You don’t really need the state schools chief to tell you what shape California’s public education is in.

Everyone already sees it in fewer teachers and programs, increased class sizes and overcrowded campuses.

But earlier today in his annual address, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell detailed the challenges and some successes in education.

Here’s the press release from the state Department of Education:

O’Connell today delivered his 7th annual State of Education Address. In his speech to educators, policymakers, students, and parents, O’Connell highlighted progress made over the past seven years in improving student achievement and applauded California’s educators for doing the hard work to achieve these results even as schools were forced to absorb deep cuts in funding.

He outlined the promise of Race to the Top (federal monies) to improve student achievement and help close the achievement gap, even as schools face the challenge of absorbing billions in budget cuts.

“Race to the Top offers an opportunity to make systemic changes that could fundamentally improve our education system,” O’Connell said. “Our success will rely on creating a new relationship between the state and the local education community – a relationship that allows educators to focus on the core business of school: student learning.”

O’Connell said that the state’s role must evolve from regulating inputs and monitoring processes, to maintaining world-class standards providing assistance, leveraging best practices, and monitoring results; while the role of local educational agencies will need to be one of leadership and innovation. The state will strengthen the local reform efforts by investing in a more comprehensive education data system that will support the effective use of data to focus all efforts on the needs of students. Researchers, county offices of education, and other support providers will collaborate by helping to identify what works, share expertise, and rapidly implement proven strategies.

“Our goal is to foster professional learning communities of teachers and leaders who will work together to innovate, examine data, and share effective practices,” O’Connell continued.

O’Connell described how California can support professional learning communities by revising – but not weakening – California’s standards, by streamlining and improving their sequencing.

O’Connell said that work to revise California’s standards would be coupled with the development of aligned assessments that use multiple measures to evaluate student learning, an accountability system based on individual student growth, and a teacher evaluation system that measures effectiveness by using student achievement data as a key measure. In order to create such a system, the state will facilitate a collaborative process with teachers unions, management organizations, and local educational agencies to design model teacher and principal evaluations. The results could then be used appropriately for decisions such as promotion, compensation, professional development, and tenure and ensure the equitable distribution of effective teachers and school leaders in hard-to-staff schools, subjects, and specialty areas.

O’Connell also urged the adequate funding for California’s public school system and called for passage of Senate Constitutional Amendment 6 by Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) that would allow Californians to pass parcel taxes to support local schools with a 55 percent vote of the people (instead of the current two-thirds majority).

“People who choose to make education their life’s work are our heroes,” O’Connell said in conclusion. “They need better tools, more support, and, yes, more funding. But the vast majority of those in our system do incredible work transforming the lives of students. We have an opportunity – indeed, an obligation – to step up and help them. We cannot afford to wait any longer. We cannot let our challenges become obstacles to student success. We will find no better time than now.”

For the full text of O’Connell’s 2010 State of Education Address and a press packet, please visit http://www.cde.ca.gov/eo/in/se/yr10soe.asp.