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Published: October 8, 2008 3:00 a.m.

The missing issue

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Education should be a key issue in November.

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Where they stand
The candidates’ positions on No Child Left Behind, from their campaign Web sites:

President

John McCain – “There should be an emphasis on standards and accountability. However, our goal cannot be group averages. Instead, our focus should be to inspire every child to strive to reach his or her potential. While NCLB has been invaluable in providing a clear picture of which schools and students are struggling, it is only the beginning of education reform.”

Barack Obama – “Obama and Biden will reform NCLB, which starts by funding the law. Obama and Biden believe teachers should not be forced to spend the academic year preparing students to fill in bubbles on standardized tests. He will improve the assessments used to track student progress to measure readiness for college and the workplace and improve student learning in a timely, individualized manner. Obama and Biden will also improve NCLB’s accountability system so that we are supporting schools that need improvement, rather than punishing them.”

3rd District Congress

Republican Mark Souder – “Ensuring the promise of education means letting parents and communities – those who know best what is good for children – make decisions, not bureaucrats in Washington. Local control of education provides the accountability that is lost when a federal agency determines what is best for Hoosier students. This also means that the system works best when parents and communities are engaged in their schools.”

Democrat Michael Montagano – (no statement on education)

6th District Congress

Republican Mike Pence – (no statement on education)

Democrat Barry Welsh – “I support public education. I am a product of public education; it needs to be strengthened, not undercut. No Child Left Behind is a great sounding name, but creating unfunded mandates is not an educational policy.”

The sweeteners added to the $700 billion Wall Street rescue plan last week included a few crumbs for education: a two-year extension of the $250 income-tax credit teachers can receive for buying classroom supplies, $400 million in tax credits for bondholders on school renovation and repair projects and renewal of a program that helps rural schools that once depended on timber taxes.

That’s in keeping, unfortunately, with the attention education has been getting at the federal level. In spite of the best efforts of some of the nation’s movers and shakers, the issue has barely registered as a campaign topic, muscled out by the aforementioned financial meltdown and by pointless attention to lapel pins and same-sex marriage.

K-12 education is an obligation of the states, of course. But the federal government’s role has significantly grown, particularly with approval of the No Child Left Left Behind Act in 2002.

When former President Clinton campaigned here for Hillary Rodham Clinton in March, he noted that criticizing the federal accountability law was a guaranteed applause line – one that would have the elk applauding in the middle of Idaho.

Which makes it all the more baffling why the candidates for president and for Congress aren’t more eager to talk about education and why questions about school issues aren’t being asked of them. Strong American Schools, a non-partisan group supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, launched Ed in ’08, an initiative aimed at making education the national priority this election year. The two foundations pledged $60 million for the effort 16 months ago, but decided to stop spending at $24 million.

A Gates Foundation official told Time Magazine that the campaign had succeeded in its goals of having John McCain and Barack Obama endorse its three policy priorities: Alternative pay for teachers, high standards and extended learning time.

But others saw the funding suspension as a defeat.

“If Bill Gates is throwing in the towel, there’s no hope for the rest of us to get education on the agenda,” an official with the Public Education Network told Time.

It’s not quite so hopeless. With just under four weeks before Election Day, there’s time for the candidates to begin talking specifics. But more important is for voters to begin looking at the candidates’ records and platforms. They must also ask questions of the candidates to ensure that whoever is elected will know that education is a priority, and it is a priority.

An Associated Press poll conducted in late June found that Americans ranked the economy as their No. 1 issue, well ahead of others. But education ranked third behind gasoline prices and just about even with health care – ahead of the war in Iraq, terrorism, the environment and immigration.

Education might still be primarily a local issue, but the widening gap between the U.S. and other nations in academic achievement makes it imperative that the White House and Congress recognize the vital role the federal government must play in supporting the states.

It’s time for the candidates to tell voters how they will make it happen.