Finally, a Debate About Education

With the economy tanking and the constant character attacks, presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and John McCain have barely addressed the issue of education during any of their debates. At a recent AEI forum, however, education advisors Michael Johnston (Obama) and Lisa Graham Keegan (McCain), discussed the candidates' stances on education entrepreneurship. There's been a recent trend toward "social entrepreneurship," opening the door for private providers of education services like tutoring, teacher recruitment, and charter schools. Find out where Obama and McCain stand on extending entrepreneurial efforts in education after the jump, and let us know:

Do you think education entrepreneurship (from groups like K.I.P.P, Teach for America, and the New Teacher Project) has improved public education for all, and should the next administration make way for more entrepreneurial initiatives in public education?

The positions . . .

Michael Johnston (Advisor to Obama)

• Recruit, Retain and Reward Quality Educators: Support alternative teaching licensure, teacher service scholarships, and teacher residency programs. Ensure educators have a meaningful and rewarding career ladder to climb and increase pay for quality educators through innovative models such as pay-for-performance. Provide incentives to attract teachers to hard-to-serve schools and hard-to-fill subjects.
• Create a Social Entrepreneurship Agency: Education would be a huge part of this federal agency if it is created.
• Make Sure the Money and Resources Are There: Provide money, resources, and infrastructure for education entrepreneurship. Treat it like an investment—if a program or method is working, then expand it and invest more; if it is not working, move the money to different programs. Double the budget for research and development to ensure innovative new ideas are supported, and double the budget for charter schools.
• Reform NCLB: Johnston referred to the current assessment system, in which kids take a test in March and the results don't come back until July, as an "autopsy" and would like to see changes made. The goal of NCLB is correct, but how assessments are used needs to change and value-added models should be implemented. Instead of labeling a school as failing, when trouble arises intervene immediately by providing resources and options such as extending the school year or cutting down on class size.

Lisa Graham Keegan (Advisor to McCain)

• Attract Quality Educators: Recruit educators from the top 25 percent of college students. Require top students to take a course in college that gives them teaching skills, so they are prepared to go into the field if they ever choose to do so in their lifetimes. Push for alternative routes to teaching certification.
• Provide Rewards for Teachers: Allocate money from Title II to reward teachers for student achievement.
• Provide Resources for Kids and Educators: Make sure resources are available to students and educators. Allow educators to develop their own expertise and have experts on numerous topics available at each school.
• Improve Technology: Make $1 billion available for technology improvements: $500 million for technology infrastructure, $250 million for online classes, and $250 million to support math and science in rural and urban areas.

More on Obama's and McCain's education plans.

Comments

[dcowart]

As a public educator it may seem unusual for me to say that I do not mind the recent push for competiton in public education. I think we can learn a lot from entrepeneurship. The only thing I find frustrating is when we compare apples to oranges. For example, many charters schools have more resources than their public school counterparts. It does not shock me when they do better. Overall, we are at a turning point in education. Public education has to put pride aside as we continue to look for what works best with kids.