Background on Education

School Prayer:

PRO-School Prayer: (Education Week Magazine on 2020 federal legal guidance): The school prayer guidance reiterates requirements that school districts must annually certify that they have "no policy prohibiting participation in constitutionally protected prayer." State education departments must have a process for fielding complaints the right to prayer has been violated. The guidance reiterates that student religious organizations must be given the same access to school facilities as secular groups.
ANTI-School Prayer (Freedom From Religion Foundation): Public schools exist to educate, not to proselytize. Children in public schools are a captive audience. Making prayer an official part of the school day is coercive and invasive. What 5, 8, or 10-year-old could view prayers recited as part of class routine as "voluntary"? Religion is private, and schools are public, so it is appropriate that the two should not mix.
TRUMP: Constitutional right to pray in public schools. (Feb 2020)
BIDEN: Voted NO on requiring schools to allow voluntary prayer. (Jul 1994)
PENCE: Voted YES on allowing school prayer during the War on Terror. (Nov 2001)
Constitution Party Nominee Don BLANKENSHIP: My school sang "God Bless America" on most mornings (May 2019)
Birthday Party Nominee Kanye WEST: Reinstate the fear and love of God in all schools (Jul 2020)
News on School Prayer (Candidates' recent excerpts)

Title One schools:

Elementary and Secondary Education Act and its amendments

PRO-Title One: Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act provides financial assistance to local educational agencies and schools with high numbers or high percentages of children from low-income families to help ensure that all children meet challenging state academic standards. Schools in which children from low-income families make up at least 40% of enrollment are eligible to use Title I funds to operate schoolwide programs that serve all children in the school in order to raise the achievement of the lowest-achieving students.
ANTI-Title One: Funding per student is quite low, averaging about $500 to $600 a year. There is little evidence that its funds are used for effective services and activities. Large proportions of school principals report using Title I funds for teacher professional development, which many studies have shown to be ineffective and which teachers do not find valuable. Other services on which principals spent funds include after-school and summer programs, technology purchases, and supplemental services, which also have been shown to be ineffective, and class-size reductions.
TRUMP: We spend more per student than any other nation. (Jun 2015)
BIDEN: Increase Title 1 funding from $15 billion to $45 billion (Oct. 2020)
TRUMP: Disadvantaged students are trapped in failing schools. (Sep 2016)
Green Party Nominee Howie HAWKINS: Increased funding for the arts as essential (Jul 2020)

HBCUs:

Joe Biden was accused (by Trump) of falsely claiming to have attended an HBCU: FactCheck: Attended U.Delaware, not Delaware State HBCU. (Sep 2020) (in fact Biden announced his first Senate campaign at an HBCU); Kamala Harris did attend an HBCU (Howard University).
PRO-HBCU: (CNN, 2019): The Senate passed a bill by unanimous consent to permanently fund historically black colleges and universities and minority-serving institutions. The House initially passed the measure. The bipartisan bill known as the FUTURE Act (Fostering Undergraduate Talent by Unlocking Resources for Education) strives to strengthen HBCUs as well as other minority-serving institutions by providing $255 million annually.
TRUMP: I got funding for HBCUs for ten years. (Oct. 2020)
PENCE: Voted NO on $84 million in grants for Black and Hispanic colleges. (Mar 2006)
BIDEN: Fund research at HBCUs for foundational support (Oct. 2020)
HARRIS: $2T for HBCUs; they produce so many of our teachers. (Sep 2019)
News on Historically Black College or University (Candidates' recent excerpts)

Trump University:

several excerpts

PRO-Trump University: (Center for American Progress, 2017 pro-and-con article): When Donald Trump launched Trump University in 2005, he said that the program's aim was altruistic. Coming off his success as a reality television show host, Trump claimed that the Trump University program was devoted to helping people gain real estate skills and knowledge. Trump told reporters that he hoped to create a "legacy as an educator" by "imparting lots of knowledge" through his program.
ANTI-Trump University: (Associated Press, 2018): A federal appeals court upheld an agreement requiring President Donald Trump to pay $25 million to settle lawsuits accusing his now-defunct Trump University of fraud. Trump had vowed never to settle but said after the election that he didn't have time for a trial. The president did not acknowledge any wrongdoing under the terms of the settlement.

Vocational Ed:

Between 1990 and 2009, as the average number of academic credits high-school students earned increased, the number of vocational credits dropped by 14%. (Education Next)
TRUMP: Cut the Department of Education way, way down. (Jun 2015)
PENCE: Connect high school grads with vocational ed OR college. (Dec 2013)
Libertarian Party nominee Jo JORGENSEN: I will work to eliminate the Department of Education (Jul 2020)

Student debt:

Average Total Cost of Public Colleges in 2020: $25,290 (in-state) $40,940 (out-of-state)
Average Total Cost of Private Colleges: $50,900
In only 40 years, the average cost of college, including tuition and room and board, has increased over 150% for both public and private four-year colleges. In 1978, the average cost of a four-year degree from a public school was $8,180 (annual cost, inflation-adjusted), while the cost for a nonprofit private school was $17,010.
The most common source of financial aid provided by the government is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. FAFSA provides over 13 million students with nearly $150 billion for aid. Student loan costs are a hot-button issue in our current environment and for good reason. Nearly 68% of 2015 graduates had student loan debt. The average student owed over $30,000.
TRUMP: No federal government profit from student loans. (Nov 2015
BIDEN: 12 years of education is not enough; we need 16 now, free. (Mar 2020)
HARRIS: Free tuition at four-year public colleges. (Jan 2019)
Reform Party Nominee Rocky De La FUENTE: Funding for those in need, but not everyone needs college (Mar 2020)
News on College Tuition and Student Debt (Candidates' recent excerpts)

Student Bankruptcy:

Anti-Bankruptcy (NCLC): Student loans are difficult, but not impossible, to discharge in bankruptcy. To do so, you must show that payment of the debt "will impose an undue hardship on you and your dependents."
Pro-Bankruptcy (FSP): A bankruptcy Judge reinterpreted the "undue hardship" test and discharged over $220,000 in student loan debt. This opinion attacks conventional analysis and adds to the number of courts that are slowly addressing and finding scenarios where student loan debt may be dischargeable.
BIDEN: 2005: no bankruptcy for student loans; 2015: student relief. (May 2019)
HARRIS: Change rules on student debt: reduce interest, income based. (Apr 2019)
Socialist Party nominee Gloria LA RIVA: Forgiveness of all outstanding federal student loans (Aug 2020)

College Funding

College Costs: College costs have risen by 79% in the period 2003-2013, while the CPI inflation rate rose only 27% in that same period.
- $3,347 for Public Two-Year College
- $9,139 for Public Four-Year College (in-state students)
- $22,958 for Public Four-Year College (out-of-state students)
- $31,231 for Private Four-Year College
American College Promise: President Obama suggested in his 2015 State of the Union speech that community college should be free for all students for two years (in other words, extending free high school two more years). Obama proposes spending $60 billion to full-time non-wealthy non-failing students, in states that opt-in to the program.

Race to the Top

Race to the Top: R2T is the education initiative funded by the Obama Recovery Act in 2009. States submit competitive bids for educational reform, and the highest-scored plans are awarded funding in the range of $100 million to $500 million. Emphasis in scoring is on teacher support, statewide reform, and student testing.
Common Core: The Common Core State Standards Initiative, begun in 2009, has been adopted fully by 32 states and partially adopted by 13 others. The Obama administration provided competitive ‘Race to the Top’ grants as an incentive for states to adopt the Common Core. The Common Core defines standards for math and English, with standards to come in the future for science and social studies. Because the standards are copyrighted, critics consider them to be a ‘one-size-fits-all’ model, and a step towards nationalizing America's schools.

NCLB - No Child Left Behind

NCLB is the 2001 bipartisan law intended to improve K-12 schools, under the theory of standards-based education reform.
States are required to establish standardized testing, so that all high school graduates meet the test criteria.
States are also required to give options (school choice) to students who attend schools that fail to meet NCLB's Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).
The controversy over NCLB currently focuses on funding: Opponents of NCLB argue that states are provided inadequate federal funding for implementation of NCLB, and that therefore NCLB represents an "unfunded mandate" on states.
Proponents of NCLB argue that the law provides accountability for schools; fights against incompetent teachers; and provides alternatives to failing schools.
Progress is measured in the federal National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), commonly knows as the "Nation's Report Card."
News on No Child Left Behind (Candidates' recent excerpts)

Education Buzzwords

STEM: "STEM" refers to science, technology, engineering and math -- the components of K-12 education which are considered the most lacking in the United States. Governors and candidates of both parties insist that they will improve STEM education; it is an official designation when foreigners apply for immigrant visas (those with STEM degrees can get special visas).
Common Core: The Common Core State Standards Initiative (begun in 2004 and formalized in 2009) defines what students should know, in terms of language and mathematics, at each grade level K-12. As of 2014, it has been adopted in 44 states (not TX, VA, AK, NE, IN, and MN). Because Common Core is a national standard, it has become a lightning-rod for states' rights activists (usually Republicans who oppose Obama), who claim the purpose is to override state educational norms and standards.
Intelligent Design: refers to species development run by intelligent designer (implying God, without the explicitly religious terminology). In contrast, evolution teaches a random process for natural species development. Critics have called intelligent design a thinly disguised version of creationism, which takes a literal approach to the creation account in Genesis, that the earth was created in six days and is less than 10,000 years old.
Social Promotion: Candidates debate whether students should advance a grade merely to keep up with their peer group. 90% of K-12 students are promoted (10% per year are retained).
Teacher Pay: K-12 Teachers’ salaries average $34,200; college instructors average $63,000; compared to $50,700 for similarly educated non-teachers. Public school teachers earn 25% to 100% more than private school teachers. Generally, any reference to ‘increasing teacher pay’ implies opposition to vouchers while negative references to teacher’s unions implies support of vouchers.
Teacher Testing: Current law is that states certify teachers and decide what their requirements are; there are currently no national standards nor testing. Liberals favor raising teacher pay and oppose teacher testing on the grounds of treating teachers more ‘professionally’.
Student Testing: Many conservatives advocate for national testing standard or other forms of ‘standards-based education’. Generally, any reference to ‘standards,’ or especially to dealing with ‘failing schools’, implies support of school vouchers.
Smaller Class Size: Many liberals advocate for smaller class sizes, and/or building more schools to achieve them. Generally, any reference to ‘smaller classrooms,’ or especially to ‘building public schools’, implies opposition to funding private schools.
Bilingual Education: Schools may conduct classes in Spanish or other languages using federal ‘Title VII’ funds, which totaled $380 million last year (1% of total spending). 13% of K-12 students speak a language other than English at home. Generally, liberals favor bilingual education while conservatives favor ‘official English.’
DOE: The Department of Education spent $38 billion last year (2% of the federal budget). But federal spending only accounts for 9% of education spending; most of the annual $600 billion comes from state & local sources. Hard-core conservatives favor abolishing the Department of Education, which was a Republican Party platform plank in the 1980s.
Phonics: Phonics is a method of teaching children to read by sounding out phonemes (groups of letters that represent sounds). Generally, a favorable reference to ‘phonics’ implies a conservative viewpoint on all the other education issues listed here.

School Choice

‘School Choice’ generally refers to a school district allowing parents to decide which school within the district to send their kids to. The political issue is whether to allow the choice to include private schools, parochial schools, and home schooling at taxpayer expense. Taxpayer funding of parochial schools potentially violates the Constitutional separation of church and state. Taxpayer funding of private schools is controversial because it subsidizes parents who are currently paying for private schools themselves, and are usually more wealthy than the average public school family.

Charter Schools

‘Charter schools’ are publicly-funded and publicly-controlled schools which are privately run. They are usually required to adhere to fewer district rules than regular public schools.
By 2011, there were 5,600 public charter schools enrolling more than two million students nationwide. More than 400,000 students remain on wait lists to attend charter schools. Over 500 new public charter schools opened their doors in the 2011-12 school year, an estimated increase of 200,000 students.

Vouchers

‘Vouchers’ are a means of implementing school choice -- parents are given a ‘voucher’ by the school district, which entitles them to, say, $4,000 applicable to either public school or private school tuition.
The value of the voucher is generally lower than the cost of one year of public education (which averages $5,200), so private schools (where tuition averages $8,500) may require cash payment in addition to the voucher.

School Vouchers (Candidates' recent excerpts)

Education Buzzwords

Generally, any reference to ‘standards,’ or especially to dealing with ‘failing schools’, implies support of school vouchers. Generally, any reference to ‘smaller classrooms,’ or especially to ‘building public schools’, implies opposition to funding private schools.

K-12 Education Statistics

Total spending is $260 billion, (7% federal; the rest split state & local) rising by 5% per year.
Student population is 50 million, rising slowly (1 million per year) since 1984.
Public school spending is $5,200 per student, staying about even with inflation.
Parochial school costs $4,200 per student, not discounting church-provided buildings & other subsidies.
Private school costs $8,500 per student, not discounting scholarships or other financial aid.
90% attend public schools; about 6 million attend private & parochial schools.
78% of schools have Internet access; 97% plan to by the year 2000.
27% of classrooms have Internet access; lower in poor and minority schools.

College Education & Cost Statistics

61% of high school graduates continue on to some post-secondary education.
43% enroll at 4-year colleges; 33% graduate college.
Race strongly determines the percentage enrolling at college
(49% for Asians; 38% for Blacks; 28% for Hispanics).
Socioeconomic status even more strongly determines percentage enrolling at college
(19% from the poorest ¼ of families vs. 70% from the richest ¼ of families).
Tuition plus room and board at public colleges averages $6,700, and at private college $18,500.
Public college costs 15% of the average family’s income, and the percentage is holding steady (tuition rises are keeping pace with median income rises).
Private college costs 42% of the average family’s income, and the percentage is also holding steady.

Background documents
Pro & Con of Social Promotion, opinions by NPR's 'NewsHour' Straight A's Act, 1999 Academic Achievement for All Act Issues Library from Policy.com	Teacher Testing, background by FairTest. DOE Budget, FY 2000 Goals 2000, education reform legislation

Click for books or references on Education:

Rhetoric Versus Reality on Vouchers and Charters
NCLB textbook
Anti NCLB
Charter Schools
School Vouchers
National Consumer Law Center, "Student Loan Borrower Assistance", downloaded Oct. 2020
Education Next, "Depth Over Breadth," by Daniel Kreisman & Kevin Stange, Fall 2020
U.S. Department of Education, "White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities" downloaded Sept. 2020
College Raptor, "How Many College Students Receive Financial Aid?", by Morgan Staub, August 27, 2020
, "Average Cost of College in America", by Justin Song, June 14, 2020
The Washington Times, "Vocational education funding pushed for increase amid overall cuts," by Christopher Vondracek, February 10, 2020
Education Week, "What Trump's Action on School Prayer Means (and Doesn't Mean)," by Evie Blad, January 16, 2020
Financial Services Perspectives, "Bankruptcy Court Rejects Brunner 'Myth' and Discharges $220K in Student Loan Debt," by Keith S. Anderson, Alexandra Dugan and Christopher L. Hawkins, January 16, 2020
CNN, "Senate passes bill to permanently fund historically black colleges and universities," by Shawna Mizelle, December 5, 2019
Associated Press, "$25M deal over Trump University fraud lawsuits moves forward," by Sudhin Thanawala, February 6, 2018
Center for American Progress, "Trump University: A Look at an Enduring Education Scandal," by Ulrich Boser, Danny Schwaber, and Stephenie Johnson, March 30, 2017
Brookings Institute, "Why federal spending on disadvantaged students (Title I) doesn't work," by Mark Dynarski and Kirsten Kainz, November 20, 2015
U.S. Department of Education, "Improving Basic Programs Operated by Local Educational Agencies (Title I, Part A)"
Freedom From Religion Foundation, "The Case Against School Prayer," by Annie Laurie Gaylor, 1995


*Other candidates on Education:*	*Background on other issues:*
*2020 Presidential Democratic Primary Candidates:* V.P.Joe Biden (D-DE) Mayor Mike Bloomberg (I-NYC) Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D-IN) Sen.Cory Booker (D-NJ) Secy.Julian Castro (D-TX) Rep.John Delaney (D-MD) Rep.Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) Sen.Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) Gov.Deval Patrick (D-MA) Sen.Bernie Sanders (I-VT) CEO Tom Steyer (D-CA) Sen.Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) *2020 GOP and Independent Candidates:* CEO Don Blankenship (C-WV) Gov.Larry Hogan (R-MD) ~~Gov.John Kasich~~ (R-OH) V.P.Mike Pence (R-IN) ~~Gov.Mark Sanford~~ (R-SC) ~~CEO Howard Schultz~~ (I-WA) Pres.Donald Trump (R-NY) Gov.Jesse Ventura (I-MN) V.C.Arvin Vohra (L-MD) Rep.Joe Walsh (R-IL) Gov.Bill Weld (L-MA) *2020 Withdrawn Democratic Candidates:* ~~State Rep.Stacey Abrams~~ (D-GA) Sen.Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) Sen.Kamala Harris (D-CA) ~~Gov.John Hickenlooper~~ (D-CO) ~~Gov.Jay Inslee~~ (D-WA) Mayor Wayne Messam (D-FL) Rep.Seth Moulton (D-MA) Rep.Beto O`Rourke (D-TX) Adm.Joe Sestak (D-PA) ~~Rep.Eric Swalwell~~ (D-CA)	Abortion Budget/Economy Civil Rights Corporations Crime Drugs Education Energy/Oil Environment Families Foreign Policy Free Trade Govt. Reform Gun Control Health Care Homeland_Security Immigration Jobs Principles Social Security Tax Reform Technology War & Peace Welfare

Background on Education

School Prayer:

Title One schools:

HBCUs:

Trump University:

Vocational Ed:

Student debt:

Student Bankruptcy:

College Funding

Race to the Top

NCLB - No Child Left Behind

Education Buzzwords

School Choice

Charter Schools

Vouchers

Education Buzzwords

K-12 Education Statistics

College Education & Cost Statistics

Background documents