Obama Administration on Education:
President Obama and Vice President Biden believe that our kids
and our country canÕt afford four more years of neglect and indifference. At
this defining moment in our history, America faces few more urgent challenges
than preparing our children to compete in a global economy. The decisions our
leaders make about education in the coming years will shape our future for
generations to come. Obama and Biden are committed to meeting this challenge
with the leadership and judgment that has been sorely lacking for the last
eight years. Their vision for a 21st century education begins with demanding
more reform and accountability, coupled with the resources needed to carry out
that reform; asking parents to take responsibility for their childrenÕs
success; and recruiting, retaining, and rewarding an army of new teachers to
fill new successful schools that prepare our children for success in college
and the workforce. The Obama-Biden plan will restore the promise of AmericaÕs
public education, and ensure that American children again lead the world in
achievement, creativity and success.
Early Childhood Education
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Zero to Five Plan: The Obama-Biden
comprehensive "Zero to Five" plan will provide critical support to
young children and their parents. Unlike other early childhood education plans,
the Obama-Biden plan places key emphasis at early care and education for
infants, which is essential for children to be ready to enter kindergarten.
Obama and Biden will create Early Learning Challenge Grants to promote state
Zero to Five efforts and help states move toward voluntary, universal
pre-school.
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Expand Early Head Start and
Head Start: Obama and Biden will quadruple Early Head Start, increase Head
Start funding, and improve quality for both.
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Provide affordable,
High-Quality Child Care: Obama and Biden will also increase access to affordable and
high-quality child care to ease the burden on working families.
K-12
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Reform No Child Left Behind: Obama and Biden will
reform NCLB, which starts by funding the law. Obama and Biden believe teachers
should not be forced to spend the academic year preparing students to fill in
bubbles on standardized tests. They will improve the assessments used to track
student progress to measure readiness for college and the workplace and improve
student learning in a timely, individualized manner. Obama and Biden will also
improve NCLB's accountability system so that we are supporting schools that
need improvement, rather than punishing them.
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Support High-Quality Schools
and Close Low-Performing Charter Schools: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will double
funding for the Federal Charter School Program to support the creation of more
successful charter schools. The Obama-Biden administration will provide this
expanded charter school funding only to states that improve accountability for
charter schools, allow for interventions in struggling charter schools and have
a clear process for closing down chronically underperforming charter schools.
Obama and Biden will also prioritize supporting states that help the most
successful charter schools to expand to serve more students.
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Make Math and Science Education
a National Priority: Obama and Biden will recruit math and science degree graduates
to the teaching profession and will support efforts to help these teachers
learn from professionals in the field. They will also work to ensure that all
children have access to a strong science curriculum at all grade levels.
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Address the Dropout Crisis: Obama and Biden will
address the dropout crisis by passing legislation to provide funding to school
districts to invest in intervention strategies in middle school -- strategies
such as personal academic plans, teaching teams, parent involvement, mentoring,
intensive reading and math instruction, and extended learning time.
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Expand High-Quality Afterschool
Opportunities: Obama and Biden will double funding for the main federal
support for afterschool programs, the 21st Century Learning Centers program, to
serve one million more children.
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Support College Outreach
Programs:
Obama and Biden support outreach programs like GEAR UP, TRIO and Upward Bound
to encourage more young people from low-income families to consider and prepare
for college.
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Support College Credit
Initiatives: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will create a national "Make
College A Reality" initiative that has a bold goal to increase students
taking AP or college-level classes nationwide 50 percent by 2016, and will
build on Obama's bipartisan proposal in the U.S. Senate to provide grants for
students seeking college level credit at community colleges if their school
does not provide those resources.
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Support English Language
Learners:
Obama and Biden support transitional bilingual education and will help Limited
English Proficient students get ahead by holding schools accountable for making
sure these students complete school.
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Recruit Teachers: Obama and Biden will
create new Teacher Service Scholarships that will cover four years of
undergraduate or two years of graduate teacher education, including
high-quality alternative programs for mid-career recruits in exchange for
teaching for at least four years in a high-need field or location.
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Prepare Teachers: Obama and Biden will
require all schools of education to be accredited. Obama and Biden will also
create a voluntary national performance assessment so we can be sure that every
new educator is trained and ready to walk into the classroom and start teaching
effectively. Obama and Biden will also create Teacher Residency Programs that
will supply 30,000 exceptionally well-prepared recruits to high-need schools.
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Retain Teachers: To support our
teachers, the Obama-Biden plan will expand mentoring programs that pair
experienced teachers with new recruits. They will also provide incentives to
give teachers paid common planning time so they can collaborate to share best
practices.
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Reward Teachers: Obama and Biden will
promote new and innovative ways to increase teacher pay that are developed with
teachers, not imposed on them. Districts will be able to design programs that
reward with a salary increase accomplished educators who serve as a mentors to
new teachers. Districts can reward teachers who work in underserved places like
rural areas and inner cities. And if teachers consistently excel in the classroom,
that work can be valued and rewarded as well.
Higher Education
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Create the American Opportunity
Tax Credit: Obama and Biden will make college affordable for all Americans
by creating a new American Opportunity Tax Credit. This universal and fully refundable
credit will ensure that the first $4,000 of a college education is completely
free for most Americans, and will cover two-thirds the cost of tuition at the
average public college or university and make community college tuition
completely free for most students. Recipients of the credit will be required to
conduct 100 hours of community service.
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Simplify the Application
Process for Financial Aid: Obama and Biden will streamline the financial aid process by
eliminating the current federal financial aid application and enabling families
to apply simply by checking a box on their tax form, authorizing their tax
information to be used, and eliminating the need for a separate application.
Students with Disabilities
Obama and Biden will work to ensure the academic success of
students with disabilities by increasing funding and effectively enforcing the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and by holding schools accountable
for providing students with disabilities the services and supports they need to
reach their potential. Obama and Biden will also support Early Intervention
services for infants and toddlers, and will work to improve college
opportunities for high school graduates with disabilities.