Political Quotes

“I rise today to announce the establishment of the National Commission for Science and Mathematics Leadership. This effort is a direct result of the United States' devastating performance of 12th grade students on the recently released Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), the most comprehensive and rigorous comparison of quantitative skills across nations. If we, as a nation, are going to continue to be global leaders in the new knowledge-based economy, we must first re-evaluate our current failures in our classrooms. I concur with Secretary Daley when he stated, ``These results are entirely unacceptable.'' TIMSS was designed to constructively assess the students' knowledge of mathematics and science needed to function effectively in society as adults. American 12th graders were outperformed in mathematics and science literacy by their counterparts in 12 of 20 countries, and only faired better than 2, Cypress and South Africa. In advanced mathematics and physics, no country performed more poorly. We simply cannot accept the conclusion of this study without considering its consequences on our entire educational system.”