Judge should have sent Rodrigues right to jail

Remember, "If you commit the crime, you do the time?" Yet, U.S. District Judge David Ezra allowed the infamous ex-union leader Gary Rodrigues, whom he sentenced to five years in federal prison, to remain free because he has a right to participate in his complicated case on appeal in a meaningful manner, whatever that means.

I have to ask what happened to teleconferencing on video, from inside the prison? An anticipated two-year appeal, which has a tendency to water down the severity of the crime committed, is akin to reducing whole milk to nonfat.

John L. Werrill
Honolulu

Aloha flies out window in traffic congestion

My commute from home in Kaneohe to and from Iolani School is sometimes hour-long and always exasperating. For example, while I was doing homework in the back seat, my mom said, "I need to get over! Should I just go to Kailua?"

We were trying to merge at Castle Junction, but no one would let us cut in front of them. Going to Kailua to get to my house would add a good 20 minutes to our 60-minute traffic crisis. We were getting desperate when we came to the stoplight and we still couldn't get into the proper lane. I advised, "Just stop right here in the road until we can get into that lane."

My mom couldn't do that because somebody behind us starting honking his horn. He was incensed since we weren't going fast enough to suit him. We were only trying to merge so we could get back home. In the end, we were forced to go to Kailua and loop back. This sort of instance is what I call "aloha."

Amelia Linsky
7th Grade
Iolani School

Multiple districts won't deliver education

Our governor and many citizens point to our state's single school district as the reason for our public school students' dismal test scores. They are missing the point: Before we create smaller school districts -- which, unlike most mainland school districts, will have no real authority, such as taxing powers -- we must have smaller class sizes and smaller schools.

But smaller class sizes and smaller schools cost money, money the "reformers" don't want to spend since we already spend 60 percent of what our larger private schools spend per student -- schools that work with very few special-needs and disadvantaged students.

Well, we wouldn't want to spend more money on education, would we?

Tony Turbeville
Waikele

Decentralizing needs open discussed

When things go wrong, the blame can usually be placed on individuals. But in the case of the overall drop in students test scores ("Hawaii SAT scores worsen," Oct. 3), no person or persons are to blame.

Indeed, there is no doubt about the sincerity of the superintendent, members of the Board of Education, school principles, or teachers. They are among the most dedicated of public servants. However, their ability to improve student learning has been severely restricted by the way in which Hawaii's public education system is organized.

The oversized, overly centralized and bureaucratic Department of Education is not able to realize and utilize the unlimited creative potential of those within the organization. Hawaii's series of highly regarded superintendents in the past 20 to 30 years were not able to replicate their past accomplishments. They were passionate about making improvements, but the system did not allow them to do so.

There is no deficit in the staffing of the public school system. However, there are acute shortcomings in the way that the system is organized. There is widespread agreement that the Department of Education should be decentralized to give school principals and teachers more authority to decide what happens in their schools. However, there is disagreement about the specifics of decentralization.

The governor has appointed a task force to come up with a plan to reform public education, but some people are complaining that they have not been invited to participate. They and others who are interested in public education should create their own reform plans so that various alternatives can be discussed when the Legislature convenes in January.

John Kawamoto
Honolulu

Preschool standards were meant as a guide

In the Oct. 2 article "BOE weighs preschool standards," the Star-Bulletin reported that the Board of Education's Committee on Special Programs unanimously recommended the adoption of new Hawaii Preschool Content Standards. The story went on to say that these standards, "would change the way preschool teachers rate student progress."

As one of the developers of the standards, I want to make it clear that this is not what these standards are intended for. They are just what their title suggests -- content standards (curriculum guidelines). They describe a well-balanced program that should be provided in early childhood programs to support children's acquisition of worthwhile knowledge, skills and attitudes. They are intended to help guide curriculum planning in programs for 4 year olds. They are not designed to be either curriculum or assessment -- though they may be helpful in selecting these things.

The article also says, "The standards incorporate five goals into the preschool curriculum: following rules and routines, developing health awareness and small and large muscle coordination." These five things are, in fact, individual content standards, but they are a small fraction of what is included in the document. The standards are divided into five broad developmental domains: physical development, health and safety; personal and social development; communication, language development and literacy; cognitive development and creative development. Each of these includes a number of standards designed to support children's development in this area.

I and my colleagues in early childhood education are pleased that the Department of Education looks favorably on the preschool standards and we hope that they will adopt them for use in DOE preschool programs. We believe that these standards will strengthen the curriculum of preschools in Hawaii and make it easier for children to make the transition into kindergarten while preserving the caring and child-centered nature of early childhood programs.

Stephanie Feeney
Professor, Early Childhood Education
University of Hawaii

Kailua a special place with unique character

I was visiting family members in Kailua this summer and am writing to let the residents of Kailua know what a special town they live in. I like the small-town feel and easy accessibility to stores.

Kailua is like no other place. When in Kailua I knew I was in a special place, a town unlike any other. Kailua has its own character and isn't like the millions of other places that have the same shops and uniform design.

You have a special place in Kailua. Please don't change it because I will be back to enjoy your town and people.

Janet Donnelly
San Jacinto, Calif.

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