Two Board of Ed Candidates Often Agree

Board of Education candidates Michael Lyons, a Republican, and Kevin Poruban, a Democrat, agreed on many issues at Monday night's League of Women Voters forum, held in the Common Council Chambers in City Hall.

About 55 people attended the debate. Here's a sampling of what was said (some answers are described, not quoted):

About the school budget:

Poruban: "I don't support budget reductions." Nevertheless, "There are areas where you can find reductions or efficiencies without affecting the classroom."

Lyons: "The Board of Education did a good job in the last two years. [...] You don't want the tax rate to go so high that it drives people out of town." Lyons asked Superintendent Susan Marks to review the 2002 Price Waterhouse Coopers study of the school system to see if the $4-6 million in that study's suggested operating budget reductions might still be implemented.

Poruban: The Price Waterhouse Coopers study was flawed in that not all of its recommendations were specific enough to be very useful, such as suggestions to outsource some services, and it didn't take into account the No Child Left Behind federal mandates that were implemented soon afterward.

"If elected, what would you do to make sure that all children in Norwalk read at grade level by the end of third grade?"

Lyons: The Core Knowledge Program endorsed by the American Federation of Teachers is an effective way of reaching kids early on. "We should do more in-service training of teachers to concentrate on reading."

Poruban: "I think we need to see more outreach, more partnering with earlieducation venues like daycare centers. [...] My wife is a preschool education teacher. [...] A lot [of daycare centers] just don't do what they're supposed to do in getting kids to learn things like ABCs and days of the week that would get them on the road to reading."

Teacher tenure:

Lyons: "I think it would be better [for administrators] to have more time before awarding it."

Poruban: "I do believe we're awarding it too soon. I would, if possible, consider awarding it on a merit basis. If you're a teacher, and your kids are hitting, say, the CMT measurs at the levels we want, I don't see any reason why we couldn't award it early."

How they would cut waste and fat in the budget:

Poruban: "There are areas where I would look in terms of purchasing." At one point, the school system had been buying computers under a three-year contract in which the price seemed fine in the beginning, but by the third year, as computer prices had gone down, the schools were paying too much. Some books that each of the city's major public high schools had wanted to buy in slightly different versions were

Lyons: Financing records and information is often kept manually by Norwalk Public Schools rather than in updated computerized formats. The Munis system used by the rest of city government "is available to the Board of Education, but they haven't wanted to use it." With the Munis system, "we would pick up the kinds of things Kevin [Poruban] has already noted."

Neither candidate addressed the fact that the majority of education dollars are spent on personnel costs.

How to close the achievement gap between ethnic and socioeconomic groups in Norwalk:

Lyons: "Years ago, the city decided to go off and create its own curriculum from scratch." Superintendent Susan Marks reviewed it and said, in Lyons words, "it was totally inadequate and will not meet Common Core state standards."

Poruban: "We do need to adopt core standards. It's going to require additional funding for various parts of it—training, materials to be used in classes. That's the big thing that the Board of Education and Board of Estimate and Taxation has to understand.

What each candidate thinks about the Board of Education earlier this year cutting the post of director of early education:

Poruban: One of the recommendations of the Price Waterhouse Coopers study was to have this position. "By cutting it, I think it kind of does us a disservice, and I would advocate for funding it."

Lyons: "The decision was made that we wanted to keep some teachers in the classroom [as an alternative to cutting them and saving the early education director's position], and I endorse that decision."

"What is your feeling about [...] teaching to the test, and devoting most classroom time to the test, to the point of excluding some exciting educational experiences?"

Poruban: I disapprove of teaching to the test. [...] That's a false indication of just how well our kids are doing." Kids learn better when they're doing more hands-on things.

Lyons: "I'd say it depends on what the test is. If the test is well-designed and is actively testing true knowledge and ability, then teaching to the test is a good thing. [...] When you compare testing to other available alternatives, the other alternatives don't work. [...] There are a lot of countries around the world that are beating the pants off of us [in test scores] and who take tests very seriously. [...] Make sure the tests are comprehensive enough that teaching to them gets the kids educated."