A World-Class Education in First-Class Schools
America’s children need and deserve a world-class education in first-class schools. Unfortunately, many are being left behind in underfunded, overcrowded, crumbling schools.
Rather than investing in rebuilding and modernizing schools and training and supporting the teachers in them, some politicians in the Bush administration, Congress and state legislatures want to use public money—taxpayers’ dollars that should benefit all students—for private school vouchers, which benefit few.
Some of the key issues that need to be addressed in the fight to create a world-class education for America's children include:
- Reducing class size.
- Hiring more skilled teachers.
- Upholding high standards for students.
- Building, improving and modernizing school facilities.
- Improving students' reading skills.
- Redesigning low-performing schools.
- Stopping vouchers from weakening public education
- Making higher education affordable and treating higher-education workers with respect.
We must increase school repair and maintenance. In 1999, our children attended nearly 60,000 schools that needed approximately $127 billion in repairs. States and school districts are picking up the increasing costs of unfunded federal educational standards and mandates. They need assistance from the federal government in maintaining facilities—work that will create more jobs.
The states also need financial assistance to attain our education goals. They're scrambling to close budget gaps that hit nearly $200 billion in just the past three years. The Bush administration has refused to fully fund the No Child Left Behind Act, which requires states to achieve education goals but does not provide adequate funds to enable them to do so.
Working families need to make their voices are heard when these issues are being discussed.
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