Many rightfully argue that education reform should be a bi-partisan effort, and on some issues Democrats and Republicans agree. Members of both parties support charter schools, merit pay, and teacher evaluations linked in some way to student performance. However, when it comes to vouchers, the parties have two very different opinions; many Republicans support vouchers, while most Democrats do not – but not all.
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Republican presidential nominee, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, attended the Education Nation 2012 Summit Tuesday, saying a few words before taking questions from NBC’s Brian Williams and the audience, portions of which were aired Wednesday on the Today Show’s Education Nation (you can see the video hereand read the full transcript here). Governor Romney offered a contrast to President Obama on education reform, particularly in regards to the President’s assertion that criticizing teachers unions is equivalent to “teacher-bashing.” Among the many education issues covered during his appearance, Governor Romney did indeed address the issue of teachers unions that often hold back reform. But he also discussed the importance and of the role of teachers and the value we should place on the profession.
President Obama appeared this morning on the Today show’s “Education Nation” on NBC (see the video here). In the interview Savannah Guthrie began by asking the President about the recent teachers union strike in his hometown of Chicago. Specifically Ms. Guthrie addressed how the strike put Democrats who support education reform in a difficult position, as they have traditionally sided with unions. Ms. Guthrie quoted the Republican Presidential nominee, Mitt Romney, as saying that President Obama chose his side – the unions. Obama responded that “Governor Romney and a number of folks try to politicize the issue and do a lot of teacher-bashing.” Ms. Guthrie struck back asking, “can you really say that teachers unions aren’t slowing the pace of reform?” President Obama went on the defensive replying, “I just get really frustrated when I hear teacher-bashing as evidence of reform.”
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Devan CreanI graduated from the University of Denver with a B.A. in History (minor in Political Science) and the University of Wyoming with a Master of Public Administration. I am an experienced copywriter and content manager. I am also a former intern/research associate for the Education Policy Center at the Independence Institute in Denver, Colorado and have previously blogged for National School Choice Week. |