Fwd: Testing Clinton and Obama

[Susan Harman <susanharman@igc.org>]

Begin forwarded message:

  From: James Crawford <jwcrawford@COMPUSERVE.COM>

  Date: Wed Feb 13, 2008 2:16:41 PM US/Pacific

  To: ELLADVOC@ASU.EDU

  Subject: Testing Clinton and Obama

  Reply-To: James Crawford <jwcrawford@COMPUSERVE.COM>

  New on http://www.elladvocates.org/blog/

  Testing Clinton and Obama

  According to the latest scuttlebutt around Washington — for what it’s worth —
  Senator Kennedy plans to hold a committee vote on No Child Left Behind the
  week of March 10 and take a bill to the Senate floor soon after. No Senate
  Democratic proposal has been unveiled as yet. But chances are it would
  include elements of the Miller-McKeon “discussion draft” released last fall,
  which features minor changes while preserving the test-and-punish structure
  of the law. (Click here for the Institute’s critical comments.)

  Kennedy's bill might even water down what the House Education and Labor
  Committee has proposed in order to avoid a Republican filibuster and a threat
  by George Bush to veto any compromise on "accountability."

  The big question remains: What will Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack
  Obama, both members of the Senate HELP Committee, do if this occurs? Will
  they defer to Kennedy’s expressed desire to reauthorize the law this year? Or
  will he defer to their campaign rhetoric denouncing NCLB and preserve the
  issue for one or the other to fight out with John McCain?

  If the committee vote really happens, it promises to be an important test to
  see where the Democrats-who-would-be-president really stand on
  reauthorization. Despite their criticisms of the law, which have grown
  increasingly sharp, on their campaign websites both Clinton0000,0000,0000 and
  Obama0000,0000,0000 remain remarkably vague about what changes they would
  support.

  Last night, speaking in Wisconsin after his big wins in the East, Obama made
  a point of attacking “teaching to the test.” A day earlier the candidate’s
  wife, Michelle,0000,0000,0000 said NCLB is “sucking the life out of public
  schools. … I wouldn’t be here without those neighborhood schools we had right
  around the corner.”

  Obviously, the Obama campaign sees some potential mileage here — not unlike
  Bill Clinton, who recently said: “If I say we’re going to get rid of No Child
  Left Behind … it’s the only surefire applause line in America today.” That
  was widely interpreted as a slap at Ted Kennedy, one of the authors of NCLB,
  coming shortly after his endorsement of Obama. No doubt.

  But, in fairness, Hillary Clinton made the same promise to the United
  Federation of Teachers on January 16, before Kennedy anointed her opponent.
  Even Chelsea is getting into the act. Last week at UW-Madison she said her
  mother would “unequivocally” eliminate NCLB.

  But how about some specifics?

  When pressed back in December, Obama called for “fundamental changes” in
  NCLB, including better assessments, additional resources, and a “growth
  model” for adequate yearly progress. But he ducked a question on one of the
  central, contentious issues: whether to retain the goal of 100% “proficiency”
  by 2014. These comments are entirely compatible with the Miller-McKeon
  approach.

  Here’s Clinton’s answer, as summarized by eSchool News:0000,0000,0000

  Clinton … addresses what she considers a fundamental problem with the law’s
  structure: She believes school accountability should be based on the
  year-to-year performance of students, rather than on how schools with
  disparate local funds stack up against each other. Instead of asking
  low-income schools to catch up to wealthier institutions, she says, the
  program should deliver rewards and sanctions based on individual school
  improvement.

  That still sounds like test-and-punish to me. So far, neither candidate has
  said enough to impress the National Education Association, which continues to
  withhold its endorsement.

  The second week of March we may finally learn where the candidates stand. Or
  not. Stay tuned.

  James Crawford

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