Evaluating the state’s academic performance

Re “California Students Are Still

Struggling,” Oct. 20

So “some education experts attribute the disparity (among large-group test scores) to dwindling academic focus on older students.” How about attributing it, at least in part, to lousy versus good attendance.

I recently retired from 40 years as a teacher and school counselor for three different districts in Los Angeles County, working for more than 15 different principals (they changed schools often, not me), at a middle school, high schools, adult schools and occupational centers.

I sincerely venture that good attendance is highly correlated with good scores on almost any academic measure. Teachers can’t focus on students when they aren’t in the classroom.

WENDELL H. JONES

Ojai

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I moved here from a Boston suburb where my kids went to an excellent school and I served on the school board. There are reasons why Massachusetts schools vastly outperform California schools.

* Local control: In Massachusetts, the towns set their own budgets, and if they want to raise more funds to spend on their schools, they do.

* Better teaching methods: Massachusetts does not approve textbooks. Nor do most districts use scripted reading programs, over-rely on text and workbooks or spend much time on the boring drudgery of test prep.

After two years in the incredibly mediocre California public schools, I moved my kids to a parochial school.

LINDA MAYGER

Apple Valley