -- Top performers from the district's math field day rose to the challenge by placing in the top three spots in several categories of the county Math Field Day competition. Five teams with four students each in fourth- through eighth-grade made the journey to Garvey Intermediate School in Rosemead on Saturday to compete against 400 students from 21 participating school districts. The sixth-grade team aced the competition in the algebra and function contest and the eighth-grade team won first in the measure and geometry contest.

Gary Moskowitz California Standards Test scores for 2002 show that Glendale freshmen seem to be honing their algebra skills, but percentages in English/language arts standards are generally less than state proficiency averages. The number of Glendale students being tested is well above 90%, according to district reports. Students in grades two through 11 take the standards test, along with the Stanford 9, every spring. In the 2002-03 school year, the SAT 9 will be replaced by the California Achievement Test.

Gary Moskowitz Crescenta Valley High School math teacher Lisa Reed was one of those kids completing addition and subtraction problems before showing up for kindergarten. Reed, who teaches advanced-placement calculus, statistics and algebra at Crescenta Valley High, fully admits to asking her mother to write down math problems for her to solve during breakfast. Reed's love of math, combined with her attention to individual student needs, the piloting of new math courses and reviews of the California High School Exit Exam math questions, have earned her the title of Glendale's Teacher of the Year for 2003.

Class size reduction for ninth grade classes The board unanimously voted to approve submission of the application to participate in the 2005/2006 Morgan Hart Class Reduction Program to reduce class size for ninth grade English and Algebra I classes. WHAT IT MEANS The approval of the application would allow the district to receive funds to reduce class sizes to an average of 20 students for every certified teacher, and a maximum of 22 students in the core subjects of English, mathematics, science or social studies.

Critics of public education have long complained that too many high school graduates are ill prepared, ill equipped and lack the basic academic skills to function effectively in today's society or to continue their post-secondary education. This situation is about to change with California's newly established high school exit exam. Under present legislative law, all students, beginning with the Class of 2006, must pass the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE)

Percentage of proficiency for each grade in each subject. -- Grades 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 English Language 43 50 51 57 50 51 46 50 51 44 Arts Math 62 57 60 61 56 55 n/a n/a n/a n/a General Math n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 45 34 n/a n/a Algebra 1 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 82 32 11 6 Geometry n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 95 76 39 19 Algebra 2 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 85 60 30 High School n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a...

Darleene Barrientos Glendale Unified students fared well in standardized test results released this week by the state Department of Education, but none fared better than the district's fifth-graders, who posted an 11% improvement in reading and a 5% increase in math scores. The state's standardized testing program includes the California Standards Test (CST) and the California Achievement Test, also known as CAT-6. The CAT-6 compares students to a national average, while the CST compares scores within the state.

GLENDALE — Students will have to pay $375 if they choose to take two semesters’ worth of classes during summer school, according to a cost-saving plan school board members unanimously approved Tuesday. The Glendale Unified School District plan comes without any guarantee of financial aid or scholarships for students who want to advance through a subject or who want to fulfill a graduation requirement. Students who want to take one semester’s worth of course work, such as health, would pay $190.