Date: 03/13/2006

This week at its meeting, the California State University's Board of Trustees will hear reports on freshman proficiency and teacher preparation. The annual report on English and math proficiency of CSU freshmen provides information about the extent to which students are ready at the time of entry for college-level work. The report on freshmen entering in fall 2005 shows that student readiness in math and English has increased at a modest pace over the last four years. According to the report, a larger investment of time is required to achieve the systematic changes needed to ensure that students graduate from high school with the expected college-level skills.

In addition, the board will hear the annual evaluation of CSU teacher preparation programs, which show that the CSU is effective in the preparation of K-12 teachers in subject-matter and also in pedagogical preparation. These evaluation results are used as constructive feedback for CSU campuses to make substantive improvements in the preparation of future teachers. See http://www.calstate.edu/CSULeader/2006/060309.htm.