At the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, Barack Obama said, “Go into any inner-city neighborhood, and folks will tell you that government alone can’t teach kids to learn.” People will also tell you that government can do more to provide opportunities to obtain decent education.The current state of education in America highlights the differences between the haves and have-nots – those who can afford decent education are destined for places like Georgetown and beyond, and those who can’t are forced to make do with a broken system that stifles their potential.Obama campaigned for nearly two years on a platform of comprehensive education reform. He outlined plans to retool pre-kindergarten programs, reform the No Child Left Behind Act, address the dropout crisis and make math and science education a national priority.We wish we could take him seriously.The state of emergency in our cities’ schools cannot be properly addressed without a significant reconsideration of how we approach education; Obama’s secretary of education pick doesn’t reflect the high-minded ambition of his declared goals. Obama selected the former CEO of Chicago Public Schools, Arne Duncan, to head the Department of Education. While Duncan’s nomination and confirmation were welcomed with acclaim, his track record suggests that he might not be the education messiah that some expected.CPS has historically performed well below the national average, and despite introducing some broad institutional changes and initiatives, Duncan did nothing to significantly reverse the trend in his seven years as CEO. Although he made progress in increasing college attendance rates among minority students and elementary test scores, in other ways CPS languished under his direction. In 2007, only 17 percent of CPS eighth graders read at grade level. In November 2007, the Chicago Sun-Times reported a widening achievement gap between black and white students.Compared to more aggressive reformers like D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Duncan is a moderate when it comes to reform – on the education spectrum, he can be found somewhere between hard-line reformists and the Chicago Teachers Union.Education reform is a serious matter; the secretary of education should inspire confidence, have a proven track record and exhibit a relentless reformist spirit. We see little of this in Duncan.Inner-city public education needs broad reconstruction – Obama needs someone like Rhee. She has rigorously promoted high standards in schools and has left no option off the table in her attempts to address the crisis in D.C., including an overhauling of the tenure system. Rhee has challenged parents and the Washington Teachers’ Union in pursuit of giving students the education they deserve.Education reform will be one of the more difficult tasks the Obama administration will face over the next four to eight years. It will mean re-imagining the system and standing up to special-interest groups like teachers’ unions. American education needs to be brought into the 21st century, which means more funding for technology in the classroom and flexible curricula. Go into any inner-city neighborhood and people will tell you their kids want to learn and have hope for a better future – they just need the resources to do it.
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