Event kicks off university forum
“Education is what we do at Notre Dame, and we recognize its importance in the lives of young men and women, and to the country,” said Notre Dame President Fr. John I. Jenkins, CSC, as he introduced former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
Bush discussed the K-12 education reforms that he implemented during his term as governor. He described his Florida “cocktail of reforms,” which has succeeded in improving the literacy rate of elementary school students and increasing the graduation rate of high school students.
Bush demands accountability from schools and teachers. One of the first changes he implemented as governor was grading the schools themselves on a scale of A to F based on students’ standardized test performance.
“Tough, hard-edged policies are required to achieve student success…drawing a line in the sand forces the adults in the system to focus on what’s important: learning…There is no tolerance for failure and mediocrity,” Bush insisted. “There are all sorts of excuses in public education,” he continued. “Education doesn’t have enough money….[but] the US spends more per student than any country in the world.”
“We are trying to change this culture of excuses and pessimism,” said Bush. “By using excuses, pubic education is doing a disservice to its students.”
Florida was the first state to create a school voucher program to allow choices for parents who wish to move their children from failing public schools, Bush explained.
“Vouchers create pressure on the public education system. If you give people choices, schools will have to be more accountable for their decisions,” he said.
Bush has made few friends within the teachers unions. During the question and answer session, he said that the Florida Educational Association signed a mortgage on their headquarters in Tallahassee to support his opponent’s ultimately unsuccessful campaign in 2000.
Bush said that he wishes to eliminate tenure and to pay higher wages for teachers of understaffed subjects such as math and sciences. “We must move away from the unions and collective bargaining on teacher’s wages,” he said. “[We must] pay teachers based on student learning.”
Though he did not advocate the replacement of traditional school environments, Bush strongly advocated the benefits of digital education. He stated that virtual classes can provide rich content that would otherwise be unavailable, particularly to students in rural areas.
Furthermore, Bush proposed that digital learning could assist children in developing initiative and learning at their own pace. “It is impossible to have a class of 25 students and expect to teach each child how they need to be taught,” he said. “Through [digital learning] teachers become coaches and each student is held accountable for [his] own learning.”
Bush concluded by suggesting that Notre Dame could play an important role in educational reform.
“The brand of Notre Dame is world-class. Why not take this brand based on my religion, based on excellence, all over the country? What not take it to Latin America? Why not, Father?” asked Bush, addressing Fr. Jenkins. “If Notre Dame [participated in digital learning] and subsidized it, you would find lots of moms and dads keeping their kids in Catholic education for the promise of a Notre Dame degree.”
Bush hopes that Notre Dame will become the “largest worldwide online provider of rigorous, college-prep courses for all students. Become the leading university in training educators to teach digitally. And tap the incredible talent of Notre Dame graduates to advance the mantle of reform and digital learning.”
“This is a long-term fight for change,” says Bush. “I hope you get involved in this cause, because it is very important for this country.”
Derek Defensor, a sophomore living off-campus, can be reached at ddefenso@nd.edu.
