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Improving America's Schools Conference
Thank you for that wonderful introduction, Leidy. I also want to thank Doctor Metts for her remarks.
I want to begin this morning by announcing earth-shaking news. It is my duty as Secretary of Education to report the end of one of the most time-honored traditions in American education. I am talking about the "dog-ate-my-homework" excuse. Let me tell you how this happened.
A couple weeks ago, I attended a technology conference here in Washington where I found out about a brilliant student who has created a unique software program. If this student forgets to bring his homework to school, he can use the program to log onto the school's computer and access his home computer. That way, he can print out his homework at school.
Now, this is a great boost for education. But it is obviously very sad news for America's dogs, who have enjoyed eating homework for many generations. I have never been able to figure out why a dog would find a book report on "Silas Marner" to be tasty and delicious, but I guess dogs have their own mind about these things.
I am delighted that so many states are represented here at this conference. I want to say a special hello to the folks from my home state of South Carolina. I also want to say hello to my neighbors from North Carolina. Last month, the National Education Goals Panel, which tracks many indicators of educational progress, issued its annual "report card" of state improvement efforts. It showed North Carolina forging ahead in more areas than any other state. So congratulations to you Tar Heels.
The state with the third best showing was New York. Many other states showed good progress on the Goals Panel's report card, including many other states represented here today. And last week I was in Baltimore when Maryland issued its own annual state report card. Student achievement is showing steady improvement in Maryland, thanks to higher standards and challenging assessments.
There are still many great challenges facing us. Across the nation, reading continues to be a problem, student drug use is on the rise, and no one can be happy when one-fourth of all newly hired teachers are teaching out of their field. But on the other side of the ledger, we have come a long way in math and science. Nationally, student achievement in those subjects has improved an entire grade in the past 10 years, and that's very encouraging.
Another sign of progress is the great increase in the number of high school students who are taking the core academic courses. In 1982, only 13 percent of all high school graduates had completed 4 years of English, 3 years of social sciences, 3 years of science, and 3 years of math. That was a disgracefully low number. But by 1994, the number had quadrupled to 51 percent, and it has gone even higher since then. That's still not nearly enough, and we need your help in getting the number up to 100 percent. But this shows that we're finally getting serious about education in this country.
I make a point of all this because I am disturbed by some of the relentless attacks on public education that we hear today. I have spent many years encouraging our schools to do better, but I have always tried to do it in a positive way. Unfortunately, there are some people who aren't interested in constructive criticism. They would have us believe that nothing good is going on in our schools, and that simply is incorrect.
Whether intentional or not, these critics demean and belittle our children, parents, and teachers, and I tell you, I am tired of it. For my part, let me be clear: As long as I am Secretary of Education, I will always try to lift our children, parents, and educators up, and never tear them down.
Abraham Lincoln said it best -- "He has the right to criticize who has the heart to help." So today I say to the critics of our public schools: When you see something that's wrong, please have the heart to help. But if you don't have the heart, please just get out of the way and let our children, parents, and teachers come through.
You and America's children deserve the very best, and President Clinton and I are determined to provide you with more of the resources you need to get the job done. The historic 1998 federal education budget provides the largest increases in education in over a generation. These new investments include:
We have also had a tremendous breakthrough with the "e-rate." Starting next year, this will give schools and libraries discounts of up to 90 percent off the costs of several important educational services, including Internet access, distance learning, and other on-line learning opportunities. The average discount will be 60 percent.
The e-rate is one of the mot important things to happen to education in a long, long time. It helps to make the Information Age affordable for all schools -- public, private, and parochial -- and it is especially a boon for poor and rural schools. You can put the e-rate to work in your school, but your district must first apply for it.
The application forms went into the mail last week, so by the time you get back home, the application form should be in your school district office. Some districts have already prepared for the application process, and if you represent one of those districts, good for you! Others districts need to begin the process. If your district is in this category, I urge you to join with your colleagues and begin the application process right away. It will take a little time to do it, and you don't want to miss the deadline.
The e-rate is so important that I am deeply concerned about efforts to delay it or reduce the fund. The Federal Communications Commission is expected to make a decision on this later today. There is no good reason to delay or reduce the e-rate, and any attempt to do so would hurt America's kids, particularly poor and rural students.
We urgently need the e-rate to help our public schools to meet the great challenges that lie ahead. There are more students in our nation's schools today than ever before -- over 52 million, and they come from over 100 different lands and speak more languages than we can count. And we are asking all of these students to learn to high standards.
My friends, no system of public education has ever faced such a challenge, anywhere in the world. That is why I will work to strengthen public education and fight bad ideas like vouchers until the cows come home. Vouchers would drain our public schools of vitally needed resources. And since I have always strongly supported quality private and parochial schools as important parts of our educational system, I am troubled by what vouchers might do to them. Sadly, vouchers could cause religious schools to limit their religious teaching, and they would make private schools less private by holding them publicly accountable for taxpayer money.
There are ways to achieve equity and excellence without turning our backs on the public schools that serve nearly 90 percent of our nation's children. Here are a few of the ways I think we can do it:
First, let's fix failing schools. If a school is failing, we should be willing to reconstitute it or close it down. If a principal is slow to get the message, superintendents and school boards should be willing to replace him or her.
To encourage these changes, the President will ask Congress to create 20 to 25 "educational opportunity zones" in poor urban and rural areas. This would provide federal assistance to school districts that have the courage to make radical changes, such as closing failing schools and encouraging students to reach for high standards.
Second, let's end social promotion. There are some tough new superintendents who are doing it. Paul Vallas in Chicago sent 41,000 children to summer school this year rather than promote them to a grade they weren't ready for. Call it "tough love," "tough medicine," whatever you want. We need more of it.
Third, let's make sure that every 8-year-old can read. President Clinton's proposal for voluntary national tests in 4th-grade reading will give every school, teacher, and parent a powerful new tool for lifting reading achievement. The President's "America Reads Challenge" will bring in trained tutors to give students the extra practice they need to make the grade. I invite all of you to participate in this important testing initiative and to take advantage of "America Reads." Already, nearly 800 colleges have pledged to make their students available for tutoring. "America Reads" is an idea that's really catching fire.
Fourth, let's make sure that every 8th-grader has a solid foundation in math, including algebra and at least some geometry. 83 percent of students who take rigorous gateway math courses like algebra I and geometry go on to college. Only 36 percent of students who do not take these courses go on to college. Low-income students who took algebra 1 and geometry are almost three times as likely to attend college as those who did not.
We don't usually think of math as an equity issue, or even a civil rights issue, but it is. The President's proposal for voluntary national tests in 8th-grade math, which include algebra and some geometry, would help all students to climb the ladder of success.
Fifth and finally, let's improve teaching. Let's strengthen licensing and certification standards. Let's counsel the burn-outs to leave the profession through a process that's fair but quick. And let's encourage those who love teaching to become nationally board-certified "master teachers." The President has pledged to provide funds to help 100,000 teachers to take on this great professional challenge. That would put one master teacher in every school in America.
I have talked a lot about reading this morning, and I would like to end my remarks with one of my favorite stories about reading. It involves a 5th-grader named Jonathan. President Clinton and I met him at an elementary school near Crofton, Maryland.
Jonathan was asked to read a paragraph of his favorite book to the President. Jonathan's book was entitled "Eben Tyne, Powdermonkey." It's about a young boy named Eben who loads gunpowder onto battleships in the Civil War.
Jonathan read his paragraph. The President thanked him for his great job and told him how much he enjoyed reading American history.
Jonathan then handed the book to the President and said, "If you'd like to finish it by yourself, you can. But it's due back at the Crofton library the 27th of September." With 52 million children like Jonathan to educate, we certainly have our work cut out for us. Thank you all very much.
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