A couple of California education groups are suing the State Board of Education over its decision to require all eighth students to take Algebra. KPBS Reporter Ana Tintocalis has more.
The California School Boards Association and the Association of California School administrators filed the lawsuit.
Attorneys say the state board of education violated the state's open meeting law when they approved the new mandate which will take effect in three years.
Judi Cias is handling the legal challenge. She says the board hastily made the decision under pressure from Governor Schwarzenegger. She says the was no chance for the public to weigh-in.
Cias:
They didn't involve the legislature, the legislature had no say in it. (The State Board) didn't involve the Commission on Teacher Credentialing. There are a lot of different parts of the system here that need to be discussed, and that just didn't happen because it was so last minute.
Teachers don't like the mandate, saying it sets kids up for failure. So far the Governor and the board has not responded to the legal challenge.
Ana Tintocalis, KPBS News.
