European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 16, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                I math teacher Sara Waldstein a assists a sixth Grade Pupil with a computer program at Martin Luther King or. School in Evanston  look doubts and interest in foreign ideas by Charles j. Hanley the associated press a Merican schoolteachers have orders from above turn their students also rans on International tests into titleholder by the year 2000. Some researchers say a a americans might begin by observing How it s done elsewhere particularly in such places As Japan and Germany whose children Excel on International exams. In Evanston hi., a diverse Chicago. Suburb of Lakeshore mansions and dreary Row houses the school District is credited with innovative programs. But even there in the brightly decorated corridors of the Martin Luther King or. Elementary school one can hear both a misgivings and interest in Quot foreign Quot ideas about education. A National curriculum the japanese stick to one. Curriculum nationwide allowing teachers to focus on technique instead of Content. V. Amy Nusser a math teacher at King said that s a Quot great Quot idea for still another Reabon. Quot it s Good for consistency when i was Young i moved 12 times in 10 years. Half the time l was repeating  a. A but Barabara Friedberg a language a a a arts Reading teacher at King voiced traditional american scepticism about a centralization Quot a National curriculum does t always meet the needs of a specific Community or  a school year much of Europe like Japan has a school year ranging up to 240 Days compared with the 180 i school Days in America. In 1983, a . Commission on  made a longer school year its top. Recommendation. Little has happened. The longer year is one Way to teach children More and teach them better say experts. Even children find Merit in a Shorter summer vacation. Quot Over the summer i forget some of the things i Learned and when we have review we Rejust relearning the same things Quot said King fifth grader Erica Gilbert. Levin. A a a y Evanston District superintendent Joseph Pollack agreed in theory with More school time. Quot but Quot he said Quot i Don t think Well see longer school Days or years without Federal financial  a tracking upstairs at the King school two sixth Grade math classes were at work one of slower pupils. Following a computer Story to do simple calculations the other of better students solving Tough math reasoning problems on a test. The japanese disdain such. A tracking Quot or segregation by ability. So do Many american educators. Quot in the . We love to categorize and lock people in. That s a guaranteed approach to failure in the schools because we create this Large variation Between students Quot . Education undersecretary Marshall Smith said in Washington. But King math teacher Sara Waldstein teaching the Quot slow Quot class sees it differently Quot if they re together the faster kids twiddle their thumbs and the slower kids do not say i want to be smart like Billy it does t work that Way Quot a a a a 7 a a school to work German secondary schools rely on rigid tracking steering some children into apprenticeships for Blue Collar jobs and others toward University. Y. A american educators increasingly believe this country s High schools should offer better career related education for students not bound for College spree states Are eliminating the Quot general track Quot the vague Middle ground supposed to prepare High schooners for both College and work. Congress has voted Money to help states plan apprenticeship programs a few blocks from the King school at Evanston township High school superintendent Alan Alson grapples. With these issues planning Quot school to work Quot relationships with local. Employers. \ Quot we Haven t been assertive enough in helping kids take charge of their lives Quot he said Quot Many of these kids Are not Well prepared for the world of work. We be got to build these  continued from Page 21 child s classroom activity is led by a teacher 74 percent of the time compared with Only 46 percent in the United states the difference lies in stretches of often unsupervised individual. Quot seat work Quot by american children and in irrelevant interruptions. Japanese educators efficiently teach the whole class in Quot coherent lessons presented in a thoughtful relaxed and no authoritarian manner Quot the Book concludes Stevenson recommends enlarging american primary school classes in order to reduce the number of classes giving teachers More time for. A preparation. The . Pupil teacher ratio is 15-1, compared to 20-1 in Japan. But 70 percent of american parents polled in an associated press Survey Are opposed to that idea. The japanese teach the whole class in another sense too never putting faster and slower learners into separate. Classes or tracks As is common in the United states. Quot the most important thing in elementary education is that All children learn the Standard things Quot said  finds support for rigorous schools by Howard Goldberg the associated press americans broadly favor making education rigorous by adding several weeks to the school year increasing Homework and imposing a Standard National curriculum according to an associated press poll. For years relatively Low test scores of american students in math and science have fed doubts about whether  schools measure up to those of economic competitors such As Germany and Japan. Informed that Japan and other countries have As Many As 240 school Days compared with 180 in the United states 56 percent said they would support lengthening the school year. There were 41 percent opposed and 3 percent not sure. The Telephone Survey of 1,004 randomly selected adults in All states but Alaska and Hawaii was conducted by ice Survey research group of Media apart of aus consultants in March 9-13. Results have a margin of sampling error of plus of minus 3 percentage Points. A Large majority 68 percent favored a system that has Long been controversial among educators tracking elementary pupils into separate classes for fast and slow learners. Japanese primary schools widely regarded As among the world s Best do not classify pupils in this Way striving instead to equip All children with a Good Basic curriculum. For the Long discussed idea of a standardized curriculum for . Schools. Support is wide but not necessarily deep. Of those polled 34 percent gave it Strong support 42 percent support with reservations and 21 percent were opposed. Acceptance of a standardized curriculum is weakest outside metropolitan areas. The Clinton administration is promoting a Halfway step toward a National curriculum voluntary standards in various subjects that can be adopted by the states. Seven of 10 parents of school age children said the Public schools in their communities were excellent or Good. Among All adults 62 percent gave their schools a positive rating up from 53 percent in an a poll five years ago. Y ,. By y a the worse people rate their Public schools the More Likely they Are to want to Force them to compete for students the poll found. Letting parents choose which Public school their children attend a popular idea with education reformers had Strong support from 52 percent and support with reservations from 27 percent in the poll. Groups most Likely to offer Strong support Are women people Young enough to have children in elementary school Urban residents and High income people. Parents do not differ significantly from other adults  students More Homework. Of All the people questioned 36 percent. Supported it strongly 41 percent supported it with reservations and 22 percent were opposed. Opposition Rose to 31 percent outside Urban areas. A much less popular idea is increasing class size to make More no classroom time for teachers to prepare their lessons which 63 percent opposed. Support was 13 percent Strong and 21 percent with reservations. Experts say . Teachers have too much class time compared with teachers in other countries including Japan where classes Are  _ the stars and stripes my Macy. Moy 16,1994