Missed Opportunity for Courage on Education
Conn Carroll /
President Barack Obama was getting credit for “taking on teachers’ unions” before he even gave his speech on education today, and nothing he ended up saying contained enough substance to honestly be called courage.
True, he did vaguely endorse “merit pay” but it is still completely unclear what type of merit pay he will end up proposing. If Obama just provides bonuses for teachers who put in extra hours or receive more training, then there will be no real change at all. Even his call for more charter schools, which is admirable, is nothing different than what President Bill Clinton was calling for over a decade ago.
What was decidedly uncourageous about President Obama’s speech (more…)