A large number of public education reform bills made it through this year's General Assembly session. The sponsor of many of the House bills says lawmakers wanted to build on last year's successes with the SOL reforms.
Delegate Tag Greason says while Virginia schools spend a lot of time preparing students to go to college, they haven’t placed as much emphasis on those going directly into the workforce. That's why one of his bills aligns career and technical education certification with national requirements.
"What has been happening in the past is sometimes our curriculum does not match that certification so you graduate, you go to take the test and you're like, 'Oh, I still have to do this much more work?' I think that's a disservice to our kids so if we're going to teach them, let's teach them toward those certification standards so that they can go get a job."
Greason also sponsored a bill that allows Standards of Learning assessments to be integrated into multiple subject areas so that students can utilize more critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
