Paul Coverdell: “last night President Clinton delivered some good news and some bad news for those who, like me, want to address the…”

“last night President Clinton delivered some good news and some bad news for those who, like me, want to address the crisis in American education. And Madam President, that crisis exists in grades kindergarten through high school. I repeat, kindergarten through high school. The good news is that President Clinton has finally joined the Republicans in recognizing that we must address this crisis. It is bad enough that our Nation's schoolchildren have to run a gauntlet of drugs and violence just to sit in class, but when they get to the classroom they are not learning the basics. Just recently, a study published in Education Week showed that only 4 in 10 urban school students could master basic math and reading skills. Four in 10. It does not get much better when we move to the suburban schools. There it is only 6 in 10 who can master these basic skills when tested. Madam President, we are failing our students, and we clearly are not preparing America for the new century that the President spoke of last evening.”