A Call for the Repeal of No Child Left Behind

But this isn’t the surprise of what happened with No Child Left Behind. The real question is why did so many Democrats vote for it? Why did only ten Senators – mavericks like Paul Wellstone and Russ Feingold – vote "no"?

I think that in part, it was fear. Just as so many Democrats voted for the war because they were afraid of being called soft on terrorism; and so many have voted to continue funding the war, our of fear of being accused of ‘not supporting the troops’; and so many voted to expand warrantless wiretapping authority because, again, they were afraid of being accused of being ‘soft on terrorism’ – I think many voted ‘yes’ because they were afraid that if they said no, Bush would have attacked them for ‘wanting to leave children behind.’
But for others – including the members of Oregon’s own delegation, who do not lack for courage, but voted for this law – I suspect it was misplaced trust. I think they wanted to believe that on this issue, George Bush was sincere. And I think they also trusted Ted Kennedy. Kennedy was supposed to know this issue, and he worked this out with Bush. Why, I don’t know. We can only assume that he didn’t do his homework. He can’t possibly have consulted with educators, researchers, school administrators, and concluded that a two percent increase in funding would make every child above average. Yes, I know that Kennedy argued for a larger increase in Federal funding – but nobody ever talked about the kind of money it would really have taken to even pretend that this law was intended to succeed.

So there are two lessons to be learned from this. The first is, when an Administration comes in and its first priority is slashing taxes for the wealthiest people – if they think that the biggest problem in America is that rich people don’t have enough money – I think you need to question their motivations on most issues; don’t just trust them on anything. The second lesson is, if you’re casting a vote on as big an issue as revamping the entire public education system, don’t trust anybody else to do your homework for you. Don’t vote until you’re talked to the experts in the field, the people on the ground. I promise you that as your next United States Senator, I will remember those lessons – and remind my colleagues of them, as well.

Now we come to the programmatic part of this speech. Obviously, I think the Bush law whose anniversary we mourn today should be put out of our misery. There is one key part of the Act that we should keep: the requirement that schools collect so-called "disaggregated data," using some sort of evaluation method to determine how various groups of kids are doing. Schools should have to show how the low-income kids are doing, how the African-American kids are doing, how the limited-English students are doing, and so on, so communities can see that data and act on it. And the Federal government, which does provide some money that is supposed to go to low-income students, has a right to ask for that information. But that’s a lot different from a right to demand every school district live up to the Lake Wobegon model, based on a 2% increase in funding.

So once the Bush law – with that one exception – is off the books, what’s next? What do I think the Federal role in public education should be?

For starters, the Federal government could do schools a huge favor by adopting a rational national health care policy. Schools, just like General Motors and other private employers who offer health coverage, are increasingly weighted down by health care costs. If we adopted a single-payer national health care system, public schools could reduce class sizes, free up time for the best teachers to act as mentors, restock their libraries with books, hire more counselors, pay janitors and cafeteria workers a decent wage.

Even if we just did what Ron Wyden has suggested – require everyone to have insurance, and require ALL employers to pay something toward health care – it would help the schools; because right now, schools and other employers that provide health care are paying the freight for those that don’t. When uninsured people go to the emergency room, those costs are shifted to the people with insurance – and to their employers.

Second, the Federal government should fulfill its decades-old, decades-neglected promise to fund 40% of the cost of complying with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Historically, the federal government has provided less than half that amount, helping to create an environment in which parents who just want what’s right for their kids too often wind up pitted against school administrators and other parents, in what seems like a zero-sum game.

Third, the U.S. Department of Education should emphasize research and advice, identifying the most promising educational practices in the United States and around the world, and sending ambassadors with that information to school districts across America. Not developing systems of sanctions to set our schools up for failure.

Fourth, it is high time for Uncle Sam to fully fund Head Start, ensuring that every eligible child – every child in poverty – has an opportunity to participate in an enriching pre-school program.

Fifth, the Federal Government, in partnership with states and local districts, should invest in a massive "green school buildings" program – replacing dark, crumbling school buildings across America with new, energy-efficient buildings, maximizing natural light, providing a better learning environment and fighting global warming at the same time. We could call the new green school building program: "Leave No Child in the Dark."

But beyond these priorities, it is clear that we cannot build the education system we need for the future through slogans. Educators, administrators and parents across Oregon and across the nation know the hard work and determination it will take to help our students succeed. It is time for the federal government to be a full a partner in that project, rather than looking for an opportunity to pull the rug out from under our public schools. Thank you.