[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 804 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 804

  Congratulating Andrew Wojtanik for winning the 16th Annual National 
Geographic Bee, acknowledging the commitment of the National Geographic 
  Society to geography education, and recognizing the need to improve 
               geography education in the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 28, 2004

 Mr. Moore (for himself, Mr. Ryun of Kansas, Mr. Moran of Kansas, Mr. 
     Owens, Mr. Blumenauer, and Mr. Burns) submitted the following 
 resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 
                               Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Congratulating Andrew Wojtanik for winning the 16th Annual National 
Geographic Bee, acknowledging the commitment of the National Geographic 
  Society to geography education, and recognizing the need to improve 
               geography education in the United States.

Whereas the 16th Annual National Geographic Bee was held in Washington, D.C., 
        from May 25 to May 26, 2004;
Whereas the National Geographic Bee encourages the participation of millions of 
        students and thousands of schools nationwide;
Whereas Andrew Wojtanik, an 8th grade student at Lakewood Middle School in 
        Overland Park, Kansas, displayed his mastery of world geography by 
        winning the 16th Annual National Geographic Bee;
Whereas Andrew Wojtanik competed against 54 other elementary, middle, and junior 
        high school students from across the United States, Puerto Rico, the 
        Virgin Islands, and the Pacific Territories;
Whereas the National Geographic Bee tests the knowledge of students in a variety 
        of subjects related to world geography, including physical, economic, 
        cultural, political, and environmental topics;
Whereas the creation of the National Geographic Bee is an example of the 
        National Geographic Society's commitment to educating students and the 
        general public about the world around them;
Whereas the National Geographic Society has demonstrated its historic commitment 
        to geography education by creating the National Geographic Education 
        Foundation, which is devoted to the improvement of geography education 
        in the United States and elsewhere;
Whereas the National Geography Education Foundation played a crucial role in the 
        creation of the Geographic Alliance Program, which is designed to 
        improve the teaching of geography in United States school systems;
Whereas the Geographic Alliance Program has grown to include programs in States 
        across the country;
Whereas a study conducted by Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning 
        recently found that students taught by members of the Geographic 
        Alliance Program had significantly higher scores overall in the 2001 
        National Assessment of Education Progress geography assessment;
Whereas Congress clearly indicated the importance of geography education by 
        designating geography as part of the United States educational system's 
        core curriculum in the landmark No Child Left Behind Act enacted in 
        2001;
Whereas geography is the only core subject identified by the No Child Left 
        Behind Act that lacks a specific Federal program designed to improve 
        educational performance;
Whereas geographic literacy has become increasingly important as technology and 
        world events more often cross borders, oceans, and continents;
Whereas surveys consistently show that the level of geographic knowledge among 
        people in the United States lags behind citizens of other countries;
Whereas a National Geographic-Roper survey of young adults between the ages of 
        18 and 24 in 9 different countries recently indicated that young adults 
        in the United States were outperformed in geographic literacy by young 
        adults in Sweden, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, Great Britain, and 
        Canada;
Whereas the National Geographic-Roper survey also indicated that only 13 percent 
        of young adults in the United States between the ages of 18 and 24 could 
        correctly identify Iraq on a map of Asia and the Middle East; and
Whereas the success enjoyed by the National Geographic Education Foundation and 
        its programs indicates that attention to geographic education can 
        improve student performance: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) congratulates Andrew Wojtanik, the champion of the 16th 
        Annual National Geographic Bee, for his comprehensive knowledge 
        of geography;
            (2) acknowledges the commitment of the National Geographic 
        Society to improving the geographic literacy of all people in 
        the United States; and
            (3) recognizes the need to find innovative, effective 
        solutions to improve geography education in the United States.
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