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U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige today gave his Department's Back-to-School Address at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Speaking directly to educators and a student in the audience, he discussed the positive changes brought about in classrooms by the No Child Left Behind Act.

INTRODUCTION

Thank you, Sheila (Cherry). Good afternoon.

I'm still a teacher at heart, so I'm going to start with a short history lesson. I can't help myself when I get in front of a crowd like this!

I came to the National Press Club for the first time four years ago. I talked about what the president and I saw when we arrived in Washington: millions of students, who had been left behind for decades, despite the best of intentions. The next year, I spoke about our action plan to include all those children: to give each and every one of them the quality education a nation such as ours is capable of providing. The plan was No Child Left Behind. Last year, I discussed how the law was being put into action in the field. And this year, today, I am going to talk about the fruits of everyone's labors—how No Child Left Behind is working.

I am pleased to report that this law is making a positive difference in millions of lives. There is clear evidence of success, noticeable patterns of change, and upbeat reports from a variety of sources. Simply stated: the law is working, and we are at the beginning of a new era in education. If we remain resolute and steadfast, year by year, more powerful and positive changes will follow. But if we backtrack, if we falter, if we renege on our promise to our children, then we will lose the most important and profound opportunity in our lifetime to make education better for this generation of students and those that follow.

THE MISSION OF PUBLIC EDUCATION

After all, we have a commitment to educate. In each of these four Press Club speeches I have been mindful of the mission and goals of public education. As a nation, we must promise to provide a sound, useful—and sterling—education. And I know that educators everywhere—from Manhattan, New York to Manhattan, Indiana to Manhattan, Montana to Manhattan Beach, California—are committed to this mission. The goal is nothing less than excellence—excellence on all levels and in every way. Almost every school has the word "excellence" carved above the entrance or praised on the walls of the classroom. It is a commitment made and repeated every day in every school. In fact, schools stand as symbols of our inherited culture, where teachers are stewards of our collective knowledge.

Parents trust us to do this job. They give us their children for at least seven hours a day, five times a week. Their children—our children—are a public trust. There is an expectation that we will educate them, nurture them, mentor them, care for them ... each and every one. So we count on our teachers and administrators to educate. That is the job we do, and we must do it exceedingly well. Taxpayers support this system, now devoting more than $500 billion to K-12 education annually because of the importance of education to our citizens and our country. They expect that we will not waste their investment.

This act of trust, this monumental mission, this cornerstone of our democracy, is the foundation upon which all other services depend. There is nothing more important than education. Two thousand years ago, Cicero asked: "What greater or better gift can we offer the republic than to teach and instruct our young?" And I would answer: "No greater gift, no more valuable prize, no more vital task."

THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP

Yet, this precious gift of education has not always been available for all of America's students. Our ideal of a land of opportunity was denied to many. Before No Child Left Behind, this nation confronted a de facto apartheid in our schools. Millions of students were mired in mediocrity, denied a quality education. We all know who these children were: the poor, minorities, children with special needs. For various reasons, they had been passed on and passed out. Our students may have had good teachers, excellent administrators, or even plentiful resources—or not. There was no guarantee.

The most glaring evidence of this divided world of possibilities was a huge achievement gap between the ethnic groups. How bad was this achievement gap? By 12th grade, African Americans are typically four years behind white and Asian students. Hispanics are doing only slightly better than blacks. In other words, these students are finishing high school with a junior high school education.

How did this happen? How could it happen? How could we as a nation close our eyes to it, thinking everything was okay? We needed to "wake up and smell the coffee." Before No Child Left Behind, we only vaguely identified problems and tried to spend our way out of them. And we were good spenders. As the OECD's Barry McGaw said recently, the only area where we beat the rest of the world is in spending. "They don't need to catch up with you on quality, because many of them are already ahead," he said.

Look at the facts. Between 1965 and 2000, the federal government spent more than $130 billion—that's billion with a B—on programs for disadvantaged students (known as Title I). Sadly, the money seems to have made little difference. Test scores in reading were basically flat during the period between 1992 and 2000. There was some improvement in some areas, but the rate of improvement was slow and clearly did not reflect the money spent. So, when I say "spent," that's what I literally mean.

I've heard one official from this period proudly touting their educational investment during that time. That kind of talk really infuriates me. Funds were thrown at problems, not invested. The United States basically ran up a credit-card bill without even asking what it was getting for its money. Most Americans would define an "investment" as something they watch grow. They want to see whether their investment pays off.

So, we knew we could do better. We had to do better. Change was needed.

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND

Change came in the form of No Child Left Behind. We required states to set standards for achievement. We required every classroom to have a highly qualified teacher. We required states to measure students regularly. We sought transparency by asking states to provide more information to parents, to compile information on student and school performance, and to make that information available to their citizens. We also focused on using teaching methods proven to work—no more fads.

What a concept!

Also, we have helped train more than 75,000 teachers to use scientifically based principles to get students to read. That small army of teachers is working in nearly 4,300 schools across America. They are helping 1.4 million children—children who were in danger of falling behind—learn to read at grade level.

We have also provided free homework help to 112,000 low-income children. And that was just in the first year of the law. Schools in need of improvement have been identified, with additional resources matched to their needs. And close to 50,000 parents took advantage of school choice when they transferred their children from poorly performing schools to better educational environments. And in the District of Columbia, over 1,000 low-income children who had been trapped in schools that weren't serving them well are now going to the school of their choice, thanks to the first federally funded voucher program in the nation. We hope this pilot program will help spread private school choice to other cities that want it, as Washington, D.C. did.

These are all common-sense measures to adapt the education system to the 21st century. We are focusing on the needs of the children in the system—not the system itself. And, we have put our money where our mouth is: President Bush has set federal support for education at $57 billion for fiscal year 2005, a 36 percent increase since he took office. He promised to provide the resources to make this law work. And he has delivered.

I've been around education a long time. Your history class was my current events! And let me tell you: things are changing for the better. Now we must muster the political will to stay the course. In the past, every time there was an attempt to change things, the "system" pushed back. It's been that way since 1965, which really marks the first serious federal involvement in and funding for education. And in the past, any time change caused the slightest bit of pain, or interruption in the status quo, the system cried "Uncle!" and decision-makers at the top responded by issuing waivers and compliance agreements, or simply by giving the infraction a wink and a nod.

In other words, there has always been a chattering of teeth and then a recoiling anytime there has been an attempt to change things. So, the pushback on No Child Left Behind is nothing new. But the debate about this law is over. No Child Left Behind is here. And it is here to stay. And it is working. The quality of education that students are receiving in K-12 education is improving, which means that students are better prepared for college or the workforce, thanks to No Child Left Behind. Our national discussion is moving away from reasons not to do things, and is finally centering on results.

THE LAW IS WORKING

The data coming out of states now are helping us see the mosaic of public education much more clearly. We are seeing the patterns of the landscape and how they are changing year by year. This information is helping all of us determine areas of need, the effects of change, and long-term trends.

One of the reasons the law is working—and why we've seen some of the teeth chattering—is that we have been serious about monitoring states' progress on implementing it. We have been true partners, helping states that need help. We have been listening to them and will continue to do so. I am an education practitioner, not an educational politician, and I know who must do the work! So, we eagerly made adjustments, in the form of a series of regulations and guidance, after getting feedback and seeing how the law was playing out. We have been open to finding ways to make this law work on a practical level, and we will continue to do so in the future, as long as the goal remains the same.

And for states that are intentionally flouting or unintentionally breaking the law, we have taken action. For example, last year, we fined states for being out of compliance with NCLB. Believe it or not, it was the first time in the 25-year history of the U.S. Department of Education that funds had ever been taken away from a state for not complying with the elementary and secondary education law. The first time ever! We have also withheld funds until states have gotten their programs and plans in place as required by law. Yes, we mean business—the business of educating each and every one of our children. No excuses for them, or for us.

Because we have been serious about the law, our attitude has reverberated—from the state level all the way down to the classrooms. It is the one-on-one encounters that I carry around with me.

We know every child can learn—even those who don't speak English as their native tongue. For example, Fatima Rodriguez is a fourth-grader at Gainesville Elementary School in Georgia.

The entire school has embraced No Child Left Behind, largely thanks to its principal, Shawn Arevalo McCollough. For Fatima, who came to Gainesville in second grade without a strong command of English, NCLB has made a huge difference. In just two years, Fatima learned English, is reading on grade level, and passed the state test for promotion to fourth grade. According to Principal McCollough, "Fatima beams with pride and hope every single day, and is a shining example of how NCLB empowers the kids who need the most help."

He says he "couldn't be more excited or proud of anyone." I've asked Fatima, her sister Monica, and Principal McCollough to join us today. Please stand up.

I've heard a lot of grumbling about how children like Fatima can't learn and shouldn't be tested. I couldn't disagree more. Principal McCollough, Fatima, and her family disagree, too. OK, well maybe Fatima, like most of us, doesn't always like taking tests! But she understands why tests are important! We must assess all children—every single one—because otherwise they will not be counted. Otherwise, they can fall through the cracks.

Those individual stories add up and multiply. You see when a school is on the right track. For example, in Colorado, Bessemer Elementary serves lower-income students. In the past three years, the percentage of students passing the fourth-grade Colorado Student Assessment Program has increased sevenfold in reading and thirty-fold in writing. The district credits No Child Left Behind.

Nevada's Anderson Elementary, underachieving a few years ago, recently became Washoe County's first poverty-area school ever to earn high-achievement status under No Child Left Behind.

In Sioux Falls, South Dakota, students have raised their standardized test scores in nearly every subject, by as many as 10 points on the SAT10. Rick Melmer, state secretary of education, has credited No Child Left Behind.

With each school, there is a story behind a story. Teachers are using data to better direct resources. Cheryl Krehbiel, a fourth-grade teacher in nearby Maryland, has explained, "NCLB calls on us to do something that we've never done before: to think about the kids who traditionally have been underserved by the public school system. I feel very passionately about those kids and also about this law. This law is making a positive difference." Cheryl is with us here today. Please stand, Cheryl. Thank you for your dedication to our nation's children.

Under No Child Left Behind, students who are having difficulty are given extra resources to bring them up to grade level. The strategy is working. For example, in South Dakota, Alcester-Hudson Elementary came off the needs improvement list. The improvement coordinator at the school said, "Being put on school improvement was one of the best things that happened to our schools." Now, 88 percent of Alcester students are proficient in reading and 85 percent in math, scores far higher than the state proficiency rates.

Closer to home, Washington Post columnist William Raspberry reported about a similar change in mindset at Langley High School in Northern Virginia. Traditionally known for its high-scoring students, school leaders were surprised to find themselves identified as in need of improvement on the basis of one subgroup-special-needs children. But the identification turned out to be a good thing and even the school's principal agreed. He told Mr. Raspberry: "We were upset to be identified ... when we knew what terrific work we are doing. But I have to say that the next year, we did go out and remediate the heck out of those [special-needs] kids. The teachers took it personally, [did] a lot on their own time. And now we don't have any underperforming subgroups."

Such examples are the building blocks of strong performances in many states. And they show the way for those schools still confronting such difficulties. That's the "micro" view. The same can be said at the "macro" level. Look at a few statewide comparisons:

• In New York, state education officials released a list of over 1,000 schools that made substantial gains on statewide English and math tests, including many in poor neighborhoods.

• In Delaware, student scores are the best ever on this year's tests in reading, writing, and mathematics.

• In Georgia, 78 percent of schools met the state's testing goals, up from 64 percent last year. Many of the schools that missed the goals did so in only one area. And 26 schools came off the "needs improvement" list In Illinois, 100 schools improved test scores by 7.5 percent between 2002 and 2003, and by 15 percent between 2001 and 2003.

• In Oregon, almost two-thirds of the more than 1,100 schools met all of the state targets for achievement. High-poverty (Title I) schools outperformed other schools.

The list goes on and on. Nationally, we see a powerful testimony of the law's effects. Earlier I mentioned the flat test scores in reading before the president took office. No Child Left Behind has ended that flat line. While fourth-grade reading scores between 1992 and 2000 remained stagnant, there has been a five-point increase in the last three years nationally. Delving down into the numbers, we see important movement: the percentage of African American and Hispanic fourth-graders who know their reading and math basics increased substantially more between 2000 and 2003 than in the previous eight years combined. As a result, the achievement gap is closing.

Further evidence comes from a recent report of 61 urban school districts. Students in these largest school systems showed significant improvement in reading and math in the first year under No Child Left Behind. And in the last few weeks, my Department has received data from a number of states indicating remarkable, rapid improvements.

THE FUTURE

You know what this means for each student we save—more attention, more ability, more confidence, more opportunity, more personal growth, more intellectual development, and more competitiveness with students in this country and abroad. In fact, the rest of the world is watching us closely. Leaders in Latin America, Asia and Europe are all observing our progress and trying to find their own ways to educate their children so they, too, leave no child behind.

I have spoken today about the state of our schools. I am proud to report that our schools are improving; American education is getting better—and it is because of No Child Left Behind and the hard-working teachers and administrators in our nation's schools. We must build on the strong foundation of this law. That is why President Bush is supporting new initiatives to enhance reading, increase job training, increase funding for community colleges, stabilize the long-term fiscal viability of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and encourage more knowledgeable and experienced people to turn to teaching. The passage of No Child Left Behind was a milestone, a landmark. Yet, in many ways, it is just the beginning.

Of course, there is still much to do. For example, we have to prepare for a future influx of students. By the year 2013, there will be about two million more K-12 students than in 2003. Many of these students will be from disadvantaged families. We need to be there for them. We cannot be satisfied until every student—every single one—receives a quality education. I ask you to imagine a future where Americans are better educated, with all the benefits that come with educational achievement. I ask you to see, with me, that vision. It is on the horizon. We can begin to see it with each new piece of data that confirms the direction and purpose of this powerful transformation of education.

I respect the difficulties encountered by schools in transforming our education system. It is not easy. But to paraphrase Frederick Douglass: nothing worth doing comes without struggle; the more important the action, the greater the struggle.

But I know that we can and will vastly improve public education because the president and Congress have the will to remain resolute. I know that educators are now starting to better understand the law, and they see that it provides more resources for them. Parents are discovering that the law empowers them, and the more they learn about the law, the more they like it. Taxpayers see that accountability generates more for the money. Government officials see that reform can enhance employment, expand the tax base, and decrease the economic costs of under-education. And businesses know that they are getting the skilled workers they need to keep our economy humming along.

CONCLUSION

I think a lot of us will look back on this moment in time as the "tipping point." It is the time where we changed our mindset—we stopped measuring educational success by inputs—like money spent—and instead starting examining outputs—measuring whether students are indeed learning.

Yes, there has been struggle. Any transformation of a large enterprise is difficult. It has been extremely tough to work through all of the adjustments necessary to improve the system. And our work is far from finished.

But the struggle is worth it. Almost every week I visit a school. And I talk to the children. Again, as a former teacher, I can't stay away! Adult problems can be worked out in boardrooms, conferences, or the halls of power. But the magic of education is still in a classroom, where a book can change a life, or a teacher can inspire a passion for learning.

And I ask you to see education reform through the eyes of a child. Our students see a powerful positive difference. They see a more inclusive environment where each student is respected and regarded. That sends a comfortable message of inclusion and concern to them; we care enough to include everyone. They get more attention from teachers, which is welcome because it expands their awareness. They see acceleration in learning, and there is more excitement in the classroom. And they learn the lessons of equality, civility, and tolerance, because they see such ideas practiced by their schools.

We can be confident about the years to come. We can see the shape of things to come. We may have what has been called "nostalgia for the future." It is a future of powerful promise, a dream realized. Each day we get closer to the best in American education, discarding our deficiencies and correcting long-standing problems. Each day we better serve our children. Each day, we make this country stronger, nobler, and wiser. Each day, we better prepare the next generation for leadership and responsibility. Each day we take one step closer to this future of excellence and inclusion. And we are doing it, together.

Thank you.

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