Schools in Decline? A Few Facts, Please : Education: A greater percentage of L.A. students finish high school and college than before. Minority totals rise.

In 1983, the federal government issued a report warning that American education was awash in “a rising tide of mediocrity.” Since that time, it has become accepted doctrine that the system of public education in the United States is failing.

While surely there are many public-school students who don’t get the education they deserve, it is false to claim that the public schools are in decline. The evidence shows that the number of high school graduates and their competence have both improved over time.

In 1940, only 38% of the nation’s young adults graduated from high school. Today, about 86% of our young adults are high school graduates. The improvement for young black adults is even more striking. In 1940, only 12% were high school graduates; today 83% are.

The percentage of young adults completing four years of college has nearly quadrupled since 1940, from 6% to 23%. For young black adults, the percentage that are college graduates has increased from 2% to 18%. Today as in the past, the great majority of college students are graduates of public schools.

The percentage of college-bound seniors who performed well on the verbal portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test declined in the 1970s but has been improving throughout the 1980s. The percentage who did well on the math portion of the SAT also declined during the 1970s but increased sharply during the 1980s and is now at the highest level since the College Board began reporting its results in a consistent format.

In Los Angeles public schools, fully 55% of the students who were seniors in 1989-90 are now going on to some form of public higher education. About 35% attend California community colleges; about 20% attend the California State University or the University of California. These college-going rates are at the highest level of the last five years, and are equal to or better than the average for all public high schools in the state. In addition, we believe 6% or 7% of our high school seniors go on to private colleges, but we don’t have consistent data for this group.

Historically, college attendance has been lower for black and Latino students than for the population as a whole. Some families haven’t had the resources to help their children succeed in school. Some students haven’t had access to the courses they need, some haven’t tested well and some haven’t been able to afford college.

Today in Los Angeles, the percentage of blacks and Latinos going on to college is still lower than for other ethnic groups, but it is improving and is higher than at any time in the past five years. For black seniors, the percentage going to CSU or UC has increased from 12% in 1986 to 17% in 1990. For Latino seniors, the percentage going to CSU or UC has increased from 8% to 12% during the same period.

There is reason to be concerned about the performance of the public schools. Funding is irregular. Better quality-control is needed. Many students aren’t learning necessary skills. Some other countries with strong public-education systems appear to be outperforming us. But we have brought near-universal education to a very diverse society and many of our young people are receiving a good education despite adverse circumstances.

Upward Bound

High school graduation rates from 1940 to 1992.

1940 1992 % of total high school grads 38 86 % of black high school grads 12 83

Three high schools that have shown great success in getting students to enroll at UC or Cal State campuses: Crenshaw, Lincoln, and San Fernando.

Sources: National Center for Education, LA Board of Education