Obama’s rhetoric-reality gap on schools

[alp227]

by Matt Miller: Matt Miller, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and co-host of public radio’s “Left, Right & Center,” writes a weekly column for The Post.

Shortly after the 2000 presidential campaign, Bill Bradley fretted to me that Democrats were endlessly offering “the big rhetoric” followed by “the little mouse.” What he meant was that Democrats knew there were issues requiring bold government action, but they didn’t trust that Americans would support policies equal to the size of the problem. So Democrats basically pretended their big goals could be met through miniature initiatives; a classic of the genre was President Bill Clinton’s $200 million a year school-to-work measure that, according to one wit, “helped dozens, if not hundreds, of people before being killed.”

I’m afraid President Obama’s education agenda, restated Monday in a speech capping the White House’s “education month,” shows Democrats are still caught in the same rhetoric-reality gap. (Republicans are worse, but they don’t hold the bully pulpit.) What follows is a skeptic’s guide to the president’s speech, offered not simply as criticism but as a plea for Washington to aim much higher.

The big rhetoric: “We’ve made enormous progress. . . . THE most significant education reform initiative that we’ve seen in a generation.”

The little mouse: Obama’s agenda is a paradox. As I’ve argued before, it’s the most creative federal education reform in decades, yet the outer limits of its ambitions are demonstrably unequal to the education challenges we face. Yes, Race to the Top has sparked positive, significant changes, including the relaxation of state caps on charter schools; a move toward common standards; and new ways to use student achievement data to help assess teacher effectiveness. But even if President Obama serves for eight years, it’s a sure bet that America will still be recruiting nearly half its teachers from the bottom of the academic cohort and assigning its least qualified teachers to the poor students who need great teachers the most. What’s more, even with the modest increase in Pell grants Obama has achieved, those grants will cover a smaller share of college tuition than they covered 35 years ago. There’s more in this vein, but you get the idea.

Full story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/obamas_rhetoric_reality_gap_on_schools/2011/03/16/ABluUne_story.html

[adnelson60087]

1. The title so misses the point. Obama's RTTT

is a sham and has few merits to speak of. How long will it take for these national hacks to get it?

[frazzled]

2. So perspicacious to take a single line out of a speech

Maybe you'd like to read the whole thing. Here are some excerpts, if you are interested:

Now, last week we got a reminder of why it’s so critical that we reform this law. According to new estimates, under the system No Child Left Behind put in place, more than 80 percent of our schools may be labeled as failing -- 80 percent of our schools. Four out of five schools will be labeled as failing. That’s an astonishing number. And our impulse is to either be outraged that the numbers are so high, or skeptical that they’re even true. And let’s face it, skepticism is somewhat justified. We know that four out of five schools in this country aren’t failing. So what we’re doing to measure success and failure is out of line.

In fact, the list of supposedly failing schools includes schools that are actually making extraordinary progress -- including Kenmore. So, yes, we’ve still got more work to do here at this school to close the achievement gap. I think Dr. Word would agree with that. We’ve got to make sure that every student is on track. But, I mean, we can see here at Kenmore -- Kenmore is thriving. You guys are doing great. You got more work to do, but you’re doing fine. (Applause.)

So what this means, though, is that we need a better way of figuring out which schools are deeply in trouble, which schools aren’t, and how we get not only the schools that are in really bad shape on track, how do we help provide the tools to schools that want to get even better to get better.

That way of measuring success and failure, that’s the first problem with No Child Left Behind that we need to fix. Instead of labeling schools a failure one day and then throwing up our hands and walking away from them, we need to refocus on the schools that need the most help. We need to hold our schools accountable for the success of every child –- black, white, Latino, Asian, students with disabilities, English language learners.

...


So first we’re going to have to fix how schools are labeled and identified. ...

So instead of measuring students based on whether they’re above or below an arbitrary bar, we need to set better standards to make sure our students are meeting one clear goal –- they’re graduating ready for college and ready for a career. That’s the goal we need to set. (Applause.) To know whether our kids are on track to meet that goal, we need better assessments.

Now, I want to speak to teachers in particular here. I’m not talking about more tests. I’m not talking about teaching to the test. We don’t need to know whether a student can fill out a bubble. We do need to know whether they’re making progress. We do need to know whether they’re not only mastering reading, math, and science, but also developing the kinds of skills, like critical thinking and creativity and collaboration that I just saw on display with the students that I met here. Those are skills they’re going to need for the rest of their lives -- (applause) -- not just to be good workers, but to be good citizens. (Applause.)

Now, that doesn’t mean testing is going to go away; there will be testing. But the point is, is that we need to refine how we’re assessing progress so that we can have accountability without rigidity -- accountability that still encourages creativity inside the classroom, and empowers teachers and students and administrators.

Of course, we also know that better standards, better assessments and a better curriculum won’t make a difference without outstanding teachers. Every day in this country, teachers are doing a heroic job for their kids -- (applause) -- every day. They’re taking on the problems that follow students into class, come in early to re-write lessons, spending hours after school tutoring students. I know; my sister is a teacher. In South Korea, teachers are known as “nation builders,” and I think it’s time we treated our teachers with the same level of respect right here in the United States of America. (Applause.

)http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/03/14/president-obama-it-s-not-enough-leave-no-child-behind-we-need-help-every-child-get-a

[adnelson60087]

3. If his policy matched his rhetoric, then so many of us

here would be open to hearing his message. RTTT, TFA, more "accountability", etc. in the face of poverty and falling standards of living across the nation while not supporting teachers and their unions...well, a speech may be pretty but the proof is in the actions and policy enacted.