    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
    [January 5, 2004]
    [Pages 5-8]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks in a Discussion at Pierre Laclede Elementary School in St.
    Louis, Missouri
    January 5, 2004

        The President. Well, I'm glad to be here, Madam Principal. [Laughter] One of the things you find in a successful
    school is a strong-willed, smart, capable principal. And that's
    obviously the case here, and I appreciate your hospitality.
        I'm here at Laclede because this is a school that has defied
    expectations. It's defied expectations by raising the bar and believing
    that every child can learn. That's not the case in some parts of our
    country, unfortunately. In some parts of the country, schools just
    shuffle kids through, and that's not right. That's not the American way.
        This school is a school that has performed, you have to say,
    brilliantly. Since 1999, 7 percent of the kids could read, and now 80
    percent can read at grade level in the third grade. That speaks to
    strong principals. It speaks to really good teachers. It says this
    school has got teachers that believe in the capability of every child.
    It says the school has raised standards and is not afraid to measure.
        And see, one of the things I'm here to talk about is the No Child
    Left Behind Act. Laclede has been named a No Child Left--Blue Ribbon No
    Child Left Behind School. And the--inherent in this No Child Left Behind
    Act is the desire to spend Federal money and spend it wisely. We've
    increased budgets. The Title I money is up 43 percent since 2001--41
    percent. The teacher training money is up. The reading program money is
    up by 4 times. But finally, the Federal Government has said, ``Why don't
    you show us whether or not that money is being well-spent. Show us
    whether or not you believe every child can learn. Show us whether or not
    objectives are being met.''
        And this is exactly what's happening here at Laclede. As I was
    reminded, Laclede was doing this before No Child Left Behind Act was
    passed. Joyce was quick to point it out.
    [Laughter] She may point it out again. [Laughter]
        But the important thing is, inherent in the No Child Left Behind Act
    was not only the desire to measure, the need to measure, the need to
    show, the need to track each child, but it's also the trust of local
    people to make the right decisions. See, you can't have a system that
    is--meets objectives if you're hamstrung by Federal rules and
    regulations. And so, inherent in the No Child Left Behind Act is trust,
    trust of the principals, trust of the teachers, trust of the parents,
    trust of the local officials, like Speaker Hanaway and Peter Kinder

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    from the State house and State senate who are with us. I want to thank
    you for coming, by the way.
        I appreciate all the State officials who are here. I know we've got
    some school board officials. You've got the ball in our--in terms of how
    to achieve excellence. It's up to you. The Federal Government is a
    source of money. It's now a source of inspiration. It's a source of
    measurement. But it's up to the local people to really make it work.
        I also appreciate so very much that Senator Jim Talent is with us. Senator, thank you for coming. Congresswoman
    Jo Ann Emerson and Kenny Hulshof, and of course, Congressman Lacy Clay, whose district we are in. Congressman, thank
    you very much for joining us today.
        I went into a classroom of fourth graders. I asked this question, I
    said, ``How many of you are going to go to college?'' You'll be happy to
    hear that every hand went up. That's a good sign. They were also doing
    something that was fundamentally important. They were practicing their
    reading. I also asked the question, ``How many of you read more than you
    watch TV?'' About 50 percent of the hands went up. [Laughter]
        But what's important is for schools like--around the country to
    understand what's happening here, and that is that the people here use
    reading programs based upon what works--not what sounds good--reading
    programs based upon the science of reading. And it's working.
        And so I'm here to congratulate this school and to really hold you
    up for the Nation to see what is possible when you raise the bar, when
    you're not afraid to hold people to account, when you empower your
    teachers and your principals to achieve the objective we all want. And
    that's to make sure no child, not one single child in America, is left
    behind.
        I'm honored to be here at this Blue Ribbon School. And I appreciate
    your time, and I look forward to hearing from you.

    [At this point, the discussion continued.]

        The President. Yes, you are. Listen, one of the things you hear, of
    course, is that you can't test kids, see. You can't test. We test too
    much. How do you know if a child isn't reading if you don't test? How do
    you know who needs help? I mean, if the idea is to make sure not one
    child is left behind, you better test.
        The test isn't a punishment, you know. It's not to punish anybody.
    The test is to determine who needs extra help. And that's exactly why
    Laclede is doing well, I'm convinced, or one of the main reasons why.
    They've got a book here that says, ``Every child matters. Every child
    can learn, and therefore we're going to measure as to whether or not
    we're meeting expectations for every child, not a few of the children
    but every child.''
        And so when you hear this talk about testing, testing is bad,
    testing is--you know, teach the test, what testing is--what testing does
    and what measuring does is determines whether or not every child is
    learning and, if not, whether that child is getting the help he or she
    needs early, before it is too late.
        We've got to stop this business about just shuffling kids through
    the schools in America. We've got to stop social promotion and focus on
    whether or not each child is getting the instruction he or she needs,
    and that's exactly what this book says, and that's why I'm here at
    Laclede to tout this program, because you're making great sense.

    [The discussion continued.]

        The President. Yes, I think it's important. The Federal Government
    can help, and we have. I think we've increased the teacher training and
    recruitment budget significantly, like by about 40 percent since 2001.
    And that's important to make sure teachers have the skills necessary to
    be able to teach. I mean, it's one thing to have a good heart; it's
    another thing to be able to have the skills necessary to put--to

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    match the good heart with the capacity to pass on knowledge.
        And so the Federal Government is helping on teacher recruitment,
    teacher training, and that's an important aspect of the No Child Left
    Behind Act. It's essential that we continue to monitor what works,
    whether the curriculum you're using makes sense--that's what measurement
    helps a school to understand--and whether or not a teacher needs a
    little extra help in order to be able to impart the knowledge that he or
    she is desirous of doing.
        I know we've got a parent here. By the way, the first teacher of any
    child is a mom and a dad. And it's--this parent right here is a good
    teacher. Thank you for being here.

    [The discussion continued.]

        The President. Speaking about volunteers, one of the really true
    strengths of our country is the heart and soul of the American people.
    Today with us--I met a fellow at the airport who is now with us here
    today. His name is Jeff Tank. Probably never heard
    of Jeff. He is a volunteer with Big Brothers and Big Sisters. January
    happens to be National Mentoring Month.
        Where are you, Jeff? There he is. Jeff, by the
    way, when I went to the airport, he said, ``This isn't about
    recognition, recognizing me.'' I said, ``Yes, it is, because you
    represent a lot of other good people who are taking time out of your
    lives to make a difference in a child's life.''
        Schools need volunteers. Schools need mentors. Big Brothers and Big
    Sisters is a fabulous program that provides that kind of--that provides
    that kind of mentoring and help. Whether you're the superintendent of
    schools or the chairman of the school board or the President, we all
    need to be out encouraging people to volunteer.
        I always say that part of ushering in a era of personal
    responsibility means that people have to be responsible for the
    communities--for the schools in the community in which they live. You
    just can't trust that some faraway Government is going to make the
    correct decisions for the local communities. And if you're interested in
    the quality of education and you're paying attention to what you hear at
    Laclede, why don't you volunteer? Why don't you help and mentor a child
    how to read? Why don't you join us all in changing America one child at
    a time?
        And so, Jeff, I want to thank you for coming.
    I want to thank you for the example you have set for others in the
    community of St. Louis and hope that others will follow your example.
    And a great place to start to volunteer is to show up at a local public
    school and ask the principal what you can do to help change a child's
    life.
        So thank you for reminding me about the importance of being a good
    mom and a great volunteer as well.
        Listen, making sure every child learns to read and making sure every
    child is educated is a--the number one domestic priority of this
    country. It is essential we get it right.
        Laclede Elementary School shatters stereotypes. It shows that we can
    have excellence in every single classroom across this country, that it's
    not just suburban America where we find excellence. You can find
    excellence in inner-city America. You find excellence in rural America.
    You find excellence where you've got great principals and teachers and
    leadership willing to raise the standards, willing to challenge every
    child, because you believe in every child. You find excellence where
    you're willing to measure and then correct when things aren't going the
    way they should. You find excellence when you've got skilled teachers
    carrying around a book that measures the ability of each child, not a
    collection of children but every child, and so that you can then qualify
    the curriculum to meet the needs of that child.
        And I am here for the simple reason to show what is possible all
    across America. And what is possible is to take reading

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    scores from 7 percent to 80 percent in places like St. Louis, Missouri,
    and elsewhere. I want to congratulate you for setting the standard. And
    keep raising the bar. Make sure that other 20 percent gets up to grade
    level at third grade--I know you will--and you will have done your duty
    as educators and Americans to make sure that our children, the very
    future of the country, have got the capacity to succeed in the greatest
    land on the face of the Earth.
        Thank you all for coming. God bless.

    Note: The President spoke at 2:33 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to
    Yolanda Moss, principal, and Regina Davis, parent and volunteer, Pierre
    Laclede Elementary School; Joyce Roberts, executive director, Middle
    School and Priority School Education, St. Louis Public Schools, and
    former principal, Pierre Laclede Elementary School; Catherine Hanaway,
    speaker, Missouri State House of Representatives; and Peter Kinder,
    president pro tempore, Missouri State Senate. He also referred to 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).