Back-to-back speeches at the 99th NAACP Convention, July 2008: on Education
Barack Obama:
Fight for social & economic justice begins in the classroom
We’ll make sure that every child in this country gets a world-class education from the day they’re born until the day they graduate from college. What McCain is offering amounts to little more than the same tired rhetoric about vouchers. We need to move
beyond the same debate we’ve been having for the past 30 years when we haven’t gotten anything done. We need to fix & improve our public schools, not throw our hands up and walk away from them. We need to uphold the ideal of public education, but we also
need reform. That’s why I’ve introduced a comprehensive strategy to recruit an army of new quality teachers to our communities--and to pay them more & give them more support. We’ll invest in early childhood education programs so that our kids don’t begin
the race of life behind the starting line and offer a $4,000 tax credit to make college affordable for anyone who wants to go. Because as the NAACP knows better than anyone, the fight for social justice and economic justice begins in the classroom.
Source: McCain-Obama speeches at 99th NAACP Convention
Jul 12, 2008
John McCain:
Vouchers and school choice for all
Over the years, Americans have heard a lot of “tired rhetoric” about education. We’ve heard it in the endless excuses of people who seem more concerned about their own position than about our children. We’ve heard it from politicians who accept the statu
quo rather than stand up for real change in our public schools. Parents ask only for schools that are safe, teachers who are competent, and diplomas that open doors of opportunity. When a public system fails, repeatedly, to meet these minimal
objectives, parents ask only for a choice in the education of their children. Some parents may choose a better public school. Some may choose a private school. Many will choose a charter school. No entrenched bureaucracy or union should deny parents
that choice and children that opportunity.
If I am elected president, school choice for all who want it, an expansion of Opportunity Scholarships, and alternative certification for teachers will all be part of a serious agenda of education reform.
Source: McCain-Obama speeches at 99th NAACP Convention
Jul 12, 2008
John McCain:
Pay bonuses to teachers in the most troubled schools
We will pay bonuses to teachers who take on the challenge of working in our most troubled schools--because we need their fine minds and good hearts to help turn those schools around. We will award bonuses as well to our highest-achieving teachers. And no
longer will we measure teacher achievement by conformity to process. We will measure it by the success of their students. Moreover, the funds for these bonuses will not be controlled by faraway officials. Under my reforms, we will entrust both the funds
and the responsibilities where they belong in the office of the school principal. One reason that charter schools are so successful, and so sought-after by parents, is that principals have spending discretion. And I intend to give that same discretion
to public school principals. No longer will money be spent in service to rigid and often meaningless formulas. Relying on the good judgment and first-hand knowledge of school principals, education money will be spent in service to public school students.
Source: McCain-Obama speeches at 99th NAACP Convention
Jul 12, 2008
John McCain:
Offer more choices to those who wish to become teachers
Many highly qualified men and women have great knowledge, wisdom, and experience to offer public school students. But a monopoly on teacher certification prevents them from getting that chance. You can be a Nobel Laureate and not qualify to teach in most
public schools today. They don’t have the proper credits in educational “theory” or “methodology”--all they have is learning and the desire and ability to share it. If we’re putting the interests of students first, those qualifications should be enough.
Source: McCain-Obama speeches at 99th NAACP Convention
Jul 12, 2008
John McCain:
Target funding to recruit top graduates as teachers
I will target funding to recruit teachers who graduate in the top 25 percent of their class, or who participate in an alternative teacher recruitment program such as
Teach for America, the American Board for Teacher Excellence, and the New Teacher Project.
Source: McCain-Obama speeches at 99th NAACP Convention
Jul 12, 2008
John McCain:
Direct $750 million to build virtual schools
I propose to direct $500 million to build new virtual schools and to support the development of online courses for students. Through competitive grants, we will allocate another $250 million to support state programs expanding education opportunities,
including the creation of public virtual charter schools. States can use these funds to build virtual math and science academies to help expand the availability of Advanced Placement courses, online tutoring, and foreign language courses.
Source: McCain-Obama speeches at 99th NAACP Convention
Jul 12, 2008
John McCain:
Give parents easier access to obtain help for their children
Under my reforms parents will exercise freedom of choice in obtaining extra help for children falling behind. Federal aid to parents for tutoring for their children has to go through another bureaucracy. They can’t purchase the tutoring directly, without
having to deal with the same education establishment that failed their children in the first place. These needless restrictions will be removed. If a student needs extra help, parents will be able to sign them up to get it, with direct public support.
Source: McCain-Obama speeches at 99th NAACP Convention
Jul 12, 2008
Page last updated: Dec 01, 2018