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THE SENATE                           S.R. NO.              
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                    SENATE  RESOLUTION

  REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND THE UNIVERSITY OF
    HAWAII TO DEVELOP A SEAMLESS K-16 EDUCATION SYSTEM THAT
    WILL ENABLE STUDENTS TO MOVE EASILY FROM ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
    TO MIDDLE SCHOOL, MIDDLE SCHOOL TO HIGH SCHOOL, HIGH
    SCHOOL TO COLLEGE, AND COLLEGE TO WORK.



 1        WHEREAS, according to grade school and community
 2   college/university educators, students encounter "bumps" at
 3   certain points along the education "highway":  at kindergarten,
 4   first grade, fourth grade, sixth grade, ninth grade, community
 5   college entrance, university entrance, and graduate school; and
 6   
 7        WHEREAS, these "bumps" are due, in part, to the fact that
 8   many students continue to the next grade without having learned
 9   the material they should have learned in the previous grade.
10   Community college/university officials fault the high schools,
11   the high schools fault the middle schools, and the middle
12   schools fault the elementary schools; and
13   
14        WHEREAS, by stressing the skills that students need to
15   master before moving to the next grade, educators are hoping to
16   see for grade schools:  improved test scores, reduced student
17   dropout rates, and increased high school graduation rates.  For
18   community colleges and universities, educators are hoping to
19   see a reduced need for remedial programs, better prepared
20   students, and increased graduation rates; and
21   
22        WHEREAS, a seamless education system could compliment the
23   statewide student performance standards because the former
24   defines what students need to know and when they need to know
25   it, and how educators should teach and, in turn, be taught in
26   order for students to learn; and because the latter is built
27   upon the systematic acquisition and application of more and
28   more advanced knowledge, until students graduate from high
29   school; and
30   
31        WHEREAS, because of the different ways in which the grade
32   school and community college/university systems evolved, there
33   is little or no coordination in teaching from kindergarten to
34   college and, consequently, little or no chance for each level
35   to support the other professionally and to maximize the use of
36   their collective human and material resources; and
37   

 
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                                  S.R. NO.              
                                                        
                                                        


 1        WHEREAS, the development of a seamless K-16 education
 2   system could increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the
 3   grade school and community college/university systems by
 4   reducing the need for time-consuming, expensive, and
 5   duplicative placement tests and prerequisite coursework; and
 6   
 7        WHEREAS, the State needs a highly educated citizenry for
 8   the 21st century -- not to hold high-status jobs, but to
 9   understand and evaluate solutions that are proposed for the
10   complicated problems of an ever increasing world; to meet the
11   demands of democratic citizenship; and to appreciate and
12   participate in the kinds of artistic, creative, and
13   recreational activities that allow people to live meaningful
14   and fulfilling lives; now, therefore,
15   
16        BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twentieth Legislature
17   of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2000, that the
18   Department of Education and the University of Hawaii are
19   requested to develop a seamless K-16 education system that will
20   enable students to move easily from elementary school to middle
21   school, middle school to high school, high school to college,
22   and college to work; and
23   
24        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education
25   and the University of Hawaii are requested to submit joint
26   progress reports, along with any findings, recommendations, or
27   requests they may have, to the Legislature and the Governor not
28   less than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular
29   Session of 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004; and
30   
31        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
32   Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of
33   Education, the Chairperson of the Board of Regents of the
34   University of Hawaii, the Superintendent of Education, and the
35   President of the University of Hawaii.
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39                         OFFERED BY:  ____________________________