In Presidential politics, the maxim is always “are we better off today, than we were four years ago?” That question could apply to education: are we better off today than we were 30 years ago on the education front? The answer is, clearly not; but what to do?
President Barack Obama, the self-styled “agent of change,” appears set to travel down the same road we’ve been traveling, throwing more good money after bad at the symptoms, not the causes. Case in point, President Obama has repeatedly called for an “investment” in education. The so-called investment comes at the same time we face a severe fiscal crisis where the federal government is running trillion dollar, unsustainable deficits, and the nation’s debt exceeds $14.2 trillion.
Regardless, President Obama clearly controls the bully pulpit and will use it to drive the education agenda. We already know what direction he’s decided to go in: more spending.
“President Obama proposed a 2012 Department of Education budget on Monday that would, if approved, significantly increase federal spending for public schools. . .” (Sam Dillon and Tamar Lewin, “Obama’s Budget Proposes A Significant Increase For Schools,” The New York Times, 2/14/11)
“The administration’s education proposal asks for $77.4 billion.” (Sam Dillon and Tamar Lewin, “Obama’s Budget Proposes A Significant Increase For Schools,” The New York Times, 2/14/11)
“The 4.35 percent increase that Obama proposed on Monday would go toward expanding the highlights of his education agenda: A third round of Race to the Top, the competition that awarded $4.35 billion to 11 states and the District of Columbia last year for pursuing ambitious education reforms; a 10 percent increase in grants to turn around the nation’s lowest performing school; and $4.3 billion for teacher and principal development.” (Christine Armario, “Obama’s New Budget Increases Education Spending Amid Nationwide Cuts,” The Associated Press, 2/15/11)
In his State of The Union Address in January, President Obama said, “we need to out-innovate, out-educate and out-build the rest of the world.” Obama even compared the dire straits of education to the space race against the Soviet Union, stating “this is our generation’s Sputnik moment.”
“Maintaining our leadership in research and technology is crucial to America’s success. But if we want to win the future -– if we want innovation to produce jobs in America and not overseas -– then we also have to win the race to educate our kids.” (President Barack Obama, State of the Union Address, Washington, D.C., 1/25/11)
“Think about it. Over the next 10 years, nearly half of all new jobs will require education that goes beyond a high school education. And yet, as many as a quarter of our students aren’t even finishing high school. The quality of our math and science education lags behind many other nations. America has fallen to ninth in the proportion of young people with a college degree. And so the question is whether all of us –- as citizens, and as parents –- are willing to do what’s necessary to give every child a chance to succeed.” (President Barack Obama, State of the Union Address, Washington, D.C., 1/25/11)
“That responsibility begins not in our classrooms, but in our homes and communities. It’s family that first instills the love of learning in a child. Only parents can make sure the TV is turned off and homework gets done. We need to teach our kids that it’s not just the winner of the Super Bowl who deserves to be celebrated, but the winner of the science fair. We need to teach them that success is not a function of fame or PR, but of hard work and discipline.” (President Barack Obama, State of the Union Address, Washington, D.C., 1/25/11)
“Our schools share this responsibility. When a child walks into a classroom, it should be a place of high expectations and high performance. But too many schools don’t meet this test. That’s why instead of just pouring money into a system that’s not working, we launched a competition called Race to the Top. To all 50 states, we said, ‘If you show us the most innovative plans to improve teacher quality and student achievement, we’ll show you the money.’” (President Barack Obama, State of the Union Address, Washington, D.C., 1/25/11)
Who could argue with the President on the need to address education and its deficiencies in this country? But ask yourself this: with mounting evidence that money is not the answer and while we face such dire fiscal challenges, is the President’s plan and strategy to implement such important reforms the right direction to go in? Perhaps more importantly, how can Obama push his agenda in this environment with Republicans controlling the House and a diminished Majority in the Senate? The answer to that question lies with the U.S. Senate, where Democrats still hold a Majority and set the agenda.
I’m going to follow this up later today with a look at the Senator who will have to carry the President’s water on education reform: Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA).
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