    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book II)]
    [October 9, 2007]
    [Pages 1295-1297]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on the No Child Left Behind Act Reauthorization
    October 9, 2007

        Good afternoon. Thank you all for coming. I want to thank Secretary
    Spellings for joining me here. And I
    appreciate you all--the leaders of the civil rights community and
    advocates for minority and disadvantaged students--for joining us as
    well.
        We just had a meaningful discussion about our joint commitment to
    closing an achievement gap that exists in America. We discussed why
    reauthorizing the No Child Left Behind Act is vital in ensuring that we
    have a hopeful America. We don't necessarily agree on every issue, but
    we do agree that education is a basic civil right and that a good
    education is important for America.

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        We agree that our Nation has reached a defining moment in our
    struggle to secure a good education for every child. And we've come a
    long way since the days when children were simply shuffled through the
    schools, just moved grade to grade, whether or not they were learning.
    See, we believe every child can learn. We don't accept a system that
    simply shuffles children through the schools. We believe in setting high
    standards. And we believe that by setting high standards, we encourage
    greater results for every child. And now the question is whether or not
    we will finish the job to ensure that every American child receives a
    high education--a high-quality education.
        Our Nation made an historic commitment nearly 6 years ago when
    Republicans and Democrats came together to pass the No Child Left Behind
    Act. The philosophy of the law is this: The Federal Government will
    invest in education, and in return, we seek results. Instead of just
    hoping for the best, we've asked States to set clear standards and hold
    schools accountable for teaching every child to read and do math at
    grade level. That doesn't seem like too much to ask. In return for
    taxpayers' money, we expect schools and school districts and States to
    measure, to show us whether or not a child can read at grade level or do
    math at a grade level.
        And the key to getting good results is measuring. Measuring results
    helps teachers catch problems early, so children who need help--extra
    help can get that help. In other words, you can't determine whether a
    child needs extra help unless you measure. One of the key components of
    No Child Left Behind, it says, if a child is falling behind, we will
    provide supplemental services to help that child catch up. Measuring
    results empowers parents with valuable information about schools, so
    they can push for change if it's needed. Measuring results means schools
    are working to close the achievement gap, instead of looking the other
    way when a student is struggling or falling behind.
        No Child Left Behind is helping replace a culture of low
    expectations with a commitment to high achievement for all. And the hard
    work being done by principals, teachers, parents, and students across
    our country is producing results. Last month, we learned that fourth
    graders earned the highest math and reading scores in the history of our
    Nation's Report Card, and that's good news. I'm able to report that
    because we actually measure now in the schools. We learned that eighth
    graders set record highs for math scores.
        We also learned that scores for minority and poor students and
    students with disabilities are reaching alltime highs in a number of
    areas. As a result, the achievement gap is beginning to narrow, and the
    promise of America is expanding for children of all backgrounds. In
    short, No Child Left Behind is working for all kinds of children in all
    kinds of schools in every part of the country.
        There is more work to be done. So long as there is an achievement
    gap, we have work to do. Our goal is to have every child reading and
    doing math at grade level by 2014. That seems reasonable to me. It seems
    like a reasonable thing to ask, is to have every child reading at grade
    level by 2014 or being able to do math at grade level by 2014. So now is
    the time not to roll back the accountability or water down standards.
        It's reasonable to set an important goal such as that because as the
    global economy becomes more competitive, a good education will become
    even more important for getting a good job. Unfortunately, nearly half
    of African American and Hispanic students still do not graduate from
    high school on time. We need to raise the bar for our high schools as
    well as for our junior highs and elementary schools. We need to give all
    our children the skills they need to compete. So I'm going to work with

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    Congress to reauthorize and strengthen the No Child Left Behind Act this
    year.
        My administration has offered several proposals to strengthen this
    law. By giving local leaders more flexibility and resources, we can help
    them turn around troubled schools. By giving families with children
    stuck in low-performing schools the opportunity to choose someplace
    better, we can raise student achievement. At the same time, we need to
    increase access to tutoring programs for students who struggle and make
    sure these children get the special help they need. We need to reward
    good teachers who improve student achievement in low-income schools. We
    need to make sure that our country is more competitive and that our
    children can take advantage of the best jobs this new century has to
    offer by expanding access to Advanced Placement courses and
    strengthening math and science education.
        As we move forward, we'll continue to welcome new ideas. And I
    appreciate the ideas I heard today. Yet there can be no compromise on
    the basic principle: Every child must learn to read and do math at or
    above grade level. And there can be no compromise on the need to hold
    schools accountable to making sure we achieve that goal. I'll call on
    Members of Congress to come together to pass bipartisan legislation that
    will help us achieve this goal. By working together, we can raise
    standards even higher, expand opportunity for all Americans of all
    backgrounds, and build a future where no child is left behind.
        Thank you very much. Thank you all for being here.

    Note: The President spoke at 2:13 p.m. in the Rose Garden at the White
    House.