Mark Halprin said this in summation of the Presiden't speech last night, among other things:
Education is the sleeper issue of this administration.
I am very much uncertain what role, if any, education will play in this administration. Education was not a central componet of the Obama campaign. It has not really been talked about, aside from Arne Duncan throwing around the national standards language, since he took office, even though NCLB is now two years past reauthorization. I just did not have a feeling that education was really on the agenda, and maybe rightly so given the other pressing challenges. It is still a state right and I thought the use of the education money in the stimulus to supplement state budgets was a good use of federal power in education. That investment could have bought the Administration time to put off reauthorization until 2010.
But then last night education pops up as one of President Obama's three priorities (the thrid mind you), along with energy reform and healthcare reform. That's an awful lot of rhetoric to throw at education if you don't actually plan on doing anything substantial. And, I don't really think this administration is too invested in the habit of false promises for political gain.
But, listen to his rhetoric again on education (30:40 to 36:10). Yes he has good language (my favorite: The countries that out teach us today, will out compete us tomorrow) and set some broad goals (the 2020 thing sounds nice), but what does he really say? Charters, rewards for teachers, high drop out rates, invest in innovative programs ...? Really, honestly, he didn't say much of anything. On top of that, notice the Democratic response to this rhetoric ... muted to say the least. And, the Republican's don't seem to have any idea what's going on right now (that Jindal thing was a diaster).
So, I agree with Halprin that education is a sleeper issue ... because the administration is asleep on this issue so far. They don't have a policy, they don't have support, they don't have timeline, they don't have leaders on this issue ... they got Obama's rhetoric, which granted is perhaps the most impressive rhetoric I have ever heard and may in itself help a little, but that's it. If it were not for the stimulus dollars that really did positively affect schools, I would say that so far they have only paid education lipservice.
So, education is a sleeper issue. The question now is whether they have the capability to wake themselves up, and, even if they do, whether they can put together a competent and effective national policy when they don't even seem to know the basics of national education policy. Of everything in the Obama framework, education may wind up being the issue that never makes it to the table.