Political Quotes

“Mr. President, the last reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 was specifically designed ``To close the achievement gap with accountability, flexibility, and choice, so that no child is left behind.'' Going into the next reauthorization of this law, there has already been much discussion about the extent to which each element of that goal has been achieved. While there is some evidence of a narrowing of the achievement gap between disadvantaged and minority students and their more advantaged peers when it comes to meeting minimum ``proficiency'' goals, the achievement gap among high-ability students has been widening. Some of our most promising students, the scientists, inventors, and problem solvers of the future, are being left behind. I want to be clear that I am not necessarily talking just about high- achieving students. I am talking about high-ability students with gifts and talents that go beyond simply the ability to master grade level content. There is sometimes a tendency to assume that gifted students are the straight A students and vice versa, the students we needn't worry about because they are doing fine on their own. Sadly, that's far from true. A student may get straight A's because his or her abilities and pace of learning just happen to be exactly matched with the grade level curriculum and pace of instruction. Those are not the students I am talking about.…”