ASCD Responds to President Obama's 2012 State of the Union Address

The president's call for improving education and training for students and workers comes at a time when ASCD is calling for similar efforts in its 2012 Legislative Agenda, released today at the association's annual Leadership Institute for Legislative Advocacy in Washington, D.C. 

ASCD believes that a quality education is the pathway to a successful future for today's students and society at large. Our 2012 Legislative Agenda makes 10 recommendations that we would like to see built into ongoing efforts to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). I'd like to focus on a few points of particular interest in light of the president's remarks this evening. 

First, we call on the president to work with Congress and other stakeholders to clearly define college and career readiness to embrace all core academic subjects and the comprehensive knowledge and cognitive skills required of students after high school. Success in school, as in the workforce, is not limited to just proficiency in reading and math, nor is it confined to a single test score. We must create an education system that meets the needs of the whole child, ensuring that students receive a well-rounded education, are assessed in a comprehensive manner, and are prepared to be successful lifelong learners.

The president wants to offer schools a deal: He seeks to give them the resources to keep good teachers on the job and reward the best ones. In return, he will grant schools flexibility to teach with creativity and passion, to stop teaching to the test, and to hold them accountable for their effectiveness. 

As the president calls for efforts to improve the skills of America's workers, we encourage him to work with Congress to support educators' ongoing professional learning to address students' evolving needs.  School leaders and classroom educators, like any valuable human resource, need adequate support to gain and sustain professional knowledge and skills. Effective teaching leads to ongoing student achievement and growth and will be one of the key factors in preparing today's students for success in tomorrow's world.

Likewise, we agree that state and federal leaders must create a system of rewards and incentives for states and schools and get away from the No Child Left Behind Act's exclusively punitive school turnaround strategies.