The 2015 National Report Card, sampling of fourth and eighth graders in reading and math, showed that California students are near the bottom when compared to the rest of the nation.

When you take under consideration the large number of English learners and children living in poverty, the analysis shows that the state would be be ranked near the bottom.

In such a “progressive” state, where more than $53 billion a year is spent on K-12 education, this latest Report Card shows that our broken educational system is failing our kids, community and state.

While some education and parent leaders are calling for something to be done, the California Department of Education spokesman Bill Ainsworth stated, “We don’t believe they are a good measure of California students’ progress.”

How is testing students in reading and math not a good measure of students’ progress? Have the words changes? Have numbers changed? Is 9 x 9 different now? Or how about 20 + 15? How about reading comprehension? Or the definition of words?

Excuses from teachers unions and the state department of education is to be expected.

At the end of all your excuses, California still ranks near the bottom.

At the end of all your excuses, our students are failing.

At the end of all your excuses, companies in California are recruiting and hiring immigrants from other countries for engineering and computer science work.

Bill, tell your boss, State Superintendent of Public Schools, Tom Torlakson, more excuses isn’t solving the problem. So what are you going to do about the problem?

To Read More About The National Report Card