For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
January 3, 2004
President's Radio Address
Audio
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Radio Address
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Radio Interviews
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THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Two years ago this month, I signed
into law the No Child Left Behind Act, the most important reform of
public education in a generation.
In that landmark law, we made our expectations clear: every child
in America will learn to read, write, add and subtract at grade level.
Schools are now required to test children regularly to make sure
students are learning and that schools are teaching well.
And when schools do not show progress toward high standards, we're
giving parents better options, including tutoring for their children,
or a transfer to a better public school. Above all, the No Child Left
Behind Act required a change in attitude from the educators and public
officials responsible for our schools.
We will no longer write off some children as hopeless. We will no
longer accept or excuse schools that do not effectively teach the
basics. We will insist on high standards and accountability because we
believe that every school should teach and every child can learn.
For the past 24 months, schools and state governments have been
putting the new reforms into action. All 50 states, plus the District
of Columbia and Puerto Rico, have drawn up plans to hold every public
school accountable for student achievement. We're measuring results.
We're giving teachers the information they need to improve instruction,
and giving parents new options to help their children when schools do
not measure up.
We have recently received test results that show America's children
are making progress. In 2003, math scores for fourth graders
nationwide were nine points higher than in 2000. Math scores for
eighth graders improved by five points. And a higher percentage of
fourth graders tested at or above their grade level in reading.
To mark the anniversary of the No Child Left Behind Act, I will
travel this coming week to schools in St. Louis, Missouri and
Knoxville, Tennessee. Children at these schools once struggled, but in
recent years, they have risen to meet our new standards. Their example
shows that high expectations, a commitment to measuring achievement and
a belief in every child can change lives and turn schools around.
Some critics have objected to these reforms because they believe
our expectations are too high, or that it is unfair to hold all
students to the same standards regardless of background, or that we're
punishing schools that are not making progress. But the time for
excuses has passed. Our reforms insist on high standards because we
know every child can learn. Our reforms call for testing because the
worst discrimination is to ignore a school's failure to teach every
child. And our reforms identify underperforming schools because we
need to direct our help to the schools that need it most.
In 2003, we provided $234 million to assist the lowest performing
schools that need the most improvement. In 2004, we plan to more than
double that amount. We have increased federal funding for elementary
and high school education from about $25 billion in 2001, to more than
$33 billion in 2003, an increase of about 36 percent, and the highest
level ever.
We've committed $1.8 billion in grants to help train tens of
thousands of teachers to use effective reading instruction methods and
materials. We expect schools to do their job, and we're helping them
to do their job. So there's no excuse for failure. When we set a high
standard, we are showing our belief in the capacities of every child.
And when we prepare them to meet a high standard, we're giving them a
better chance in life. High expectations set children on a path to
success. I'm pleased to report that the No Child Left Behind Act is
helping put more of America's children on that path, so they succeed in
school and in life.
Thank you for listening.
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