McCain on Education

This...

Against nationally imposed standards & funding strings

Q: Should federal money be linked to how well students perform on national or statewide tests?

A: I do not favor nationally imposed standards or federal funding strings. State and local education agencies should be responsible for developing & enforcing high academic standards. I don’t believe we should penalize students by taking away limited education dollars according to federal dictates. Such strings would invariably require states to spend even more money on federally imposed bureaucratic requirements-money that would be better spent in the classroom. I propose sending education funding directly to classrooms rather than having it siphoned off by federal and state bureaucracies. If this funding flows to classrooms that continue to fail, the state should have the authority to allow students to use that funding directly for programs that best meet their academic needs. Empowering parents and students through educational choice and competition is the surest path to academic excellence. Source: Associated Press Feb 23, 2000  

 Plus this... 

Q: How can we attract the best and the brightest teachers, given the current salaries?

A: I don’t see why a good teacher should be paid less money than a bad senator. It’s important that we have merit pay for teachers, that we have teacher testing, that we do everything we can to motivate young men and women to enter this profession. There’s a whole generation that’s retiring. It is unconscionable that the average salary of a lawyer is $79,000 a year and the average salary of a teacher is $39,000 a year Source: Republican Debate at Dartmouth College Oct 29, 1999 

Plus this...

Merit pay & competency testing for teachers Also promoted merit-based pay for teachers, calling higher teacher salaries an “urgent necessity.” But he added that teachers should be tested for competence periodically and fired if they don’t meet certain standards. Source: Associated Press Jun 14, 1999

 

Equals this?? 

Voted NO on $5B for grants to local educational agencies. To provide an additional $5 billion for title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Voting YES would provide:

• $2.5 billion for targeting grants to local educational agencies
• $2.5 billion for education finance incentive grants

Reference: Elementary and Secondary Education Amendment; Bill S Amdt 2275 to HR 3010 ; vote number 2005-269 on Oct 26, 2005

Voted NO on shifting $11B from corporate tax loopholes to education. Vote to adopt an amendment to the Senate's 2006 Fiscal Year Budget Resolution that would adjust education funding while still reducing the deficit by $5.4 billion. A YES vote would:

• Restore education program cuts slated for vocational education, adult education, GEAR UP, and TRIO.
• Increase the maximum Pell Grant scholarship to $4,500 immediately.
• Increases future math and science teacher student loan forgiveness to $23,000.
• Pay for the education funding by closing $10.8 billion in corporate tax loopholes.

Reference: Kennedy amendment relative to education funding; Bill S AMDT 177 to S Con Res 18 ; vote number 2005-68 on Mar 17, 2005