Education: K-12
In our district, public education is second to none. Unfortunately, Federal laws seem designed to tear down even our best schools by criticizing our teachers and building walls between parents, teachers and students. For too long our education system has become politicized with the focus on the latest fad to ‘revolutionize’ our system – fads typically created with political intent. We need to set aside partisanship and reverse the trend toward mediocrity. I believe that we must engage teachers, administrators, parents and educational experts to improve education based on what actually works.
President Obama’s ‘Race to the Top’ initiative is a step in the right direction, but having served on the grant committee working on Minnesota’s proposal, it became clear that this initiative is still far too prescriptive. Recognizing that the economic situation of a family has a direct impact on a child’s ability to learn, we need policies that work toward stability in the home and putting good food on the table. A child’s learning ability is directly related to how prepared they are to learn.
Public education is the great equalizer in the United States, and we must work together on innovative and proven methods to improve the education of our children. A ‘one size fits all’ approach for the public education system doesn’t work. We should not simply move from a Texas model of education under President Bush to a Chicago model under President Obama. We must, instead, promote innovation and partnerships that allow children of diverse backgrounds to thrive.
As your Congressman, Jim will:
• Reform No Child Left Behind to create a climate that rewards successful schools rather than penalizing those already struggling.
• Stop forcing teachers to teach to the test and build systems that measure student achievement over time, rather than in a snapshot.
• Tell Members of Congress to stop talking about fully funding Special Education. It is time to get it done.
• Provide funding to modernize classrooms, improve the infrastructure of our schools, and retrofit facilities to be energy efficient.
• Support grants for school districts to innovate with longer school days, longer school years, new technology and other methods that will have a positive impact on student achievement.
• Support parents, teachers and students by building strong connections between the three. Learning is a partnership between them all.
