2014 California Governor's race: on Education

Neel Kashkari: Side with poor kids, not union bosses

The two candidates clashed perhaps the most strongly over their positions on a recent court ruling that declared the state's strong teacher-tenure laws unconstitutional. Gov. Brown last week appealed a California judge's decision invalidating the state's teacher-tenure laws. The ruling, in Vergara v. California, said the state's rules on tenure for teachers threatened "students' fundamental right to equality of education."

Kashkari assailed Brown's decision to appeal that ruling saying "the judge got it absolutely right. You had the choice between fighting for the civil rights of poor kids and fighting for the union bosses who funded your campaigns. You sided with the union bosses, you should be ashamed of yourself governor."

"No. That makes no sense at all," Brown responded, clearly frustrated with his opponent. "That is false."

Jerry Brown: No government-imposed standards for public schools

When asked if he supported national education standards, Brown said, "No. That's just a form of national control." Brown reprised a story he tells frequently about an exam he had in high school when a teacher asked students to write their impressions of a green leaf. "Still, as I walk by trees, I keep saying, 'Can I feel anything? Am I dead inside?' So, this was a very powerful question that has haunted me for 50 years." The point, Brown said, is that "you can't put that on a standardized test. There are important educational encounters that can't be captured by tests."

Antonio Villaraigosa: Mayoral control of 22 poorly performing schools

Also, his added focus on graduating students helped the district reverse its drop out rate, he said. "In 2005, there were only 48 percent of kids graduating," Villaraigosa said. "Last year, it was 64 percent. Almost two-thirds of the students."

Antonio Villaraigosa: Police in the schools, every day, but not all day

VILLARAIGOSA: Well, in L.A., we are patrolling every school. We have officers coming to every school in our city.

Q: Every day?

VILLARAIGOSA: Every day. Not all day, but at various parts of the day while school is open, they are visiting the campuses to make sure things are going well. I don't agree with the NRA that we should be arming our teachers. But we should have discussions in our classrooms about bullying and violence and resolving conflict without violence. And we've got to do a lot more around mental health, and we do need sensible gun safety laws in the United States of America. You know, the Republicans in the House and Senate have blocked the approval of director of the ATF for the last seven or eight years. We've got to beef up and really move away from the kinds of things we've done in the past.

Jerry Brown: Vetoed considering demographics in college admissions

SB 185 would have made it legal for UC and CSU schools to consider factors such as race, gender, ethnicity and national origin in student admissions. The bill had faced scrutiny by those who questioned its legality. Opponents of the bill said that it contradicted Proposition 209. Approved by voters in 1996, the proposition made it illegal for students to receive preferential treatment on the basis of race, gender or ethnicity.

Though Brown said that he agrees with the purpose of the bill, he believes the courts should determine the limits of the proposition, according to a veto message he sent to the State Senate. "Signing this bill is unlikely to impact how Prop. 209 is ultimately interpreted by the courts; it will just encourage the 209 advocates to file more costly and confusing lawsuits," he wrote.