    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
    [March 5, 2002]
    [Pages 340-343]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks to the White House Conference on Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers
    March 5, 2002

        Well, thank you all for coming to the White House. I appreciate the
    focus of this summit more than you can possibly know, because I
    understand the important role a teacher plays in the lives of our
    children. I've had some firsthand experience with teachers playing a
    role in my life. I married one, thank goodness. And I appreciate
    Laura's leadership on this important subject, and
    I also appreciate the calm and steady demeanor she brought in time of
    crisis for the country. Good job.
        I want to thank Lynne Cheney for being here
    as well. She is a brilliant lady who knows a lot about education reform.
    Dick and I both married above ourselves.
    [Laughter]
        I want to thank Rod Paige for being
    here. You know, when I picked somebody to run the Department of
    Education, I was

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    looking for somebody who had actually been in the trenches of the public
    school system. I really didn't want a theorist; I wanted a practical
    person. And when I was the Governor of Texas, I noticed that the test
    scores for children who weren't supposed to learn in Houston, Texas,
    were improving. And I realized it had to do with a lot of the leadership
    capacity of our Secretary of Education. I want to thank you, Rod, for being here today, and thank you for taking on
    the tough jobs.
        I appreciate Sandra Feldman. I'm going to
    say something about her a little later on. Where's Sandra? Hey, Sandra.
    Thank you for coming.
        I want to thank my friend Mark Yudof,
    who's the head of the University of Minnesota. Where are you, Yudof?
    Anyway, there he is. Hi, Mark. Charles, how
    are you? We flew back from Minnesota last night, and Mark is here
    because he understands that teacher colleges must be relevant in the
    lives of teachers if we want every child to learn.
        I appreciate the Members of Congress who are here. I will tell you
    that I signed a really good piece of legislation, the ``no child will be
    left behind'' legislation. It is historic; it is landmark; it would not
    have happened without Ted Kennedy. And I
    appreciate your leadership on that, Senator.
         I want to thank Johnny Isakson for being
    here. Johnny and Ralph Regula, thank you both
    for coming. Lindsey Graham is here, from
    South Carolina. Lindsey is going to sponsor a piece of legislation that
    will allow for teachers to have loan--those who teach in Title I schools
    or teach in high need areas will be able to forgive up to $17,500 in
    college loans. And I appreciate that.
        I understand Chairman Boehner was able
    to listen to Laura but didn't care about hearing
    me--[laughter]--so he left. And Susan Collins is going to sponsor legislation for the tax relief for
    teachers' out-of-pocket expenses, which I'll talk about a little bit
    too.
        But we've set a high bar here in Washington as a result of Federal
    reform. We expect a lot. We expect children to learn. We believe every
    child can learn, and we want to know whether they are or not. We want to
    measure. See, we believe that if you hold--if you use the accountability
    system properly, you can determine whether a curriculum is working or
    not, whether classroom instruction methodology is working. But as
    importantly--more importantly--you can detect problems early and secure
    them before it's too late. Every child matters, and that's exactly what
    the heart of this legislation is all about.
        And as a result of the piece of legislation, we're expecting a lot
    from our teachers. We really are. We expect them to know their subjects.
    We want new teachers to be able to pass rigorous examinations, so as to
    not only earn the confidence of parents and administrators but to
    increase the professionalism of a very important field. We expect
    teachers to be able to communicate basic skills, and we expect our
    teachers to welcome measurement and accountability. We expect them, as
    always, to be examples to our children, to live a life of good
    character.
        And our teachers have a right to expect certain things from us.
    First, they have the right to expect every parent to teach their
    children good manners and respect for the teacher in the classroom.
    Teachers have the right to expect support for their professional
    development, and teachers have a right to be treated like the
    professionals they are.
        Laura and I will spend a lot of time in the country honoring the
    teaching profession, making sure it's clear to Americans from all walks
    of life that being a teacher is noble and important and an incredibly
    important part of the future of our country.
        This administration is committed to a goal, and I know it's shared
    by Members of Congress, that we'll have a quality teacher in every
    classroom in America. We have backed that commitment, thanks to the

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    work of members of both political parties, with the greatest Federal
    investment ever in quality teachers and principals. We have made $3
    billion of grants available to States to recruit, to prepare, and to
    train teachers, a 35 percent increase over last year's budget.
        We're focusing much of the teacher training effort on specific
    needs, like special education or math or science, and one of my
    passions, early reading. The Reading First program is aimed at making
    sure every child of every background can read by the third grade.
    Reading is the new civil right. If you can't read, you can't realize the
    great American Dream. We want every child to read, and I believe with
    the right focus, right effort, every child will read in America, and the
    country is going to be a lot better off for it.
        We're going to make sure teachers have the tools necessary to meet
    the goals we've set. One of the things we're going to do is create a
    clearinghouse, the most recent and most reliable information, on what
    works in teaching. We want teachers to be able to access the best
    information. We want those who are interested in improving their skills
    to be able to do so at the click of a mouse.
        We want to make sure the teachers control their classrooms. And part
    of the legislation I signed was the teacher protection law, which says
    that teachers and principals and school professionals can take
    reasonable actions to maintain order and discipline in the classroom
    without fear of a Federal lawsuit. I think that if we really are sincere
    about supporting our teachers, we must understand that a calm classroom,
    a respectful classroom is a necessary ingredient for a teacher to be
    able to do his or her job.
        We support teachers who sacrifice for their students. I don't know
    if people realize this, but on the average, teachers deduct up to $400--
    now spend $400 out of their pocket to pay for supplies. My first
    reaction is, that's not right--it's not that the fact isn't right--it's
    not right that they have to do that. But in that they do have to do it,
    it makes sense to allow a teacher to deduct that expense. If a business
    person can deduct a meal, a teacher certainly ought to be able to deduct
    the cost of pencils or a Big Chief tablet.
        Teachers need our support. And they need our support in more than
    just training teachers; they need our support in empowering teachers.
    And one of the important parts of the bill that I signed divests power
    out of Washington, gives teachers more flexibility in the classroom and
    more authority to the local districts.
        And that includes the flexibility to spend the money wisely.
    Districts will be able to use the $3 billion to meet their specific
    needs. It may be in recruiting, in recruitment for teachers. It may be
    to spend money on teacher development. It may be to meet needs by
    spending more money on teacher salaries. But flexibility is one of the
    hallmarks of this new piece of legislation, and all wisdom isn't here in
    Washington. The truth of the matter is, if we really are going to set
    high standards and expect people to meet them, we've got to trust the
    local folks to chart the path to excellence. And that's what this bill
    does. We're not only giving them more responsibility; we're giving them
    freedom.
        The great task of education reform is now to meet these goals and to
    make sure our teachers have got the capacity to do so, to make sure
    they're well-trained, to make sure they've got the best science
    available to them, to make sure we gather information and share it with
    the professionals in the classroom.
        It's also to recognize the worth of teaching. And one of the things
    Sandra Feldman has done as she's led the
    American Federation of Teachers is she's brought a lot of class to the
    teaching profession. I ran into Sandra--she said, ``Is there any way we
    can work together?'' I said, ``You bet. You bet there is.''

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        And so today it's my honor to announce that the Department of
    Education and the American Federation of Teachers is going to work
    together to provide teachers with research-based information, to make
    sure teachers can do their job. Teachers will be given the opportunity
    to teach--to understand what works.
        Somebody said, ``What does it mean, scientific-based education?'' My
    attitude is, does it work? Does the curriculum actually teach a child
    how to read? Our teachers must know how to teach reading. They must know
    what works when it comes to teaching reading, if we expect them to meet
    national goals of every child reading by the third grade. I look forward
    to hearing the progress that is made between the Department of Education
    and your organization, Sandra.
        As well, we're going to work together to identify programs that
    encourage and prepare folks to become teachers. I know you've heard of
    Teach for America or Troops for Teachers. There are all kinds of ways we
    can attract people into the teacher ranks. And we must be innovative and
    creative to do so. We're going to need 2.2 million teachers over the
    next decade in order to make sure America is an educated society. And
    again, Sandra, thanks for taking a leadership role.
        I believe so strongly in education. I know that as we battle the
    ills of our society, poverty and hopelessness, education is the great
    beacon and the great hope. I strongly believe that our public school
    system will continue to meet the challenges of the 21st century. And I'm
    not afraid to advocate change where change is needed. And I look forward
    to joining forces with those who are just as committed as I am to an
    excellent public school system, as committed as I am to battling a
    system which oftentimes gives up on children by just simply shuffling
    them through. That's inadequate for the America that I know, because
    every child matters and every child counts.
        We've laid the groundwork, Senator, for a reform movement that will
    recognize the worth of each and every individual. And that movement will
    be fulfilled as we make sure our teachers are given the tools and skills
    and orderly classrooms necessary to achieve a grand and noble objective
    for our country.
        I want to thank you all for coming for this very important
    conference. May God bless your work, and may God continue to bless
    America. Thank you.

    Note: The President spoke at 12:02 p.m. in the East Room at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Sandra Feldman, president,
    American Federation of Teachers; Mark G. Yudof, president, University of
    Minnesota; and Charles Miller, chairman, board of regents, University of
    Texas System. He also referred to Public Law 107-110, the No Child Left
    Behind Act of 2001, approved January 8, 2002; and Title I of the
    Improving America's Schools Act of 1994 (Public Law No. 103-382), which
    amended Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965
    (Public Law No. 89-10).