With only a week left before the presidential race comes to a close, the topic of school choice for children with disabilities has at last injected some substantial conversation into the campaign. Since accepting John McCain’s offer to be his running mate on the Republican ticket, Gov. Sarah Palin has vowed to be a strong advocate in Washington for the disabled. More recently—as her events have attracted many parents of special-needs children—she has been reminding Americans that since 1973 all citizens by law are supposed to have access to a free and appropriate public education.
Sadly, this is an obligation that all too many public school districts fail to meet for children with disabilities, but as even the New York Times reports, Palin’s vocal support for school choice for special-needs students is “likely to meet with fierce resistance from school districts and teachers unions, as well as those who may see it as the first step to allowing all parents to use public money to attend private or parochial schools.”
I for one am grateful for the recent confusion surrounding Senator Obama’s position on NCLB. Whether or not his surrogate, Melody Barnes, will have to retract her comments on NPR suggesting that the senator would replace the current NCLB testing requirements with more generalized student portfolios to assess academic performance — the hubbub alone has nicely illustrated just how little we know about how either Obama or McCain would reauthorize the law as president.
For this reason kudos must go to the Lexington Institute for crisply laying out how student portfolios and standardized tests are forms of assessment that are fundamentally different in kind. When designed properly, student portfolios can be a rich demonstration of specific student skills, but they are neither intended nor equipped to provide a consistently measurable result that can validly and reliably compare student attainments across a broad index of expectations. That’s why we have standardized tests. Unless they want to crash, pilots don’t try to fly at night without reliable instruments. Air speed, engine speed, glide slope, fuel level, rate of climb, altitude, and direction are all required if the pilot is to know for certain that she’s on course for a safe landing.
“It would be nice if facts, not ideology, framed the discussion over the District’s school voucher program. In an exchange during this week’s presidential debate, Democratic Sen. Barack Obama airily dismissed the program, while Republican Sen. John McCain offered a somewhat jumbled defense of it. Lost was this: 1,903 poor children have educational opportunities because of a unique program that detracts not a whit from either public or charter schools.” (Washington Post, 10/18/08)
Yes, wouldn’t it be nice, as the Beach Boys say. The Washington Post opines further in Saturday’s edition that there is positive news coming out of the D.C. program. As important, there is demand – from parents who are normally disenfranchised from good schools.
Sing it, Boys:
You know it seems the more we talk about it
It only makes it worse to live without it
But lets talk about it
Wouldn’t it be nice
When she was a candidate for her current position, the Governor of Alaska was quite a reformer. In doing research for the 2008 Candidate Scorecard, we discovered this piece on Sarah from CER’s 2006 Voter’s Guide:
Republican candidate Sarah Palin believes in school choice and in giving parents as many options as possible for determining their children’s future. She supports charter schools, cyber schools and home schooling. Accountability is a key issue for Palin, as is increasing parental involvement in every aspect of education. A reformer’s dream but unfortunately a long shot.
Well our prediction was off. She did win, and now as candidate for Vice President and someone who touted strong reformer tendencies, we would expect to hear a lot on these issues. Read the rest of this entry »
“Keep in mind that John McCain will say he’s arguing for choice by allowing money and students to drain out of the public schools. I believe in public schools. But I also believe in fostering competition within the public schools. And that’s why, as president, I’ll double the funding for responsible (emphasis added) charter schools.”
That’s from Senator Barack Obama’s September 9th speech in Ohio, the first mention of education following the Republican National Convention. Sources close to the Senator told me that the campaign wanted to emphasize that Obama supports reform, because charters did not figure prominently in his own convention speech, while that and other issues did in McCain’s speech.
But what is a responsible charter school? How does a president know that? Are there responsible public schools? Private schools? Does the same standard apply? Read the rest of this entry »
The exchange last night about Michelle Rhee was fascinating. Senator Obama singled her out (though not by name) in what appeared to be a circumlocution of the issue on the table – D.C. scholarships (or vouchers).
She’s for vouchers, McCain interrupted.
No she’s not, Obama replied. For charters, not for vouchers.
A great question by Bob Schieffer acknowledging how far behind U.S. education is netted the following, abbreviated answers:
Senator Obama: Some believe in more money or reform. Why not both? Believes in funding early childhood education, more money for specialized teachers and more college support. Federal government has a rich history of helping school districts that need it. But NOT vouchers. Data shows it doesn’t work. Vouchers leave the others behind.
Senator McCain: Choice and charters for parents, attracting a better and more diversified pool of teachers, and reducing college loan rates. Spending more money NOT the answer. Some of the most expensive school systems are the worst. The D.C. voucher program is giving poor parents an option – D.C. parents have demanded it.
The Federal role?
Obama: Money was left behind in No Child Left Behind. Hugely critical.
McCain: It was a good start providing transparency and accountability.
Does education reform matter anymore? With Rome-on-Wall-Street burning, are we going to allow the Neros to fiddle with progress in education reform?
The economy may be in shambles, but we can still vote. CER reveals next week its take on candidates for state executive posts. Here’s a glimpse of the excitement – or not – you can anticipate.
New Hampshire
The only thing Granite about this state lately is the position of the incumbent Governor when in comes to choices for children. While it’s along shot, his opponent actually likes charter schools and believes that they should be funded equitably, which is not what happens now. Gov. John Lynch (D) and State Senator Joseph Kenney (R) are locked in a battle for the executive post there. Lynch, the incumbent, has a vague education agenda and has never addressed the Granite State’s weak charter laws, leading to lackluster community interest. Kenney, on the other hand, has a track record of supporting strong charter school legislation and advancing options for parents.
North Carolina
Leaders in the Tar Heel State once were boiling over with support for education reform, but in the last few years the molten lava has cooled and the state maintains a restrictive cap on the number of charter schools. Other choices are not even on the table, and it always appears that leaders have put all their eggs in one basket – the state’s accountability system. While a model, it still isn’t solving the problem for all children. That’s why reformers are excited about one candidate for Governor, Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory (R), who supports vouchers for at-risk children and a lift of the charter cap – two agenda items his teachers union-backed opponent, Lieutenant Governor Beverly Perdue (D) has heavily criticized.
After years of steady progress on improving America’s schools through accountability and expanded choices for parents, the state of education appears threatened by the nation’s economic crisis.
A candidate’s passion for education reform is even more important in a time like this. Governors, state chiefs and even members of Congress must be committed enough to substantial reform that they will work to make sure the tough decisions do not put us back another 20 years in educational attainment.
The nation’s economic instability is directly impacting the state of education reform and increased student achievement. Programs considered to be a challenge to conventional education are most likely to be put on the chopping block. Strong tests, charter school programs and even performance pay measures, while they cost no more, stand to lose if reform-minded officials are not elected to key positions. Read the rest of this entry »
With only a week left before the presidential race comes to a close, the topic of school choice for children with disabilities has at last injected some substantial conversation into the campaign. Since accepting John McCain’s offer to be his running mate on the Republican ticket, Gov. Sarah Palin has vowed to be a strong advocate in Washington for the disabled. More recently—as her events have attracted many parents of special-needs children—she has been reminding Americans that since 1973 all citizens by law are supposed to have access to a free and appropriate public education.
