Here is a decent link to a Q & A session on McCain's views on Education- http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/John_McCain_Education.htm
Another slice of some of his older statements on education-
http://glassbooth.org/explore/index/john-mccain/10/education/14/
Last- some "Quick Hits" on Education-
School PrayerMcCain is in favor of school prayer, and has supported legislation that would allow public schools to erect religious symbols as part of memorial services.
Departing From the No Child Left Behind ActJohn McCain would do away with the "sanctions" in the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which force schools that don't improve annual scores to offer tutoring or tickets to another public school. McCain will also change the NCLB's requirement that 100 percent of the nation's children be proficient in math and reading by 2014. McCain is still supportive of the intiative, but as a realist, he might change the deadline. According to McCain's website:
No Child Left Behind has focused our attention on the realities of how students perform against a common standard. John McCain believes that we can no longer accept low standards for some students and high standards for others. In this age of honest reporting, we finally see what is happening to students who were previously invisible. While that is progress all its own, it compels us to seek and find solutions to the dismal facts before us. School VouchersMcCain believes equal opportunity should be a key component of education reform, and is a firm defender of school vouchers -- which give parents the right to send their children to the school of their choice. Because the responsibility of educating America's future leaders and citizens is so important, McCain believes school systems must report to parents and the public on their progress.
The way students are prepared for their future is deplorable, in McCain's opinion, especially when compared with the rest of the world. Thus, McCain believes parents should have the right to send their children to schools of demonstrated excellence, especially if it's their own homes. McCain supports competition between schools and letting parents decide where they send their children, based on which schools they believe are the most high-quality and innovative, and schools that demonstrate excellence through this method should receive higher funding, respectively.
States Rights Nevertheless, McCain won't tie funding to academic performance. As a supporter of state's rights, he will allow states to make spending decisions that best suit student needs. In addition to these unrestricted block grants, McCain would include another $500 million for teacher merit pay.
McCain believes states also should be in charge of students' curriculums, including whether to teach intelligent design, evolution or creationism.
Retired & Community TutorsAlthough teachers are the cornerstone of education under McCain's plan, he believes senior citizens would serve as excellent tutors. To accomplish this, he wants to create a pool of volunteer military veterans, retirees and others who would tutor students in math, science and English. The lessons, however, would go beyond scholastic subjects. Tutors, to McCain, would help promote traditional values for students and reiterate to them the importance of a good education.
Tax-free Education ExpensesMcCain has been supportive of a program that would allow parents to open tax-free savings accounts for their children’s educational expenses - including tutoring, computers, and tuition. He sponsored a bill to implement this program in 1999; despite passing both Houses of Congress, President Bill Clinton vetoed it. McCain's Education Quick Hits:McCain supports funding for:
Nutrition and enrichment programs for low-income and at-risk children
Family literacy programs and education for homeless adults
Programs that help reduce the dropout rate for minority students, especially Hispanics, who have unique dropout circumstances
High-speed Internet access (and filtering software) for every public school and library
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Other Articles
Here are some other recent references to Senator McCain's views on the topic of education:
Education.com: http://www.education.com/magazine/article/John_McCain/
On th Issues.org: http://www.ontheissues.org/Social/John_McCain_Education.htm
ABC News: "McCain to Discuss Abstinence in S.C." (2007)
Physics Today: John McCain on Science Education (January 15, 2008)
Citizen Patriot: "McCain: Unfunded Special-Ed Program 'is a Disgrace'" (January 14, 2008)
CBN News: John McCain Team Responds to Brody File on Evolution and Intelligent Design (2007)
CBN News: "John McCain Campaign: Eliminating 'Abstinence Only' Programs is Wrong" (2007)
Education Election: John McCain's Straight Talk to Youth (2007)
Tree of Life: John McCain on Evolution (2006)
Education.com: http://www.education.com/magazine/article/John_McCain/
On th Issues.org: http://www.ontheissues.org/Social/John_McCain_Education.htm
ABC News: "McCain to Discuss Abstinence in S.C." (2007)
Physics Today: John McCain on Science Education (January 15, 2008)
Citizen Patriot: "McCain: Unfunded Special-Ed Program 'is a Disgrace'" (January 14, 2008)
CBN News: John McCain Team Responds to Brody File on Evolution and Intelligent Design (2007)
CBN News: "John McCain Campaign: Eliminating 'Abstinence Only' Programs is Wrong" (2007)
Education Election: John McCain's Straight Talk to Youth (2007)
Tree of Life: John McCain on Evolution (2006)
Saturday, March 29, 2008
"On the Issues" From the Main McCain Web Site
On the Issues / On The Issues / Issues / Home
Education
Excellence, Choice, and Competition in American Education
John McCain believes American education must be worthy of the promise we make to our children and ourselves. He understands that we are a nation committed to equal opportunity, and there is no equal opportunity without equal access to excellent education.
Public education should be defined as one in which our public support for a child's education follows that child into the school the parent chooses. The school is charged with the responsibility of educating the child, and must have the resources and management authority to deliver on that responsibility. They must also report to the parents and the public on their progress.
The deplorable status of preparation for our children, particularly in comparison with the rest of the industrialized world, does not allow us the luxury of eliminating options in our educational repertoire. John McCain will fight for the ability of all students to have access to all schools of demonstrated excellence, including their own homes.
No Child Left Behind has focused our attention on the realities of how students perform against a common standard. John McCain believes that we can no longer accept low standards for some students and high standards for others. In this age of honest reporting, we finally see what is happening to students who were previously invisible. While that is progress all its own, it compels us to seek and find solutions to the dismal facts before us.
John McCain believes our schools can and should compete to be the most innovative, flexible and student-centered - not safe havens for the uninspired and unaccountable. He believes we should let them compete for the most effective, character-building teachers, hire them, and reward them.
If a school will not change, the students should be able to change schools. John McCain believes parents should be empowered with school choice to send their children to the school that can best educate them just as many members of Congress do with their own children. He finds it beyond hypocritical that many of those who would refuse to allow public school parents to choose their child's school would never agree to force their own children into a school that did not work or was unsafe. They can make another choice. John McCain believes that is a fundamental and essential right we should honor for all parents.
As president, John McCain will pursue reforms that address the underlying cultural problems in our education system - a system that still seeks to avoid genuine accountability and responsibility for producing well-educated children.
John McCain will place parents and children at the center of the education process, empowering parents by greatly expanding the ability of parents to choose among schools for their children. He believes all federal financial support must be predicated on providing parents the ability to move their children, and the dollars associated with them, from failing schools.
Education
Excellence, Choice, and Competition in American Education
John McCain believes American education must be worthy of the promise we make to our children and ourselves. He understands that we are a nation committed to equal opportunity, and there is no equal opportunity without equal access to excellent education.
Public education should be defined as one in which our public support for a child's education follows that child into the school the parent chooses. The school is charged with the responsibility of educating the child, and must have the resources and management authority to deliver on that responsibility. They must also report to the parents and the public on their progress.
The deplorable status of preparation for our children, particularly in comparison with the rest of the industrialized world, does not allow us the luxury of eliminating options in our educational repertoire. John McCain will fight for the ability of all students to have access to all schools of demonstrated excellence, including their own homes.
No Child Left Behind has focused our attention on the realities of how students perform against a common standard. John McCain believes that we can no longer accept low standards for some students and high standards for others. In this age of honest reporting, we finally see what is happening to students who were previously invisible. While that is progress all its own, it compels us to seek and find solutions to the dismal facts before us.
John McCain believes our schools can and should compete to be the most innovative, flexible and student-centered - not safe havens for the uninspired and unaccountable. He believes we should let them compete for the most effective, character-building teachers, hire them, and reward them.
If a school will not change, the students should be able to change schools. John McCain believes parents should be empowered with school choice to send their children to the school that can best educate them just as many members of Congress do with their own children. He finds it beyond hypocritical that many of those who would refuse to allow public school parents to choose their child's school would never agree to force their own children into a school that did not work or was unsafe. They can make another choice. John McCain believes that is a fundamental and essential right we should honor for all parents.
As president, John McCain will pursue reforms that address the underlying cultural problems in our education system - a system that still seeks to avoid genuine accountability and responsibility for producing well-educated children.
John McCain will place parents and children at the center of the education process, empowering parents by greatly expanding the ability of parents to choose among schools for their children. He believes all federal financial support must be predicated on providing parents the ability to move their children, and the dollars associated with them, from failing schools.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
John McCain Statement on Education Legislation
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator John McCain today made the following statement regarding the Elementary Secondary Education Authorization Bill (ESEA):
"One of the most important issues facing our nation continues to be the education of our children. Providing a solid, quality education for each and every child is critical not only to the prosperity of our nation in the years ahead, but also to ensuring that all our children reach their full potential.
"Whether we work in the private sector or in government, we all have an obligation to develop and implement initiatives that strengthen the quality of education we offer our children. It is essential that we provide our children with the essential academic tools they need to succeed professionally, economically and personally.
"Unfortunately, we can no longer take for granted that our children are learning to master even the most basic skill of reading. A recent survey reported that less than one-third of fourth- graders in America are "proficient readers." In fact, forty million Americans cannot fill out a job application or read a menu in a restaurant much less a computer menu. In this high-tech information age, these Americans will be lost and that is unacceptable.
"In addition, American children lack basic knowledge of their nation's cultural and historical traditions. For example, a recent report indicated that half of American high school seniors did not know when Lincoln was president; did not know the significance of "Brown v. Board of Education"; and had no understanding of the aims of American foreign policy, either before or after World War II.
"Since the tragic events of September 11th, the American people, especially our young citizens, have demonstrated through their courage and generosity that they are prepared to meet the challenges that face our nation. But we must help them in their quest for knowledge and instruction.
"We must work to ensure that our students do not continue down the path of cultural illiteracy and educational under-performance. But how? Well, one major step in the right direction is to take away power from education bureaucrats and return it to those on the front lines of education -- the local schools, the local teachers and the local parents.
"Fortunately, the education authorization bill before the Senate today is a step in that direction. This bill provides support and guidance to our state and local communities to strengthen our schools, while also giving much needed flexibility for every state related to the use of federal education dollars. This education bill contains many initiatives that will help ensure that more federal education dollars reach our classrooms rather than being lost in bureaucratic black hole.
"This bill also strives to improve the quality of our nation's teaching force by allocating $3 billion for recruiting and training good teachers. We must ensure that our teachers are continually improving their skills and retain their desire to teach. We also need to ensure that we recruit the brightest and enthusiastic students into the teaching profession.
"This measure helps make schools more accommodating and friendly for parents. In addition, it works to ensure that parents are better informed about the public education system by providing pertinent information regarding their child's school. Annual report cards pertaining to each school's specific performance, along with statewide performance results, will be available for public view.
"Mr. President, one of the most important factors in our children's success in school is parental involvement. Parents are our first teachers. Our first classroom is the home, where we learn the value of hard work, respect, and the difference between right and wrong. As I've said before, the home is the most important Department of Education.
"Parental involvement is the best guarantee that a child will succeed in school. I am genuinely excited when I think of the many reforms taking place across the country -- namely school vouchers and charter schools -- that are wisely built on this premise: Let parents decide where their children's educational needs will best be met.
"In the broadest sense, this is what school choice is all about.
"School choice stimulates improvement and creates expanded opportunities for our children to get a quality education. Our public school system has many good schools, but there are many schools that are broken. Instead of serving as a gateway to advancement, these schools have become dead-end places of despair and low achievement. In urban settings, the subject performance of 17-year-old African-American and Hispanic students is at the same level as 13-year-old-white students. This is an unacceptable and embarrassing failure on the part of our public schools.
"Exciting things are happening in Milwaukee and Cleveland, where school voucher programs have been put in place. There, minority school children are being given a chance to succeed. The early signs are good: test scores and performance are up.
"We need more such experiments, and I am gravely disappointed that this authorization bill failed to contain such a provision. Repeatedly, I have proposed legislation for a three-year nation-wide test of the voucher program. It would be funded not by draining money away from the public schools but by eliminating federal pork barrel spending and corporate tax loopholes.
"This is an important component that sadly was left out of this measure. I will continue working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to provide parents and our students with choices to ensure that our children, no matter what their family's income, have access to the best possible education for their unique academic needs.
"Finally, I am very disappointed that the conferees eliminated an important provision adopted during the Senate debate that would have ensured that the federal government finally fulfill its obligation to fund 40 percent of the cost for meeting the special educational needs of our nation's children through the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA).
"My dear friend and colleague, Senator Hagel, fought valiantly for this provision but unfortunately it was watered down. This is unacceptable. Congress needs to follow the laws it makes and provide full funding for the federal portion of IDEA. We ask our schools to educate children with disabilities, but we don't give them enough money for the expensive evaluations, equipment and services needed to do that. There are six million children that receive special education funding, so let's fully support their academic needs.
"Mr. President, James Madison once wrote that without an educated electorate, the American experiment would become "a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both." Let us stop the slide in the performance of our students. Let us return the control of education to our local communities. Let us renew our trust in our parents and teachers and do what is best for our children.
"This is why I am supporting this measure today. While it could be strengthened, Mr. President, the bill does make needed strides to improve our nation's schools."
"One of the most important issues facing our nation continues to be the education of our children. Providing a solid, quality education for each and every child is critical not only to the prosperity of our nation in the years ahead, but also to ensuring that all our children reach their full potential.
"Whether we work in the private sector or in government, we all have an obligation to develop and implement initiatives that strengthen the quality of education we offer our children. It is essential that we provide our children with the essential academic tools they need to succeed professionally, economically and personally.
"Unfortunately, we can no longer take for granted that our children are learning to master even the most basic skill of reading. A recent survey reported that less than one-third of fourth- graders in America are "proficient readers." In fact, forty million Americans cannot fill out a job application or read a menu in a restaurant much less a computer menu. In this high-tech information age, these Americans will be lost and that is unacceptable.
"In addition, American children lack basic knowledge of their nation's cultural and historical traditions. For example, a recent report indicated that half of American high school seniors did not know when Lincoln was president; did not know the significance of "Brown v. Board of Education"; and had no understanding of the aims of American foreign policy, either before or after World War II.
"Since the tragic events of September 11th, the American people, especially our young citizens, have demonstrated through their courage and generosity that they are prepared to meet the challenges that face our nation. But we must help them in their quest for knowledge and instruction.
"We must work to ensure that our students do not continue down the path of cultural illiteracy and educational under-performance. But how? Well, one major step in the right direction is to take away power from education bureaucrats and return it to those on the front lines of education -- the local schools, the local teachers and the local parents.
"Fortunately, the education authorization bill before the Senate today is a step in that direction. This bill provides support and guidance to our state and local communities to strengthen our schools, while also giving much needed flexibility for every state related to the use of federal education dollars. This education bill contains many initiatives that will help ensure that more federal education dollars reach our classrooms rather than being lost in bureaucratic black hole.
"This bill also strives to improve the quality of our nation's teaching force by allocating $3 billion for recruiting and training good teachers. We must ensure that our teachers are continually improving their skills and retain their desire to teach. We also need to ensure that we recruit the brightest and enthusiastic students into the teaching profession.
"This measure helps make schools more accommodating and friendly for parents. In addition, it works to ensure that parents are better informed about the public education system by providing pertinent information regarding their child's school. Annual report cards pertaining to each school's specific performance, along with statewide performance results, will be available for public view.
"Mr. President, one of the most important factors in our children's success in school is parental involvement. Parents are our first teachers. Our first classroom is the home, where we learn the value of hard work, respect, and the difference between right and wrong. As I've said before, the home is the most important Department of Education.
"Parental involvement is the best guarantee that a child will succeed in school. I am genuinely excited when I think of the many reforms taking place across the country -- namely school vouchers and charter schools -- that are wisely built on this premise: Let parents decide where their children's educational needs will best be met.
"In the broadest sense, this is what school choice is all about.
"School choice stimulates improvement and creates expanded opportunities for our children to get a quality education. Our public school system has many good schools, but there are many schools that are broken. Instead of serving as a gateway to advancement, these schools have become dead-end places of despair and low achievement. In urban settings, the subject performance of 17-year-old African-American and Hispanic students is at the same level as 13-year-old-white students. This is an unacceptable and embarrassing failure on the part of our public schools.
"Exciting things are happening in Milwaukee and Cleveland, where school voucher programs have been put in place. There, minority school children are being given a chance to succeed. The early signs are good: test scores and performance are up.
"We need more such experiments, and I am gravely disappointed that this authorization bill failed to contain such a provision. Repeatedly, I have proposed legislation for a three-year nation-wide test of the voucher program. It would be funded not by draining money away from the public schools but by eliminating federal pork barrel spending and corporate tax loopholes.
"This is an important component that sadly was left out of this measure. I will continue working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to provide parents and our students with choices to ensure that our children, no matter what their family's income, have access to the best possible education for their unique academic needs.
"Finally, I am very disappointed that the conferees eliminated an important provision adopted during the Senate debate that would have ensured that the federal government finally fulfill its obligation to fund 40 percent of the cost for meeting the special educational needs of our nation's children through the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA).
"My dear friend and colleague, Senator Hagel, fought valiantly for this provision but unfortunately it was watered down. This is unacceptable. Congress needs to follow the laws it makes and provide full funding for the federal portion of IDEA. We ask our schools to educate children with disabilities, but we don't give them enough money for the expensive evaluations, equipment and services needed to do that. There are six million children that receive special education funding, so let's fully support their academic needs.
"Mr. President, James Madison once wrote that without an educated electorate, the American experiment would become "a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both." Let us stop the slide in the performance of our students. Let us return the control of education to our local communities. Let us renew our trust in our parents and teachers and do what is best for our children.
"This is why I am supporting this measure today. While it could be strengthened, Mr. President, the bill does make needed strides to improve our nation's schools."
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Newsweek Article
This article is not exactly on education, but it tells much about the man.
PAST PRESENT
Giving Principle a Try: Why McCain's resurgence is good news for American politics.
McCain on the rebound in Des Moines
By Jon Meacham Newsweek Web Exclusive
Jan 2, 2008 Updated: 2:19 p.m. ET Jan 2, 2008
First, a disclaimer: I do not know any more, and perhaps less, than you do about what is going to happen in Iowa and New Hampshire. But I do know this: the apparent reconsideration of the candidacy of John McCain is good news for all of us, whatever our politics, for McCain has proved in the campaign what he proved in Vietnam: that patience is a virtue, and, when in doubt, principle is worth a try.
In August I went to interview McCain in the presidential suite of the Doubletree Hotel in Times Square, which sounds glamorous but is not. The cups in the room were plastic, and there was no phalanx of aides—only Mark Salter, the senator's longtime assistant and co-author. Though it was a sunny day outside, the room felt gloomy, dark, and the conversation was serious. McCain was promoting a new book, "Hard Call," about difficult decisions, but much of the talk centered on his then-listing presidential campaign.
He had staked his White House ambitions on President Bush's surge strategy, I wrote then, and not only on its success but on the prospect that enough Americans would agree that progress is being made. There is much to do in Iraq, and much debate over the future, but it is clear to many Americans that the surge has worked in the short run. That was far from foreordained back in August, which made McCain's position a fairly lonely one.
But he had taken his stand, on the principle that success in Iraq is essential, and that, for him, was that. "I don't want to be too melodramatic, but I think it's clear that I've had too many narrow escapes not to believe that there is some purpose for me," he said, then quickly added: "While one of the things I think about when we are in this difficult period is that there are reasons beyond my personal and political ambitions why I should seek the office, in no way do I think I am here because God wants me to president … Unless there is measurable and tangible evidence of success—which I think there is—that can penetrate to the American public, then the result is inevitable. What I am hoping is, what I continue to believe is, that the strategy we now have in place is succeeding sufficiently to convince the American people to give it some more time."
Back then there was a lot of complaining in the press corps that the McCain of 2000, the iconoclast who told it straight, had become a more manufactured—and thus less interesting—McCain of 2008. Asked about that, he said, "I haven't changed, and I feel the same way. I am the same guy. I'm not complaining about it—don't get me wrong. This is what campaigns are for. But I have to do what I think is right." Win or lose, he has certainly done that.
© 2008 Newsweek, Inc.
PAST PRESENT
Giving Principle a Try: Why McCain's resurgence is good news for American politics.
McCain on the rebound in Des Moines
By Jon Meacham Newsweek Web Exclusive
Jan 2, 2008 Updated: 2:19 p.m. ET Jan 2, 2008
First, a disclaimer: I do not know any more, and perhaps less, than you do about what is going to happen in Iowa and New Hampshire. But I do know this: the apparent reconsideration of the candidacy of John McCain is good news for all of us, whatever our politics, for McCain has proved in the campaign what he proved in Vietnam: that patience is a virtue, and, when in doubt, principle is worth a try.
In August I went to interview McCain in the presidential suite of the Doubletree Hotel in Times Square, which sounds glamorous but is not. The cups in the room were plastic, and there was no phalanx of aides—only Mark Salter, the senator's longtime assistant and co-author. Though it was a sunny day outside, the room felt gloomy, dark, and the conversation was serious. McCain was promoting a new book, "Hard Call," about difficult decisions, but much of the talk centered on his then-listing presidential campaign.
He had staked his White House ambitions on President Bush's surge strategy, I wrote then, and not only on its success but on the prospect that enough Americans would agree that progress is being made. There is much to do in Iraq, and much debate over the future, but it is clear to many Americans that the surge has worked in the short run. That was far from foreordained back in August, which made McCain's position a fairly lonely one.
But he had taken his stand, on the principle that success in Iraq is essential, and that, for him, was that. "I don't want to be too melodramatic, but I think it's clear that I've had too many narrow escapes not to believe that there is some purpose for me," he said, then quickly added: "While one of the things I think about when we are in this difficult period is that there are reasons beyond my personal and political ambitions why I should seek the office, in no way do I think I am here because God wants me to president … Unless there is measurable and tangible evidence of success—which I think there is—that can penetrate to the American public, then the result is inevitable. What I am hoping is, what I continue to believe is, that the strategy we now have in place is succeeding sufficiently to convince the American people to give it some more time."
Back then there was a lot of complaining in the press corps that the McCain of 2000, the iconoclast who told it straight, had become a more manufactured—and thus less interesting—McCain of 2008. Asked about that, he said, "I haven't changed, and I feel the same way. I am the same guy. I'm not complaining about it—don't get me wrong. This is what campaigns are for. But I have to do what I think is right." Win or lose, he has certainly done that.
© 2008 Newsweek, Inc.
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