Education Policy

A worthwhile education is first a transmission of ideas through which we view the world, of clarified convictions, of who we are and how we are to live. Without wisdom, knowledge and ideas become useless or worse, dangerous things indeed. We have scientists working on the development of all kinds of cures for debilitating diseases and yet we also have scientists in this country perfecting so-called low-yield nuclear weapons. We have tiny technologies emerging that connect people from around the world, and yet we grow ever more distant from neighbors and strangers on the street. So while many now argue for education to spur economic growth and for greater emphasis on math and science-and this has merit-we will do well to remember that no amount of money or organization or administration will solve the problems of our education system without an education that gives us values and ideas by which to live.

Having said this, I see a need for the role of the federal government in education to be turned on its head. Its main role now is really in higher education, and although the No Child Left Behind Act expands its involvement in primary and secondary education, it gives no indication of where we are going. I believe that the No Child Left Behind Act must be completely reworked.

I propose that:

1. We weaken the link between education funding and local property taxes. This revenue when combined with state funding (though much less) makes up the majority of funding and leaves the quality of our education system subject to fluctuations in the market. It also leaves the schools with the greatest need the least amount of help.

2. We shift our federal emphasis to early education, starting with preschool opportunities and continuing with primary schools where the most attention is needed.

3. We shift our priority from rote preparation for standardized tests to a true high-quality education by reducing class sizes, recruiting and retaining well-qualified teachers, building and updating school buildings, and funding both alternative education and that for individuals with disabilities. We retain teachers by creating better work environments-more freedom for their creativity, smaller class sizes, guaranteed health insurance (under my expansion of Medicare for All) and loan forgiveness programs.

4. We experiment with an expansion of the 180 day agrarian calendar to allow for more thorough coverage of material, more flexibility for teachers in developing their curriculums, a less-pressurized atmosphere, and deeper teacher-student relationships key to a child's progress. We honor and pay teachers professionally for this even greater commitment.

5. We reverse the perverse system of penalties in the NCLB Act which fails to address the root causes of the problem, and we oppose any sort of vouchers which not only fail to improve public schools, but strip them of their ability to improve.

6. We similarly oppose increasing Pell Grants and tax credits for college students attending private universities because of the arbitrariness of tuition hikes which have been shown to spike with higher grants. The more the federal government issues in grants, the more universities feel they can charge without being subject to any standards or cost-control mechanisms. They can raise tuition at any time, by any amount. We have to examine costs of a college education more closely and their loan practices. I would support raising the grants for public universities, over which the government does hold some leverage, and extending to the top quarter or third of graduating high school students a more affordable opportunity to attend our public universities. (This last measure would fall under the state's jurisdiction).

We must recognize that a good education requires not simply a sound education policy, but also access to health care and housing and a healthy home environment for our children. The success of a good education for every child will, in turn, further gains in educating oneself and others, in working productively and purposefully, in living healthier lives, in caring as citizens for our environment and our communities, and in participating critically and creatively in public debate about the direction of our country.